Wax Testing Project for CS members - Phase 1, SCORECARDS

[TallTayl]

Winter is coming.   I’ve planned several series to help us pass the long cold days with experiments. 
 

there are SO many new waxes out on the market that it seems impossible to keep up.  Are they any better? Who knows.  All we have are anecdotes from a few people here and there before the next biggest thing hits. 
 

as I embark on formal wax tests, it seems like a perfect time to update my own testing sheets with ideas from the brilliance of the CS membership.  
 

In addition to recommended pour temps, and basic stuff, I’d like to include space to track nuances. 
Glass adherence

Firmness (measured by penetrometer)

heat gun friendliness

prone to cavities, cracks

Colorability

scalability (incl works in larger and smaller containers easily)

Finickiness (has to be stirred to 105.2 * whilst stirring counterclockwise while reciting a poem to the candle deities?)

and much more. 
 

what things are make/break a wax for you when selecting a replacement? Let’s compile a useful list to make getting started with meaningful records quicker.

 

 

[GoldieMN]

2 hours ago, TallTayl said:

 

Finickiness (has to be stirred to 105.2 * whilst stirring counterclockwise while reciting a poem to the candle deities?)

and much more. 

 

HAHAHA😊  For me it is about the hot throw and soot.

GoldieMN

[NightLight]

Oh agree on finicky wax. I throw those out the window if they can’t get adhesion without wrapping in tin foil, or must be heat gunned or they won’t look nice etc. etc.

[Lizzy]

Finickiness (has to be stirred to 105.2 * whilst stirring counterclockwise while reciting a poem to the candle deities?) 

 

 

For me it's hot throw, glass adhesion and (ease of) wicking
Also....and this is a big no no for me personally........texture of the wax itself. I absolutely cannot work with a wax that has a "slimy" soft texture. I get so grossed out that I could barf. I have tried. I have tried many, many times. And I recently tried again with Coco 83. I know some ppl praise the soft "butter like" waxes for the ease of be able to cut them with a knife....but for me it's not doable. I much prefer clobbering a hard slab of wax. It's therapeutic. I'm weird. 

[TallTayl]

while testing several new blends I thought of another category: After Burn Appearance. so many candles just look grim after extinguishing, others cleave across.