Tortoise Shell Palm Testing

[topofmurrayhill]

Revisiting some wicks using the FO that burns well with tortoise shell. This is RRD 34 NST2 vs RRD 37 NST2, end of burn 1.

The smaller wick has much too large a flame after 3 hours. Reminds me of CSN 9 vs CSN 11 but worse. The RRD 37 is good though, and that's really the likely size if there is one.

For various reasons, my original tests of cooling rates were misleading. In line with what Mama Turtle demonstrated, the pattern improves if cooling is slowed down. These pillars were poured at 175 and 185, which didn't really make any difference, but they were cooled under a box and came out better than the previous ones with this FO. I have another set that cooled under a smaller box and they came out even better.

[topofmurrayhill]

CSN 11, end of burn 10.

[topofmurrayhill]

End of 3-hour burn 2 for RRD 34 NST2 and RRD 37 NST2. No problems except a very small mushroom on the 34 at the very end.

End of burn 11 for CSN 11. I let it go for 4 hours. This wick has been burning very nicely with no mushrooming or other misbehavior.

[topofmurrayhill]

Revisiting LX 18 NST2 and LX 20 NST2 with the good fragrance oil. This is the end of the first 3-hour burn and the flame is mad tall on the 20. A little tall on the 18 but not so bad. High flames on the first burn, not exactly out of the ordinary with this wax.

The testers came out nice. These are the ones that cooled under the smaller box.

[topofmurrayhill]

Here's the end of burn 12 for the CSN 11 tester (38 hours so far).

[topofmurrayhill]

The first time I ever tested CD and CDN in tortoise shell palm, they didn't even get through one burn without problems. I decided to revisit them now with the better fragrance oil and I got the same results. They burned well for less than one hour before the wicks started to fry and the flames faded. By the end they were sputtering and crackling. That confirms that the problem was not the FO, but their compatibility with the wax itself. CD and CDN are not compatible with tortoise shell palm.

[topofmurrayhill]

Here is burn 2 for LX 18 NST2 and LX 20 NST2. Better flame sizes and just a hint of mushrooming towards the end.

Also burn 13 for CSN 11.

[topofmurrayhill]

The first photo is the end of burn 14 for CSN 11. My word for this wicking would be purrfect. Burn time so far is 44 hours.

The second photo is burn 3 for RRD 34 NST2 and RRD 37 NST2. The smaller wick mushroomed very slightly. The RRD wicks have a slightly wider burn than the LX NST2 wicks.

The third photo is burn 3 for LX 18 NST2 and LX 20 NST2. The smaller wick mushroomed very slightly. The more downward burn compared to RRD helps me worry less about blowouts.

[topofmurrayhill]

Burn 15 for CSN 11.

[topofmurrayhill]

Decided to check the compatibility of HTP. I was wondering if it would fry like CD and CDN, and it did so. Not compatible with tortoise shell palm.

[topofmurrayhill]

Burn 4 for LX 18 NST2 and LX 20 NST2.

The 20 had some slight mushrooming and I was worried about the shell getting thin on one side.

[topofmurrayhill]

Burn 4 for RRD 34 NST2 and RRD 37 NST2.

The 37 melted through the side close to the end of the burn session.

[topofmurrayhill]

Aftermath of burn 16 for CSN 11.

It burned for about 2 hours before the wick fell over. Total burn time for this tester was 49 hours.

Edited April 30, 2010 by topofmurrayhill

[topofmurrayhill]

Burn 5 for RRD 34 NST2.

And so it ends for the RRDs. RRD 34 may be the best size if you need to use this type of wick, but you might have to watch the burn time. There's only one size smaller, but I'm not going to test RRD 29 because all I have is wick assemblies in votive lengths.

[topofmurrayhill]

Burn 5 for LX 18 NST2 and LX 20 NST2.

End of the line for the 20, but the 18 continues.

Please remember that this is the specially-treated version of LX. Regular LX wicking will not work in this wax.

[topofmurrayhill]

Here was a test of Classic flat braid using 30-ply and 27-ply. The burn photo is from the 2-hour point and the other is the aftermath of the 3-hour burn. Good old FB held up admirably compared to some results I've gotten, but this wasn't really a strong burn. The curled portion if the wicks and more is shriveled up. It doesn't make me inclined to put flat braid on the compatible wicks list and I'm on the fence about whether to do another burn.

[topofmurrayhill]

Here's LX 18 NST2 about 1/2 hour before the scheduled end of burn 6. I managed to catch it just in the act of blowing out.

Believe it or not, I think LX NST2 actually works pretty well in this wax (apart from not being self-trimming) and I even think that 18 is probably the best size.

If it's not my imagination, I think I'm seeing ambient temperature having a significant effect on these candles. We're going into a warm spell here and it seems a lot harder for these tortoise shell testers, if they're at a certain stage, to get through a burn without blowing out. Having to keep an eye on the candles may just be a fact of life with this wax.

In prior testing I was successful in completely burning down an LX 20 NST2 candle. But now that wick blew out on burn 5 and this one on burn 6. It was a lot cooler outside when I did that original test. Even though the difference in room temperature is only something like 5 to 8 degrees, it's enough to seriously affect the tests.

[topofmurrayhill]

Decided to give the FB testers one more chance, but it didn't work out. Poor burn and blowout on the second burn with the 30-ply. Both wicks are pretty shriveled up. Flat braid doesn't go on the recommended list.

[debratant]

That's too bad about flat braid. I really like using it. I found a bunch

of wicks that I had stored away and I found 24ply. I repoured my berries and lillies tester and wicked it with the 24. Probably will be

too small...but I'm going to burn it anyway just to see.

I also had major leakage in my molds yestereday when I repoured those 2. Lost alot of wax all over the damn place. I had 2 pillars...now down to one lol. I also cooled this one under a cardboard box. The pattern does look better...and I polished it with a paper towel. Looks pretty. Thanks for that tip