Test burn 2&3

[cary]

Well after doing the 2nd and 3rd test burns on my first candle I'm finding my wick drowning and wax on the sides. I'm thinking that it might be under wicked. I used a soy blend from MG ( no special name) a 44-28-18C in a 2" dia tin with 1/2 oz. cucumber melon FO. I get good HT and CT is awesome, but now there is wax on the sides and the flame seems to be drowning. Sorry I didn't have pic's. I did place a wick order with peaks on a sample pack of HTP wicks. I do have another candle that has yet to be tested it's a 16oz. 3" main stay canning jar 15oz container millenium blend (MG) HTP1212 wick, 1oz. Grapefruit mint, sage green dye chip, heated to 175, poured at 115, stirred constently, has wonderful CT and its been curing for about a week now. cant wait to see how it burn's I'll try to remember pics on that one, lol:rolleyes2

[Stella1952]

I hope you test CDs or CDNs while you're at it and that you take pics 'cause we WANNASEE!

[cary]

Thanks Stella, I will put that on the next sample list. I mainly wanted to see how the HPT1212 burned in the container I have. I got 2 cases on sale of the 16oz canning jar's. Thats kind of the contauner I want to go with, but that could all change. I might see if I can find a wide mouth in that size or even go smaller. We'll see how this one does. Here is a pic of the jar. 16oz mainstay canning jar, with a HPT1212 wick.

[Stella1952]

Nice color!! I love the Kerr 8 oz. wide mouth canning jars but they are not easy to find. Albertson's carries them in my area. They are not much taller than they are wide, which makes them easier to wick. Because of the diameter, they have a good sized MP with excellent HT potential. The larger container, the 16 oz. widemouth, is trickier because of its height. It actually takes a size smaller wick with my wax because of the heat buildup as the candle burns down into the taller container. The 8 oz. widemouth is the mainstay of my line. Larger containers also take longer to test, so I found these easier to learn on as well. I prefer the 4 oz. standard JJs over the 8 oz. for the same reason. I can sell these less expensively by the dozens while the larger, higher priced, more beautiful glassware candles sit on the shelf like orphans.

A benefit I did not think of initially is that, while the 8 oz. WM jars give a nice, long burn, they do not last as long as larger capacity jars. This means people have to come back more often to buy the candles they enjoy. Because customers do not genrally do a lot of candle maintenance (fishing out carbon bits, dead moths, dust, etc.), larger candles begin looking "ratty" toward the end whereas the smaller candles keep a better appearance simply because customers haven't has as long to screw up their appearance. I have winced at big candles I have seen in my friends' homes... they frequently end up throwing them out before they are completely burned because they look "nasty." Even though we have no control over what customers do with our candles once they leave our hands, I would have hated for my name to have been on the labels of some of those... the association between nasty looking candles and the label cannot be ignored even if it is no fault of the candle maker.

Have fun testing and keep us updated on how things are going for you.

[cary]

I like how you think, I think I will look into the 8 and 4oz jars, I'm glad I didnt buy 20 cases of the 16oz jars, if need be I"ll use them for canning, lol. Thanks Stella your so informative! we"ll have have coffee some day, lol

[Stella1952]

we"ll have have coffee some day, lo

You're on - I'm coming back to visit the Black Hills one mo' time before I get my astral reassignment.