I am a former jeweller turned CAD designer (in the jewellery
industry) and am currently using The t66 Solidscape machine to
produce waxes for a variety of clients, and was wondering if any one
Could assist me in a cleaner and more time effective way to clean my
waxes?
Firstly i used the formaldehyde solution (Which was the supplied
method, but even with an exhaust fan Directly above it, it really
made me feel sick and it was in another room) but this seemed to give
the best finish to date, this is at my expense. Then i have tried the
Drakeol9 (two part solution) this is slow and can sometimes take me
the whole day to clean the waxes, leaving me no time for clients or
work.
I have heard that there is a way you can clean the waxes in a series
of baths using only household products Has anyone heard of this
method?
I would really appreciate any feedback on this matter By the way love
Orchid has been very helpful !!! J
I have a couple of thoughts for you that will help you cleanup your
waxes. With the Waxcutter milling machine we do all of our cutting
wet. We pile up the wax debris around the cutter and saturate it with
soapy water, it helps a lot. Putting the wax into an ultrasonic
cleaner will remove a lot of wax debris but usually not all of it.
Our final trick, aside from picking away with a sharp toothpick is
using a spot cleaning gun from from the dry cleaning industry. They
are also used in silk screening. The guns put out a very narrow
stream of water at 3,000 psi and with care will do a great job of
cleaning up waxes. The guns also do a good job of cleaning investment
off of castings. A good way to polish the tool marks off of a
machined wax is with a piece of pantyhose wrapped around a Q-tip.
Small pieces of hard felt are also useful when polishing wax.
The little bits of wax debris that stick in the cut lines can also
be cleaned out with a soft, old toothbrush or paintbrush. I also keep
a handheld “bulb” cleaner to blow a forceful blast of air into the
cracks as I’m carving the wax. You can also used the canned
compressed air used for cleaning computer keyboards.
Finally, if you need to further refine the wax surface, try using a
mild solvent (Wax Kleen is one formulated specifically for this). To
get a great surface, I apply the solvent using a Q-tip, then buff
with Swiffer dry floor wipes, which have a very soft, non-directional
fiber.
Hope this helps!
Karen Goeller
No Limitations Designs
Hand-made, one-of-a-kind jewelry www.nolimitations.com
There are several brands out there. The Mystic Spot Cleaning Gun
seems to be the least expensive at about $60 from Valley Litho
Supply (that is what we use). You can Google it or go to E-Bay.
If you get one be careful. It will damage delicate waxes if you are
too close to the nozzle and the stream is not adjusted correctly.
Set the volume low and have the wax 8 or 10 inches away. Also, be
sure to protect your hands, the stream of water will easily puncture
your skin.
I wonder if placing the waxes in a gentle commercial ultrasonic
cleaner would do the job. Are you trying to rid things stuck to it?
Don’t know if this would work, just speculating. Sumner Silverman
does a quite a bit of wax work, Kate Wolf too of course. I think
Sumner just blows it away, but constantly. Are the waxes hand cut or
are they cut from a machine.
I have some yellow citrus smelling was remover that I got years ago,
but it still works fine the last time I used it. I’m wondering if
Citrus Solv, a commercial cleaner would do the trick.
Some waxes that are cut on a mill, have a fine fuzz of wax residue. I
know a CAD/CAM guy who sprays the finished waxes with Windex and then
gently scrubs the wax with a toothbrush. It does a good job.
I hope this helps.
Kate Wolf in Portland, Maine. Hosting wicked good workshops by the bay.
One more tip on wax cleaning - Years ago I took a large soft
toothbrush and cut the head off leaving about a half inch of the
handle. Then I drilled a small hole in this part. Attach it with a
screw with the bristles facing down on the left rear side of your
benchpin. As you are carving you can swipe your wax model gently
across the toothbrush so wax doesn’taccumulate, plus you can see what
your’re doing and you don’t have to lay down your work and pick up
that toothbrush to clean it off. It does save time and helps keep
your work sharp.Then when it’s finished I always wash it off with a
soft toothbrush and gentle soap. When you rinse it off it’s really
clean.
One more tip on wax cleaning - Years ago I took a large soft
toothbrush and cut the head off leaving about a half inch of the
handle. Then I drilled a small hole in this part. Attach it with a
screw with the bristles facing down on the left rear side of your
benchpin. As you are carving you can swipe your wax model gently
I did something similar. I cut off the head of a toothbrush, and I
attach it to the back of the middle joint of my dominant hand index
finger with a soft hair elastic looped around the handle piece and
through the bristles. While I’m carving, all I need to do is bend my
index finger a bit to brush wax chips off the model. That way, if
I’m carving somewhere other than my bench (I like to work outside on
nice days) the brush goes with me, and I can’t lose it.
Thanks for this suggestion…my son just gave me some “milled” work
and I need to clean up the little residue! Windex to the rescue! Am
eager to get them cast - they are double sided - thin - and may be a
challenge!
I have tried several cutting lubricants including the soy oil. For
me, it’s a waste of oil. I don’t see any great improvement, and for
really finely detailed items like filigree, the oils seem just to
gum things up.
I have had good success using the spiral bits from Bits & Bits. Long
lasting and seem to cut a little cleaner.
The answer will be when a wax manufacturer develops a cleaner
cutting wax formula. Lets all pray for no more fuzzies.