I have a rather strange problem. It seems the 5 yr old grandaughter
of mine got into my jewelry room and tried to make pancakes with the
bees wax using my rolling mill. It is stuck on fairly tight and is
not coming off very well. Can anyone give me some advise on how to
get it off without scratching the rolling mill and messing it all
up?
Thanks ahead of time–you are all wonderful people
Anna Herrick
It seems the 5 yr old grandaughter of mine got into my jewelry room and tried to make pancakes with the bees wax using my rolling mill.
Hi Anna;
Start by scraping what you can off with a plastic scraper, which
should be easily available in the paint section of your local
hardware store, or anywhere that has paint supplies. Then, take an
old hand towel or shop rag and soak it in naptha and wring it out so
it’s damp, not dripping. Naptha is about the only thing I know of
that dissolves wax that isn’t overly hazerdous to be around. Even
so, open a window and wear some plastic gloves, a respirator if you
have one. Now fold the towel or rag a couple times, then turn down
your rollers until you can get a bite on the towel, as if you were
going to roll it through the mill. Roll it in a ways. Hold tight to
the other end and continue rolling. You should be able to turn the
rolls while the towel is caught in them, pressed snugly between the
rollers, but not so tight that it gets pulled in and out of your
grip. If you can’t keep it from rolling in, then loosen the rolls.
Likewise, if it doesn’t take a little effort to keep it from rolling
in, tighten the rolls. Keep rolling, letting the cloth roll in to a
fresh spot from time to time.
David L. Huffman
... the 5 yr old grandaughter of mine got into my jewelry room and tried to make pancakes with the bees wax using my rolling mill.
Hello Anna,
I would take a couple rags and wrap one around each of the rollers.
You probably want each one to go around the roller a few times. Once
they’re in place pour on a nice dose of white spirits. I prefer to use
odorless white spirits for stuff like this but turpentine will do
too, as will Kerosene, diesel fuel, etc, basically anything that wax
will dissolve in and will be roller friendly.
Leave the messy business overnight --ventilation would be a really
good idea-- and by morning the wax will be soft enough to wipe off.
You might want to scrape the worst of it off with a piece of soft wood
beforehand, pine would probably be ideal, but I just try the rag
trick for the first go.
Cheers,
Trevor F.
the 5 yr old grandaughter tried to make pancakes with the bees wax using my rolling mill. It is stuck on fairly tight and is not coming off very well.
Try using a good hair dryer on the rolls to warm them slowly and
harmlessly, whilst wiping the rolls with tissue or kitchen paper. A
little invisible wax residue will inhibit rusting. and do no harm
I sympathise. I have a son, now 56 but 12 at the time who got into my
workshop and made himself a ‘Viking axe’ using my carefully hoarded
piece of 20 gauge sterling sheet. I discovered this because he left
it lying on the lawn, and I nearly mowed it. There’s much, much more
but we won’t go into that now. PADLOCK YOUR WORKSHOP DOOR!!!
Cheers for now,
JohnB of Mapua, Nelson NZ
I don’t know much about rolling mills, but my first thought was to
use a hair dryer to loosen the wax.
Courtney Hipp
Courtney Graham Hipp
cgHipp Jewelry Designs
Anna,
Try melting the wax with a heat gun or hair dryer while wiping it
away with paper toweling. This will probably remove nearly all but a
very thin film of wax, which will wear off in the next few uses (and
help prevent rust!). Never tried it on a rolling mill, but I have
used the same clean-up method on my workbench and various tools with
repeatable success.
You probably don’t need me to tell you this, but I’d get a chain and
padlock and immobilize the mill’s handle when it’s not in use - I’d
hate to think what would happen to any little fingers caught in
there. :-/
Jessee Smith
www.silverspotstudio.com