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137598 | Bill Kasper <dragonlist@u...> | 2004‑10‑08 | Re: How to polish the stove (beeswax cleaning) |
and small is defined how? one shopping bag per big *ss pot of water? or? having three bags of unprocessed beeswax, and having read john's very, very cautionary tale, inquiring minds, etc. thanks. bill felton, ca On Oct 8, 2004, at 11:53 AM, Arthur Bailey wrote: > The main advice is to > melt small batches. |
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137590 | John Lederer <john@j...> | 2004‑10‑08 | How to polish the stove (beeswax cleaning) |
Well SWMBO was out this morning. This was essential to my cleaning of the grocery bags of beeswax I snarfed up for almost nothing. You see, I had a plan. Not just a plan, but a better plan. I was going to combine two steps of cleaning -- I would put the beeswax in *weighted* panty hose in a pot of hot water. The soluble debris would dissolve, the sinking debris would go down, and the floating debris would stay in the pnthy hose, sunk at the bottom of the pot. No need to scrape the bottom of the block. Ingenious, yes? I knew just the pot. My wife has this humongous "stock pot" -- tall, deep, a 6 lobster pot. But, wise from 35+ years of marriage I knew that , despite the reasonablenes of the request, the assurances of washing, the gentle kiss, she would balk. Best wait till she was out. So this morning I found old panty hose, shoveled in beeswax, put in some stones, tied it all tight, sank it in the near full pot, and turned on the burner. Nothing. Nothing. Nothing. Big, big, pot. Watched. Not hot. So I decided I would check the news on the computer. Check the sports scores. Read Oldtools. Check out the new JibJab. In a seeming flash of a moment, I heard "shooshing" noises from the kitchen. Comprehension was immediate. I leapt up. So did Beaker my trusty Springer Spaniel, who slightly more nimble and speedy tried to pass me in the hallway. A moment of confusion and I was pitched forward on the floor, sliding into the kitchen, and sort of right on down the floor on a slick pad of foamy beeswax and hot water. Fortunately stopped by a bag of potatoes I have not yet taken to the basement. A leap to the burner with a wary eye to the fire extinguisher. The pot is flinging gobs of foaming beeswax out 1-2' . Burner off. Poured a bowl of cold water into the pot. Surveyed the mess. Everything smelled of honey. Paper towels, string mop (I'll have to get a new head), dtergent, floor cleans up OK. But..stove has congealed. Find that panty hose actually cleans congealed wax best-- sort of rubs it off like a screen sander for wall board. I have a big bag of panty hose. But it doesn't quite get it all off. A thin film is left. But rubbing that with a rag sure leaves a nice shine. So when SWMBO gets home, I plan on telling her I polished her stove. Beaker won't say anything. Regards, John Lederer Oregon Wisconsin |
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137592 | "Wendrzycki, Raymond NAVAIR" <raymond.wendrzycki@n...> | 2004‑10‑08 | RE: How to polish the stove (beeswax cleaning) |
:o) From: John Lederer=20 :o) Subject: [oldtools] How to polish the stove (beeswax cleaning) :o) =20 :o) Well SWMBO was out this morning... |
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137597 | "Arthur Bailey" <curiousart@e...> | 2004‑10‑08 | RE: How to polish the stove (beeswax cleaning) |
Galoots: Beeswax is an essential ingredient in accordion building and repair. I have a bit of experience in handling this stuff, and if you do a search on accordion wax at rec.music.makers.squeezebox, you can read a few cautionary tales of igniting beeswax and skin grafting. Of course, this is followed by flaming (no pun intended) posts along the lines of "I've been melting wax since before you were born, who are you to tell me..." It's never happened to me, but according to others, beeswax will ignite, and water doesn't do much to put out the fire- it just serves to fling flaming gobs of wax everywhere, maybe even on you. The main advice is to melt small batches. Be careful out there. Art Bailey Queens, NY. John says... > Nothing. Nothing. Nothing. Big, big, pot. Watched. Not hot. |
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137599 | "Arthur Bailey" <curiousart@e...> | 2004‑10‑08 | Re: How to polish the stove (beeswax cleaning) |
Hi Bill and all.. > and small is defined how? > one shopping bag per big *ss pot of water? or? Well, in accordion terms, you're not going to need much even for a big refurbishing job, so we're talking a small, standard, stove top double boiler. I guess the question is, how much do you *really* need to melt in one sitting? I missed the part about the boiling water, and I suppose that would negate the whole "flaming wax" part of my post.. But, part of what makes beeswax so great for accordion repair is (according to folklore) the oils in it which help to keep it from getting brittle for a long period of time. Wouldn't boiling it in water somehow remove whatever useful oils are in the stuff, suspending it in the water? Kind of like making beeswax broth? I might be in over my head here. Art |
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137620 | "Phil and Debbie Koontz" <pdknz@h...> | 2004‑10‑09 | RE: How to polish the stove (beeswax cleaning) |
Thanks John for this story. These little slices of life are what I really like about the OT list. Seems like I had a similar experience with beeswax once, although maybe with a bit less adventure involved. Beeswax is so nice to have around, though. I remember keeping it on the back of the bench for all kinds of things. Lubricating screws comes to mind, of course, and it's great for the occasional swipe along a sawblade to stop that annoying wiggly vibration. And turning the edge on scrapers--don't forget that. But I guess the best part is satisfying the little bit of 10-year-old firebug that still resides inside us. PK Whose next OT chore is regluing all the chairs that seem to keep falling apart around our place. |
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137943 | "John Sawchak" <jherbs@e...> | 2004‑10‑24 | RE: How to polish the stove (beeswax cleaning) |
hehehhe... now you know why I am a fan of the toilet bowl source for beeswax! John Sawchak Don't pollute, be a galoot! > [Original Message] > From: John Lederer |
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