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Old 07-10-2014, 08:16 PM   #1
cdiddy408
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What type of wax do you use for casting?

Hey guys,

I've been using Willow Wax for several years and love it, but as you may all know, they stopped making the stuff and I'm close to running out on my supply. What other types of wax are out there that is comparable to Willow's stuff?

I mainly use wax to cast my rough sculpt and sculpt detail to, then melt it down and reuse again after the mold is made. Any suggestions would greatly help. Thanks fellas!

Ken
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Old 07-16-2014, 03:37 PM   #2
S-tier Adam
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When I got started sculpting it was right around the time Willow Wax went under, and I couldn't find any comparable products so I just made my own wax. I think most sculptors do this, but I'm not sure. It's kind of like yeast, once you get a start with it, you can pretty much just keep the same wax indefinitely. I throw all my wax scraps and wax parts (after making master molds) in the my wax melting pot. When I need to pour a wax casting, I just put it on low heat, stir it up and strain it through pantyhose. I also create a solid block in a wax-lined dixie cup to use as sculpting wax (make sure its cooled a little). It's also great because you can tweak it to fit your needs. For example, my last batch was too soft from some of the wax sheet and wax sprue scraps I threw in the pot, so I need to add more carnauba wax to make it harder.

I don't know about ratios, but the materials I use in my wax are:
beeswax, paraffin wax, injection wax, carnauba wax, microcrystalline wax, crayons, and coconut oil. I think that's everything >_>

It's not that hard to do since it's a very inexact science. It's also cool, because it can really be whatever color you want; injection wax comes in a variety of colors, and then you can throw some crayons in for color. My initial batch turned out too deep of a red, so that's why I thought of coconut oil to make it more of a flesh tone.

I'm sure there are some good products out there too. I know castilene is popular, but I'm not sure if that's a wax or something else; and I once heard that it can be quite delicate.

I would be interested to know what most people use for wax too.
Lemme know if you have any questions about DIY wax.
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Old 07-18-2014, 03:18 PM   #3
black and white
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Gary sells all the formulas for very cheap on his site now. He also went the extra mile to create idiot proof mixing instructions and lists suppliers to order waxes from. If you know you like a product why switch?
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Old 07-26-2014, 05:26 AM   #4
jollyskeleton
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Quote:
Originally Posted by TiggerT View Post
Black and white do you have a link to Gary website?
This is the page you're looking for
http://willowproducts.com/
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Old 07-28-2014, 04:16 PM   #5
jbabler
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I love this wax recipe

I just made a big batch of this...

http://makezine.com/2013/02/05/make-...sculpting-wax/
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Old 07-31-2014, 11:03 PM   #6
jbabler
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It's hard and I want it hard for details. An early batch didn't work out because the talc powder just wasn't "right". But buy from the link and it is perfection.
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