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Removing wax coating on bowl blanks.

Joined
Dec 26, 2020
Messages
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Location
Leland, NC
I have a large number of wood blanks that have a wax coating. Should I remove the wax coating when I rough out the blank or should I remove the coating before I turn it?

Thanks

Rick
 
Joined
Dec 26, 2020
Messages
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Location
Leland, NC
The few I have gotten I just turn turn them without removing the wax.

You might want to treat the wax loaded shaving differently. Probably not good to use in raku pottery or for hamster bedding.
Thanks. The shavings will be used in the walkway between raised beds in the community garden.
 
Joined
Jun 6, 2018
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La Grange, IL
No, no more slippery than the shavings will be.

The only way to truly remove the wax is by cutting or sanding off the wood surface. Heat/solvents can get some off, but the liquefied wax can then also get deeper into the pores and crevices of the wood surface.
 
Joined
Mar 5, 2018
Messages
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Location
Quorn, Leicestershire, United Kingdom
This is important
Turning blanks which have wax on can create a slippery surface which could result in a fall /trip
To prevent this happening I vacuum the lathe area as soon as I have removed the wax I then apply a product similar to

Bar Keepers Friend Powdered Cleanser​

This is to remove any remaining slipperiness

I then recheck the floor before continuing to turn
 
Joined
Apr 29, 2020
Messages
89
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560
Location
Toronto, ON
This is important
Turning blanks which have wax on can create a slippery surface which could result in a fall /trip
To prevent this happening I vacuum the lathe area as soon as I have removed the wax I then apply a product similar to

Bar Keepers Friend Powdered Cleanser​

This is to remove any remaining slipperiness

I then recheck the floor before continuing to turn
I defintely had a problem with a very slippery floor from the wax coated shavings. I will use Brian's suggestion of vacuuming immediately... before I walk on the shavings. It took some scrubbing to get the wax off the floor,
 
Joined
Dec 26, 2020
Messages
51
Likes
5
Location
Leland, NC
I defintely had a problem with a very slippery floor from the wax coated shavings. I will use Brian's suggestion of vacuuming immediately... before I walk on the shavings. It took some scrubbing to get the wax off the floor,
Thank you for the info. I think I will try scraping them and putting down a small tarp on the floor to contain the initial shavings and putting them into a container before moving on.

Rick
 
Joined
Jul 18, 2018
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Baltimore, MD
I’ve watched this thread with a bit of wonder and amusement. I’ve never thought twice about removing the anchorseal, and like Henry, Mark and Al, just turn it off. It is a very small percentage of the waste that winds up on the floor, which I bag up and either add to the garden or throw out. The garden has never complained. Slippery? The mounds of shavings I create have caused all kinds of issues, but slippery hasn’t been one of them. Just my $.02.
 
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