Choosing the Right Wax

I am new to the forum but have been making jewelry for many years. I am just getting back to lost wax after working mainly with sheet and wire silver.

I began lost wax in high school - I had an amazing teacher - and I remember the wax that we used was red but it was also very controllable. The only wax I have been able to find is Ferris #6, blue sprue wax, both of which tend to just run (almost no control) or the hard blue carving kind. I want to be able to shape and gradually build up the object. I have seen a little information about the brown microcrystalline wax, but my memory has red.

I would appreciate some good insights on the topic with suggestions.

 

https://www.freemansupply.com/products/specialty-tooling-waxes

all the info you need

V/r HT1

 

Thank you both for the responses. Looks like I need to do some additional reading.

 

There are a few people here working with wax, notable among them are Zapins and Matrid, it might be worth your while to look up some of their old posts.

 

To close the loop on this discussion. I have reviewed all the references noted above and unfortunately they have not shed any additional light on the subject. Product descriptions in general lack the real world aspect that I need. I am going to try some of the brown microcrystalline wax and see. This is one of those cases where I will know it when I get a chance to work with it.

Thank you all for your input. The efforts are appreciated.

 

I haven't used Rio Grande for a few years, but have ordered injection wax from them.. They had a large selection. Magna-Ject Pink Injection Wax - Rio Grande The format has changed a lot. since then .

 

not sure what you are looking for here two clicks into the link i sent you

https://www.freemanwax.com/tables/flakecompare.htm

 

Definitely the place to go for wax...

 

I agree that there are many forms of wax, but I am not looking to do injection. In fact the more I go, the less I am able to find the kind of additive lost wax examples that I learned in high school in the 1970s.

 

OMG you Probably cannot find what you used 50 years ago...
Red it might have been sealing wax, the school would have has a budget . sealing wax is bees wax with a colorant
if you are interested in trying brown microcrystalline wax I will send you a sample of Victory brown DM Me, but as mentioned Dm Zapins he is the resident expert on wax, I believe Years ago I sent him a sample , if you like Victory Brown Hit me up Ill sell you mine at half price, im never going to use it in the quantity i bought


V/r HT1

 

Found this on amazon.


Mold-A-Wax Red Soft Ferris No 6 Wax Working Lost Wax Casting

MOLD-A-WAX RED
FERRIS # 6 SOFT by ferris

No. 6 Red Mold-A-Wax (Soft) - This versatile wax is soft uniquely malleable wax to produce free-form jewelry and sculptures using the lost wax process.
Red wax is soft at room temperature of 70°F and can be made more pliable by immersing in warm water.
May be used as adhesive for other waxes.
It is also preferred for repairing wax patterns, joining File-A-Wax sections, as a stone-setter’s “pick-up” wax, or as an engraver’s transfer wax.
Especially good for mini sculptures, leaves, figures, etc. Can be rolled, twisted or squeezed by hand.

 

Happy ending. I bought 12 oz of the brown Microcrystalline wax on Amazon https://a.co/d/4rkrz5k and it has the same consistency as the wax I recall from my early days. It has more control, it retains its shape better and works better than the Ferris waxes I've tried.

Thanks for all the friendly input. I really appreciate it.

 

Good to hear you found what you need. Just saw this thread and was of interest as I have some Microcrystalline wax I will be trying at some point.