Homemade silicone vax cell mold presa pentru faguri artificiali din silicon a unui stupari (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MNUfj-DyMS4#ws)
mvh Edward :P
That is a very neat idea.
Alright now you've got my curiosity I've got some questions.
1. When you cut out the plywood what is the black backing?
2. What type of Silicone are you using?
3. Does the plastic foundation (Mold) have a wax coating or is it plain?
4. When you put it the oven at what temperature do you set it at and for how long?
5. Will the plastic foundation (Mold) peel right off or will it stick?
Any help and information will be greatly appreciated,I'm going to build one pretty soon.
I like the idea of creating your own foundation.
Quote from: capt44 on January 28, 2014, 03:05:54 PM
1. When you cut out the plywood what is the black backing?
2. What type of Silicone are you using?
3. Does the plastic foundation (Mold) have a wax coating or is it plain?
4. When you put it the oven at what temperature do you set it at and for how long?
5. Will the plastic foundation (Mold) peel right off or will it stick?
The black/brown plywood is marine waterproof plywood
There are some food grade silicone
The mold is a beeswax sheet of Foundation
Probably just over the meting Point of beeswax 62 to 64 °C (144 to 147 °F).
It melts away into the traypan under the mold.
mvh Edward :-P
Alright I've made a note.
Thanks!
Edward,
Looks pretty neat. Thanks for sharing. Let us know how it works out Capt.
I would not want to cook it inside a home. The fumes will be real strong.
Jim
Quote from: sawdstmakr on January 29, 2014, 06:45:39 AMI would not want to cook it inside a home. The fumes will be real strong.
?? What fumes ? From the beeswax?
mvh Edward :-P
That's on my todo list. Thanks edward.
Before you poured the silicone on the original plastic foundation, did you put some kind of release agent on it like some kind of release wax used for composite moulds? Here is what I use when making kiteboard moulds http://www.rexco-usa.com/waxes-buffing-compound/ (http://www.rexco-usa.com/waxes-buffing-compound/)
The only problem with that would be the release agent clumping up with all the texture of the original.
Quote from: flyboy on January 29, 2014, 01:25:26 PMBefore you poured the silicone on the original plastic foundation, did you put some kind of release agent on it like some kind of release wax used for composite moulds?
You've missed one of the great ideas with this mould, the original Foundation is pure bees wax, not plastic. ;)
That's why they put it in the oven at 70oC so the bees wax from the original Foundation liquefies and you can start using the mold.
When the mould is up and running a mild water solution with a few drops of dish washing liquid will help the new wax Foundation to release.
Others use a blast of pressurize air.
mvh Edward :-P
Quote from: edward on January 29, 2014, 11:17:46 AM
Quote from: sawdstmakr on January 29, 2014, 06:45:39 AMI would not want to cook it inside a home. The fumes will be real strong.
?? What fumes ? From the beeswax?
mvh Edward :-P
Edward.
How did you cure the silicone. I thought it was curing in the oven. Usually silicone needs to air dry. How is it curing once you put the boards together?
Jim
Quote from: sawdstmakr on January 29, 2014, 03:31:39 PMHow did you cure the silicone. I thought it was curing in the oven. Usually silicone needs to air dry. How is it curing once you put the boards together?
As I haven't tried it yet I would assume that they made the mold in more than one stages, first filling the beeswax Foundation and letting it dry then going on to the next stage with time for setting in between.
Putting together thin layer may help i set faster ?
mvh Edward :-P
Alright I have purchased the items I needed to make the wax mold.
I already had the plywood, I'm going to use 3/4 inch Birch sealed in polypropylene.
I sheet of Foundation.
I got one 30 inch piano hinge (Brass)
One 1/8 inch x 2 inch aluminum strip to make the sides.
A box of 1 1/4 inch wood screws, treated.
7 tubes of Premium Waterproof Silicone II -- says it's Permanently waterproof, flexible, Shrink & Crack Proof
Since the weather is bad ( Ice Storm) I will start putting it together tomorrow in stages.
So far I have $75.00 in parts.
I will take pictures as I build it.
Alright I made the mold.
I tried using Rite-Cell plastic foundation wax coated.
I got it sandwiched between the boards with silicone and installed the piano hinge.
I let it set 24 hours in the house at 71 degrees F.
Being plastic foundation I didn't use the oven method.
I instead used a silicone spray lubricant.
I sprayed the foundation and applied the silicone using a trowel.
It stuck.
I got it to release and found the silicone 2-3 inches from the edges had not cured out.
When I pryed it apart a lot of the silicone had stuck to the bottom of the cells thus pulling the ends off the mold.
I'm going to try and find a wax foundation and go by the original plan.
I will say that the part of the mold that didn't stick to the foundation looked very good.
Thanks capt44, that helps a lot to hear exactly what you did.
I'll be trying it also.
Sounds like a very long cure time may be in order.
Following this thread with interest.
Thanks Edward and Richard
Don
I have just one question....or should I say comment. If you have a convection oven (has fan inside) you could set it at the lowest setting (just below the melting point of the wax) and leave it overnight and the silicone should cure.
Quote from: rbinhood on February 05, 2014, 04:50:09 PM
I have just one question....or should I say comment. If you have a convection oven (has fan inside) you could set it at the lowest setting (just below the melting point of the wax) and leave it overnight and the silicone should cure.
He has done it correctly. May I suggest watching the vid again....?
Quote from: flyboy on February 05, 2014, 05:00:40 PM
He has done it correctly. May I suggest watching the vid again....?
I reviewed the video as you suggested and from what my aged eyes saw was that the silicone was cured (he trimmed the edges and installed the hinge) before he placed everything in the oven, and the oven was only used to melt the wax from the mold. Maybe I should have replaced the batteries in my hearing aids before I replayed the video so I could have heard the commentary. LOL
Quote from: rbinhood on February 05, 2014, 05:29:42 PM
Quote from: flyboy on February 05, 2014, 05:00:40 PM
He has done it correctly. May I suggest watching the vid again....?
I reviewed the video as you suggested and from what my aged eyes saw was that the silicone was cured (he trimmed the edges and installed the hinge) before he placed everything in the oven, and the oven was only used to melt the wax from the mold. Maybe I should have replaced the batteries in my hearing aids before I replayed the video so I could have heard the commentary. LOL
All is good. I missed the part about using a wax foundation as the original. Edward pointed that out and so I got the brilliance of the design and didn't do it the hard way.
Oh I might add that I bought 7 tubes of silicone.
It only took 2 tubes to form the mold on all pieces.
I ordered some Wax foundation from Mann Lake ltd but they won't ship it until the temperatures warm up.
They said sometime in March.
Quote from: capt44 on February 06, 2014, 11:55:40 AMOh I might add that I bought 7 tubes of silicone.It only took 2 tubes to form the mold on all pieces.I ordered some Wax foundation from Mann Lake ltd but they won't ship it until the temperatures warm up.They said sometime in March.
How big are your silicone tubes, What size was the mold you made?
Maybee a beekeeping friend or neighbor has a wax frame?
mvh Edward :-P
Alright, the silicone tubes I bought are 10.1 fl. oz or 299 mL
I've ask around and some have wax foundation that has wire in it.
Don't know how the wire would do.
I ordered plain wax foundation.
I've got a meeting Monday night I'll see if I can get a sheet of wax foundation from one of the members.
It's so cold right now I'm afraid of a sheet of wax foundation breaking.
It's 16 degrees F out there now and had a high today of 20 degrees F.
It's unusually cold here, our normal temps average 53 degrees F but not this year.
Quote from: capt44 on February 06, 2014, 09:41:31 PM
Alright, the silicone tubes I bought are 10.1 fl. oz or 299 mL
I've ask around and some have wax foundation that has wire in it.
Don't know how the wire would do.
I ordered plain wax foundation.
I've got a meeting Monday night I'll see if I can get a sheet of wax foundation from one of the members.
It's so cold right now I'm afraid of a sheet of wax foundation breaking.
It's 16 degrees F out there now and had a high today of 20 degrees F.
It's unusually cold here, our normal temps average 53 degrees F but not this year.
I would guess that the wire would have no effect, provided it is completely buried in the wax. In fact I was theorizing that I would bury wire in the foundation when I was making it. Use a fairly light gauge wire, maybe even fishing line. I was theorizing that on the side of the mold putting a nail or whatever that you could hook the line around as you went back and forth. Then on the frame you could have a way to grab the wire/line to attach it to the side. Maybe a pin?
If you use plain #1 silicone it is moisture cured. I have made some casting molds this way. Normally I put the silicone under water and work moisture in to it and then use it to mold up. It will cure in 5 minutes or so.
Alright I made another attempt at using Rite-Cell foundation to make the mold since I didn't have any wax foundation on hand at this time.
I had over 3/4 of the cells release good but the other 1/4 were still in the plastic foundation.
It also failed, my conclusion on this is the cells are too deep in the foundation for the silicone to release properly.
I used a spray canola oil which worked a lot better.
I also let the mold dry undisturbed for 3 days.
I now have some wax foundation and am going to try it.
The cells on the wax foundation are only a fraction as deep as the plastic foundation.
I am determined to build this mold.
It only takes 2 tubes of silicone to cover all the parts.
I am thinking about making this mold, not for foundation but for making rolled candles. Now I just have to buy a unwired wax foundation.
Jim
Quote from: sawdstmakr on February 19, 2014, 12:32:27 PMI am thinking about making this mold, not for foundation but for making rolled candles. Now I just have to buy a unwired wax foundation.Jim
From what I understand the wax Foundation that is handmade in Silicon molds is a Little bit brittle and does not bend like the stuff from the suppliers. So you will have a hard time Rolling candles.
This is probably due to the home made stuff is a bit thicker
mvh Edward :-P
Quote from: edward on February 19, 2014, 02:15:32 PM
Quote from: sawdstmakr on February 19, 2014, 12:32:27 PMI am thinking about making this mold, not for foundation but for making rolled candles. Now I just have to buy a unwired wax foundation.Jim
From what I understand the wax Foundation that is handmade in Silicon molds is a Little bit brittle and does not bend like the stuff from the suppliers. So you will have a hard time Rolling candles.
This is probably due to the home made stuff is a bit thicker
mvh Edward :-P
Thanks Edward,
Maybe I won't make one. :-D
Jim
Alright I'm trying #3 at building the mold.
I got some wax foundation and sprayed it down with canola oil and applied the silicone.
I've got it sandwiched between to 3/4 inch Birch plywood boards with the piano hinge installed.
I'm going to let it cure until Saturday afternoon before I open it.
The foundation cells aren't as deep as the Plastic Rite Cell foundation.
Anyhow Saturday is the day of reckoning.
Good luck Capt. I have my fingers crossed. Waiting to find out the results. Did you use #1 silicone?
Jim
Nupe I sure didn't.
I didn't read the post about silicone #1 until after I finished again.
If this doesn't work I'm going to try something else.
I did some research and found some silicone called OO MOO 300.
It comes in 2 parts and you have to mix it.
They even sell a release agent.
I've got my fingers crossed for the mold I've got curing out in the shop.
When some people make wax sheets they use pressured air to separate the wax from the mold , insted of waiting for it to cool.
Could help in separating the mold.
mvh Edward :-P
Edward,
By pressured air, do you mean using an air nozzle, like you use to blow dust away, to blow air under the wax to lift it?
Jim
Yes a nozzle, a short well oriented blast helps speed up the process without breakage when trying to loosen the foundation. The wax pops up.
This is from talking to ecological beekeepers that have bought the expensive factory made molds.
mvh Edward :-P
Quote from: edward on February 22, 2014, 11:09:08 AM
Yes a nozzle, a short well oriented blast helps speed up the process without breakage when trying to loosen the foundation. The wax pops up.
This is from talking to ecological beekeepers that have bought the expensive factory made molds.
mvh Edward :-P
That is good to know. Thanks.
Jim
Alright I opened the mold today.
The foundation turned loose, or I'll say over 3/4 of it did.
The release agent I used didn't work like I thought it would.
The canola oil and silicone don't work good together.
Sooooooooooo I'm making another attempt at it.
I've done quite abit of research and went to a site called http://www.Smooth-On.com (http://www.smooth-on.com)
They make supplies for all types of molds and I talked to a technician about the mold I am making.
He said to use a silicone rubber that you mix and pour it into the mold.
He said it will work better and less trouble than the way I was trying to do it.
They have a release agent you paint on with a brush, 2 coats.
You let one coat dry for 20 minutes and apply the other coat and let it completely dry.
You then mix the silicone liquid and pour it into the mold and it will cure in 6 hours at room temperature.
The name of the Silicone liquid is OO MOO 300
The release agent is One Step Release Agent and Sealer
I have ordered enough to do this mold which will take 7.28 pounds of silicone total.
I should have it in a few days.
I'm determined to make a mold that will be good and affordable to the average beekeeper.
If this works I'll then build one using small cell foundation.
Capt44,
Thanks! You are a trooper!!!
What size silicone did you order? The trial size @25.47?
Yep I ordered 2 trial sizes and 1 bottle of the release agent.
The tech even told me how to set up a mold to pour the liquid silicone in.
I will have 2 molds, one for each side.
I will then put them on boards and install the piano hinge and sides.
Alright I got the liquid silicone rubber in and am building the mold.
Make 2 frames.
I cut a piece of 3/8 in plywood about 1 inch wider and longer than the foundation.
I then cut 3/4 X 3 1/2 inch board into strips 1 inch wide and brad nailed them to the plywood.
I put the strips on all four sides.
I then used wood glue and glued all joints where the strips met the plywood to seal off any openings.
Once dried I placed the foundation in the frame and painted the Release agent on the wood and foundation.
I used an air hose set at 40psi to blow out any access release agent to stop any puddle'n of the agent.
I let it dry for 15 minutes and applied another coat and blew it off and let it dry for 45 minutes.
Be sure to notice how the foundation is put in the mold, each side is different, the cells are offset approx. 1/2 cell.
I then mixed the liquid Silicone as per the instructions, it is 2 parts that mixes in equal proportions.
I poured the liquid into the mold and let it set 6 hours, I waited 12 hours.
I took my pocket knife and cut along the boards of the silicone which has cured.
I took a screw driver and removed the outside wooden strips.
I then lifted the corner of the silicone off the foundation and pulled it off slowly.
Both molds turned out Perfect!
I am going to make the wooden press as previously made with 3/4 inch Birch and piano hinges and such.
I haven't washed the molds yet, the lighter color is wax that was in the plastic foundation.
This attempt with liquid silicone and a release agent was a success.
I used OOH MOO 30 and One Step release agent from http://www.smooth-on.com (http://www.smooth-on.com)
When I get the rest of it made I'll show pictures of the final product.
Here are a couple of pictures of the finished mold.
(http://i291.photobucket.com/albums/ll312/capt44/mold1_zps54bc6681.jpg)
(http://i291.photobucket.com/albums/ll312/capt44/mold2_zps785e777d.jpg)
X:X
Dynomite!!! that looks gorgeous. And now for the acid test, re: making foundations.
Three cheers for Capt44. You have gone where lesser men fear to tread.
I'll be following your footsteps after my first season.
Looks great Capt. Is they just one half of the mold. You said it makes 2 frames.
Jim
Quote from: sawdstmakr on March 11, 2014, 06:03:01 AM
Looks great Capt. Is they just one half of the mold. You said it makes 2 frames.
Jim
I think he said make 2 frames to pour the silicone mold into them. The molds will make only one sheet of foundation at a time.
Right, you have to pour too molds.
Front and back of the foundation which each side is offset approx. 1/2 cell.
When it is done you will put sprinkle water on the mold, pour the melted wax on the mold and close it.
Let it cool and trim the excess wax off.
Open the mold and remove the sheet of foundation.
Even with the roller type foundation maker you only do 1 sheet of foundation at a time.
In the winter or spare time you can make foundation at your leisure.
The beekeeper will have wax laying around.
Melt it down, filter it and make some foundations.
OK, the way they are sitting together, they look like they are both on the same board.
Looking forward to seeing how the foundations turn out.
Jim
capt,
Why not dip the two sides like Fat Bee Man does and then put then together while they harden ?
MAKING WAX=FOUNDATION=CHEAP (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5lU3C4f2Xfc#ws)
funny how things work out. I am in the middle of making my own wax press foundation, and found this thread.
here's a few tips that I learned. keep the silicone THIN. Too thick and it won't cure and dry soon enough. In the following video
someone posted earlier. He uses ONLY a wax foundation as his mold. why?
so he can MELT IT back out in the oven, or atleast soften it. I followed this method...except I used a 100% plastic foundation, sprayed
with Smooth-On Universal Mold Release. .......not so good. ha! :( I used 3 tubs of GE II 100% silicone. Love this silicone, sets up nicely, rather
tough, feels good, looks durable. But what happened? plastic! Once I pressed my 2 boards together, I let dry 24 hrs. I added my handle, piano hinge, etc. Went to use my air compressor to work apart...not happenin'. even BLEW OUT wet silicone from deeper inside. Mmm?
I learned, silicone needs AIR to dry. Can't even budge them apart. Even set in front of oven at 130F, to warm. Not happening. dang!
2nd attempt failed. first attempt was with OOMOO-30 ....mixed well...seemed rather thin. used my plastic foundation to lay on top of poured
OOMOO.....not cool. air pockets have to be worked out of plastic foundation. should have laid foundation down, poured OOMOO over the foundation, using spreader to work out air pockets in holes. Now what? Cap's attempt looks good. My 3rd attempt will be; I'd rather use GE II, but do it a bit different.
spread GE II silicone over board, with sidewalls. I used my Cappings fork to drag marks up and down the board, to give a rougher surfice for silicone to adhear to. seems to work well. spread only 1 tube of silicone on board, as even as possible. using only wax foundation, since it's ONLY wax and the RIMS of the cells aren't as STEEP as the plastic foundation, it should release better. spread a thin film of Vasoline over wax foundation making sure to cover all. lay foundation on top of spread silicone. should be able to work our air gently. Or, spread silicone over vasoline covered wax foundation and lay on top of silicone on board. either way...should work. Since it's rather THIN, it should dry nicely within 24 hours. I'll do 2 boards like this....both seperate....not putting them together until the silicone is dry. but will they match? you should be able to look
at the foundation pattern and set them up opposite, so when they come together, they should match close enough. we only need a mild pattern of cells, nothing deep or aggressive. My question to Cap, how do you get the OOMOO patterns attached to boards, or are they already? will have to look again. More pics from Cap please? This is certainly do-able....just gotta find the right combination of system vs recipe. ha! I used OOMOO-30 first round, found it expensive. bought 12 tubes of GE II 100% silicone at $6.24 each. well.....expensive too. whatever. Still not as expensive as a Mill Roller, $1300 to $2500 bucks! I won't sandwich the boards together this time, will gently press in wax foundation uniformly and let dry. After 12 hrs, I should be able to gently remove or blow, foundation off. Or, wait 24 hrs and blow off. My 2nd attempt, I used 3 tubes of silicone....this seemed WAAAAYYYY too much. Will only use 2 next time, 1 for each board. I think they'll dry faster and much better. My first attempt, with OOMOO-30, one side came out pretty good. The other, bad. Air pockets. I used the good one, as a test bed. sprayed water over the mold, laid in hot wax, pressed with greased board....held for a minute, pulled off board, PRESTO! wax molded nicely, even stuck to board when pulled up. the water, sank down into the deeper crevises around the cells. The plastic foundation, gives a much deeper cell wall, vs wax foundation. I don't like this. I only need THE SHAPE of the cell....with a mild ridge. the bees can take it from there. I prefer the 100% wax foundation mold now. My 3rd attempt should work out ok. Am waiting on delivery of wax foundation. even ordered more plastic foundation, to experiment with. will try to post pics after finished. if you've ALREADY done all this....please advise. hope i helped someone. thanks, ken
I painted the release agent on the box and plastic foundation and blew it down with 40 psi air hose and let it dry for 15 minutes.
I painted on a second coat of release agent and blew it down with an air hose.
I then mixed and pour my OOMOO 30 into the mold.
I let it set overnight (12 hours) and then too the box apart and lifted the silocone rubber mold off the plastic.
I did both molds the same way.
I sealed the boards for the cover with Marine Spar Varnish and will glue down the silicone rubber mold to the covers.
I will let them dry and then place the hinge in place and screw it down.
I will then put the metal sides on an the handle on top and see how it works.
I will have to let the adhesive set up before I can use it though.
Alright here's where I'm having problems.
I am trying to use an adhesive to attach the mold to the wooden covers.
I have tried different glues and such with no luck.
They will stick to the wood but not to the silicone mold.
I've tried everything from contact cement to Shoe Goo and none will stick to the silicone mold.
I have had to go back to smooth-on.com and purchase an adhesive that will stick to the silicone and the wood.
I should have it sometime next week.
Our State Bee Inspector seen this and wants one when I get it put together.
I have the wood (3/4 inch Birch plywood) stained a Walnut color and sealed with Marine Spar Varnish.
I have everything to put it together except the adhesive to attach the silicone mold to the wood.
I've got to say that silicone mold is some tough stuff.
Hey Capt44
try using this to make your molds. it is bar top rosin. it self levels and has no air bubbles when dry and it came loose of the plastic fondation very easy. then it epoxy's real easy to your wood frame. the only trick is you have to have a perfectly level table for it to dry on or you have a high and low end on the form.
http://forum.beemaster.com/index.php/topic,41344.msg353637.html#msg353637 (http://forum.beemaster.com/index.php/topic,41344.msg353637.html#msg353637)
john
Alright! I got the mold made.
I had to put 3 brass hinges on the back but I can open and close it.
I had to wait for some adhesive that would bond to the silicone rubber.
I will try and make some wax foundations in a couple of days.
Here are a few Pictures.
I haven't sealed the wood with Varnish yet.
(http://i291.photobucket.com/albums/ll312/capt44/mold6a_zpsfeba3937.jpg)
(http://i291.photobucket.com/albums/ll312/capt44/Mold4_zpsd40f82f3.jpg)
(http://i291.photobucket.com/albums/ll312/capt44/mold5_zps73e0af9b.jpg)
(http://i291.photobucket.com/albums/ll312/capt44/Mold3_zps1bc92808.jpg)
Looks Great. did you alaign the hinges for the thickness you want to get. I had that problem with mine. I forgot to set the thickness and ended up with top thiner than the bottom. Oh by the way pre heat your forms before adding wax or you will get un even foundation. and keep a tub of cool water to set the foundation in when you working the press.
John
Capt,
Have you made any foundations with it? How did they turn out? I suspect it will be very hard to open. You may need to screw one side to your work bench to hold it down. Good luck. Let us know.
Jim
Heer is some other vids
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CZrk-r0QUd4 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CZrk-r0QUd4)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EmHbBOdMDuc (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EmHbBOdMDuc) Check out the tunes... :) Apparently Romanian
A very nice setup. Quite expensive to buy but lots of nice ideas http://www.alfranseder.de/ (http://www.alfranseder.de/)
Your foundations are probably coming from here
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=17nI614RMI0 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=17nI614RMI0)
I figure the materials cost around $71.00 to make this mold, beats the hell out of $2,500.00.
It will be alittle slower but in the winter it'll give me something to do to stay out of trouble.
The only thing I see that I would do different is when I pour the silicone rubber OOH MOO 30 in the molds to use less so it will be thinner.
When I put my hinges in place I place a piece of card stock paper on the mold and closed it, then mounted my hinges for the correct thickness of the foundation.
Now I've got to build one for the state bee inspector.
I was wondering if it was worthwhile to imbed thread in to make it stronger?
Or would that just make it a long process?
reviving an old topic but did it make good foundation?
Quote from: capt44 on April 08, 2014, 03:16:11 PM
I figure the materials cost around $71.00 to make this mold, beats the hell out of $2,500.00.
It will be alittle slower but in the winter it'll give me something to do to stay out of trouble.
The only thing I see that I would do different is when I pour the silicone rubber OOH MOO 30 in the molds to use less so it will be thinner.
When I put my hinges in place I place a piece of card stock paper on the mold and closed it, then mounted my hinges for the correct thickness of the foundation.
Now I've got to build one for the state bee inspector.
How many molds were you able to get out of the 2 trial sizes you ordered?
Would it work to put the foundation you used to mold them back in to sandwich the boards to glue them on the molds, put the hinges on and give the proper thickness of the foundation?
I'm on my way out of the door, so I'll have to make this quick ...
I've only every built a foundation press inside my head, so do bear this in mind.
I've never understood why silicone rubber is used - maybe there's a reason ?
If I were building one, I'd use a thin layer of epoxy resin, spread over one side of a sheet of unwired foundation. Onto that I'd place some glass tape or similar fabric. Then when set, I'd spread some silicone rubber or similar adhesive THINLY over that, and add the sheet of plywood.
THEN, I'd invert that sandwich, and with some strips of cling film around the edges to prevent the mould from sticking together, I'd repeat that process on the other side.
Finally, I'd install the mould inside a clam-shell frame made from angle iron, with precision hinges welded along the long edges. In this way, the register between top and bottom moulds would be maintained. Only after the mould was built, would it then be separated.
I might actually build one using this technique - sometime - but I have concerns about the wax sheets sticking to a flat mould. If the use of silicone rubber does work ok in practice, I'd really like to hear about it.
Got to go now ...
LJ
got the oomoo 30 in with all the parts. going to try to make this....
ill post pictures when I have them
ok so I made the mold and started testing it. I relize I need more way in the cooker and a bigger ladel to pour in one pass but, the foundation is cracking, it looks like shrink cracks. any help on this?
here is the pictures:
http://s62.photobucket.com/user/emh114/library/foundation%20mold
it makes great looking foundation but not full sheets yet.
Looks really great.
Maybe you need to slow down the cooling process a little, which would mean warming the mold.
How many did you try? The first one could warm up the mold a little.
How long do you have to wait before you open it?
Jim
That looks great.
Quote from: sawdstmakr on March 21, 2016, 12:35:38 PM
Looks really great.
Maybe you need to slow down the cooling process a little, which would mean warming the mold.
How many did you try? The first one could warm up the mold a little.
How long do you have to wait before you open it?
Jim
Had to wait a min or 2 to open did alot of tests and found out the silicone I put to cover the seams around the edges was messing with the wax making it stick and also I don't have enough wax and a large enough ladle to pour it one shot.
It also was cool in the shop this last week so maybe when it gets normal florida weather again it will slow down the cooling....
I had to make starter foundation today had a swarm from my hives in the front yard in the tree about 6ft up... cut them down and give them with fresh 4 in starter foundation so they had surface to walk on...
I'll post more when I get to melt down more wax my bees make...