A tale of two waxes

[Nick W]

Usually I use Black Bison wax in my workshop, but through a bit of a ****-up on the ordering front, found myself out and had to buy Briwax, as that's all I could get at short notice.

Briwax seems to give an easier, harder shine, but the smell is something 'orrible. I definitely need the windows open when using it.

But the real problem only came to light today. I like to prefinish my stuff before assembly, so use masking tape on areas that will be glued later. Having done this and then applied Briwax, when I came to peel off the tape, the tape's glue had been softened through the paper by the Briwax, and I was left with a sticky mess all over my gluing area. :evil:

Luckily Sticky Stuff Remover (does exactly what it says on the can, no workshop should be without some, get it from Lakeland) seems to have removed the gunk, but to be on the safe side I'm going to have to sand :twisted: the stuff back to make sure I can get a decent joint.

Another cautionary tale for us all to bear in mind.

B.T.W. Alf, I notice form your pics that you use blue masking tape, which also seesm the popular stuff in 'Murica. Is it any different from the white stuff (colour aside, natch)? Where do you get it?

 

[Alf]

Briwax seems to give an easier, harder shine, but the smell is something 'orrible. I definitely need the windows open when using it.

Yeah, I noticed when I decided to try Terry's woodwax that the smell was significantly more noticeable than the Black Bison but the finish seemed "harder". Dunno what Liberon put in/leave out...

B.T.W. Alf, I notice form your pics that you use blue masking tape, which also seesm the popular stuff in 'Murica. Is it any different from the white stuff (colour aside, natch)? Where do you get it?

Ah, erm... Actually I use electrician's tape. It stretches like crazy, which I'm sure would irritate the heck out of most people, but with years of practice I've learnt to use that to my advantage. Easy to get hold of, of course, and peels off again a treat. A multitude of uses and a workshop essential as far as I'm concerned. I have a feeling I've seen the proper blue stuff for sale in B&Q, possibly 3M?

Cheers, Alf

 

[RogerS]

B.T.W. Alf, I notice form your pics that you use blue masking tape, which also seesm the popular stuff in 'Murica. Is it any different from the white stuff (colour aside, natch)? Where do you get it?

I get mine from Travis Perkins

 

[Chris Knight]

3M masking tapes come in different colours for different tasks. For example, green is resistant to lacquers, blue is low stick and not suitable for masking off areas to be protected from solvent type finishes.

I like blue for sticking veneers together (instead of paper veneer tape) when vacuum veneering. Other masking tapes stick so hard, they tear up the veneer when removing them.

 

[Sgian Dubh]

Briwax Original contains toluene, a constituent of things like nitrocellulose lacquer and lacquer thinner itself. Briwax original-- because of the toluene content, has the nasty habit of softening many film forming finishes, including oil and spirit varnishes of various types and members of the nitrocellulose family of polishes, eg, pre-cat and post-cat.

I understand, perhaps incorrectly, that Briwax have reformulated their wax to exclude this aromatic hydrocarbon for some markets, eg the US.

The presence of toluene would go a long way to explaining the softening of the adhesive in things like masking tape. Slainte.

 

[cherilton]

Also the original Briwax was discoverd to be a very good substitute for the glue sniffers of our world. Hence alot of shops having to store it behind their counters.

 

[Nick W]

Yeah, I noticed when I decided to try Terry's ... the smell was significantly more noticeable ...

Would that have been the chocolaty/orangey smell? If so I think I might know what the problem is :wink:

So why don't the usual sources (Axminster, Screwfix, Rutlands...) sell the coloured masking tape? Not like them to miss a nice mark-up opportunity

 

[Terry Smart]

As stated, the solvent used in Briwax Original is indeed toluene, although I've never known it to soften or damage a previously applied cellulose product. A variant was formulated several years ago, now (confusingly I think) called just 'Briwax' is based on a different solvent.
This change was mainly due to demand from customers (mainly trade) for a wax not based on toluene. Toluene is designated as a harmful solvent (which is why we don't use it in our cellulose products or our wax). Contrary to popular belief the product was not banned in the USA.

Curiously, if you had come to our WoodWax 22 from Briwax Original you would have noticed a significant difference in smell, and hopefully you would have found ours more pleasant (but no good for sniffing!)
The Liberon Black Bison is based on an even tamer solvent hence the lower odour.
Some companies use odourisers in their waxes, we're not guilty of that one so there definitely won't be a chocolatey-orange smell!

Ultimately it's a trade off; the stronger solvents give a much quicker drying time (I genuinely think that ours sits in the middle, giving a very fast drying time without an overpowering smell) whilst the Liberon type product is very good but slower drying, which doesn't suit everyone.

Lest I be accused of scare-mongering; the risk of using most products is related to the amount of exposure and most non-trade users would fall below the Operator Exposure Level at which there are health considerations.

 

[Neomorph]

Toluene??? TOLUENE???

You do realise that it's the last "T" in TNT don't you. Just don't drop the can.. :wink:

Edit: FFS... With the internet making it easy for the terrorist you would think that well known sites wouldn't make it easier for them. I just found on the Wikipedia the page for TNT and it has a recipe for making it!!!

Now is that mental or what?