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From: "Tim Moyer"
Date: Thu, 24 Feb 2000 11:45:20 CST
Subject: Re: beeswax (long)

Howard,

I hope you don't mind, I am cc'ing my response back to the list, since this
might be of interest to the community there.

You wrote:
>I saw by your post on Harp-L you're using beeswax to seal wood combs (and
>you have been for some time, right?) --how's this holding up? I've got some
>MB's and I'm set up to do this (and to convert nails to nuts & bolts), but
>I also want to try a water-based polyurethane as has been mentioned as well
>on Harp-L. Any experience comparing the two?

I have done a pretty reasonable number of harps using beeswax to seal the
wooden combs. I know that some harp-lers have indicated that some folks
show a sensitivity to beeswax, and that has provoked several extended
discussion, which can be found in the archives (which seem to be working
again, though it still thinks the "current year" is 1999).

>From my experience the beeswax seems to be holding up well. I can't say
that I use my waxed-combed harps frequently enough to make any bold claims
of their durability. I do know that I have several of my earliest
prototypes in my gig set, and they play as well now as when I first built
them over a year ago.

I must clarify that my technique for waxing the combs does NOT include
removing the original finish from the wood, or rounding the tine edges. I
preheat the combs to about the same temperature as the wax (around 190-200
degrees F) then dip them for an extended period of time, maybe four our five
minutes per comb, all the while tapping and turning them to remove as many
bubbles as possible and trying to ensure even permeation. I guage
permeation by the production of bubbles from the submerged comb; when the
bubbles stop I figure no more wax is being absorbed. I allow the combs to
cool completely, then I remove absolutely as much was as possible from the
surfaces of the comb, including in the channels. I scrape the wax away from
the plate mounting surfaces with a straight-edged razor blade and from
within the channels with a dental tool. I polish the wax off the finished
surfaces of the comb with a soft cloth after the harp is assembled. I try
to allow as little wax as possible to remain on the surfaces of the comb so
that the player will not contact it, and so it will minimize migration into
the reeds.

I have sealed a few combs with "salad bowl sealer", which is approved by the
FDA for wood sealing on food bearing products and childrens toys, which
presumably spend a lot of time in the mouth (I know MY son's toys do!).
Despite this guarantee of non-toxicity I find the odor, and consequently the
taste, of this sealer to be objectionable before a LOT of curing. I can't
say I have the same level of experience with this sealing method as with
beeswax, and if I recall correctly the examples I have done have had the
finish removed from the front of the tines, meaning that the sealer
permeates the surfaces that have the most contact with the mouth and tongue.
I have never tried using standard urethanes or other sealers on harp
parts. Also, the beeswax-sealed combs seem to seal better to the plates
than the salad-bowl-sealer-sealed combs, which might be evidence that I'm
not removing all the wax.

I'm not sure that this constitutes a valid comparison, but I much prefer the
beeswax-sealed combs to the urethaned ones. Please understand that this is
one man's experience, not intended to indicate that one method is better
than another, I'm sure that others will have had contrary experiences.

- -tim
tymoy~exas.net
tymoy~otmail.com

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