recipes

[ubeaut]

Actually had some Dragons Blood brought back from France for me about 15 years ago. It was still readily available then. Not too sure about now. Also got some Logwood, Yellowood and Brazilwood extract, Alcanet Root, Cochineal, Alizarin, Cassels Extract and a few others, along with a heap of nasty chemicals that I've collected over the years that can kill you quickly or slowly and painfully but are fantastic for chemically ageing (dying) a wide range of timbers when used as or with a mordant.

Most were readily available here in Oz up until they started wrapping us up in cotton wool for our own protection some 15 - 20 years ago. Now it's just about takes an act of parliament to get potassium bichromate, or Candy's crystals (that used to be in every snake bite kit) and changed the water at many baths and fountains into a purple and created fun for generations of kids.

Ah the good ol days.

Ever wonder why there are so many recipes for waxes being bandied about and not made up and sold by enterprising young entrepreneurs. Probably has a lot to do with the fact that most really don't work all that well.

Don't get me started....... Sorry. Pet hobby horse of mine.

I started manufacturing Polishes because there was nothing on the market that came up to the high standard that I demanded for my work and that of my students. Just about tried em all. To top it off most people have no idea how to use wax properly that's why it's all soft gluggy stuff that's available instead of good solid wax blocks.

Cheers - Neil

PS If you make your own please use extreme care and don't set fire to anything that you shouldn't. Also be careful making DO with poly etc as most of it is quite toxic, carcinogenic and reasonably dangerous. DO NOT inhale fumes through a cigarette, don't laugh I've seen it done.

Don't sniff it to see what it smells like some stuff can just about drop a horse at 40 paces, especially when hot or mixed with other chemicals.

Not all chemicals and solvents, etc are compatible and some might just go boom, ignite or corrode.

In short when mucking around with making anything for yourself please for your own safety and that of others, exercise EXTREME CAUTION, or better still don't do it.

[rsser]

Thanks for the heads-up Neil.

[Frank&Earnest]

I was not joking. Plenty of sellers of 2 or 3 types of Dragon's Blood on E-bay. The real vegetable ones, not mercury sulphate (which is poisonous).
This said, I go with Neil on this one. Love the theory, but life is too short to muck around with recipes if there is something good already made. I haven't learnt how to use Shellawax properly yet...

That might also be the explanation for the lack of enterprising young entrepreneurs, you can have all the worries for yourself, Neil

[astrid]

guys, the recipe was posted as a curiosity,
dont worry, ive no intention of making it!!

astrid

[MacS]

Neil,

Over here many of those chemicals are very difficult to find and very expensive to buy. Many chemicals are not only used for coloring wood they are also used for doing very decorative finishes on metals.

"Patinated Finishes" which are done on top of various semi precious metals, use some of these potent chemicals to decorate these metals by using the different chemical colors, and using different techniques

Attached, is a photo showing 3 patinated faux finishes, that I did with pigmented stains and glazes over a silver base bronzing lacquer for an article I did for a woodworking magazine. I did them with common stains using different applications, because I will not use those chemicals.

Any one interested in reading my article its on the Internet.
http://iswonline.com/ArticleLanding/...ContentID=2686

MacS