Thread: DIY Chrox & Ferrox Crayons

So I finally got hold of some bees wax on Sunday morning so I thought I would give the Oxide crayons a try
after some googgling of how to make crayons & some additional info from the lads here on SRP I went with the following Recipe:

Wax: 1 part Paraffin to 2 parts Bee’s wax ( I call PB2 )
Crayon: 1 part PB2 wax to 2 parts Oxide Powder

my materials:
small non-stick sauce pan - $2.00
100g each of 0.3 Chrox & 0.1 Ferrox - $30 ( used about ½ of each max)
a pack of 48 paraffin tea light candles - $2.50
natural Bee’s wax - $3.50 from local markets for about 300g (a lot more than I needed)
large foil tray as a spill catcher - $0.50
I did buy a $3 silicon ice cube tray for a mould then my brain started working & I used the Ali pots the tea lights came in instead.


Process for Wax (PB2):
removed about 12 tea light candles from the Aluminium moulds
cut of a chunk of bees wax & melted on low in the small pot
poured the wax into the moulds slowly leaving the impurities in the pot to be disposed of separately – left to cool
I now have even measures of wax
then I combine 3 lots of paraffin & 6 lots of Bees wax as per mould size in the pot & melted on low heat
poured combined wax into candle moulds left to cool
now I have about 9 of the 1 paraffin & 2 bees (PB2) wax moulds



Process for crayons (PB2 – C2/F2)
take 2 of the PB2 wax moulds melt in the pot on low
add 4 moulds worth of Chrox or Ferrox powder mix well to combine & pour into the moulds
allow to cool

job done



as the powder to wax mix if fairly powder heavy there was still some powder mix in the pan, so I added an extra wax pod to make a weaker mix of powder to wax to try use as a polish
all up this made 4 full moulds of 1 wax : 2 powder (PB2 C2/F2 ) moulds then & made 2 weaker mixes of both Chrox & Ferrox crayons.
and i have a couple of PB2 wax pods left also.

Yes it was messy & would be easier in larger batches I think but I now have enough crayon to last a few years for 3 of us and some left over to experiment with.
I have rubbed some onto some scrap smooth wood and it seems to adhere well
but I have not applied to any leather yet as don’t want to apply it to my current strop as I intend to pass it on to the son in-law for his first strop when I make him up a Str8 & starter kit for his Birthday soon
& have no Balsa left

hope you all can gain from this little experiment
Regards
D

Nice crayons.
You can rub it into denim and use it as well. Or a piece of pine 2x4.

Awesome! Hmm, maybe when I try my next batch of shaving soap I van try this as well Thanks for the great tutorial! May I ask where you obtained your Oxides?

they are Kremer pigments I got mine in Australia but I believe you may be able to get them cheaper direct from Kremer in Germany & possibly the US suppliers
Iron Oxide # 48100 is 0.1 micron
Chrome Oxide #44200 is 0.3 micron