Materials Wax as a Doll Modeling Material

I'm currently using brown microcrystalline wax to make a BJD doll. I am using it because it is the modelling material that I have the most of in my studio that is ready-to-use. I purchased a 55 pound (25 kilos) case of this Victory Brown(TM) from Petrolite Corporation in Tulsa Oklahoma, USA, over twenty years ago. The case contained five slabs of wax, each measuring about 19 inches long, 11.75 inches wide, and 1.5 inches thick. Each slab weighed about 11 pounds. The case of wax, plus shipping, cost me about $80.00USD.

I still have pounds and pounds of it in my studio. There are pounds and pounds of it on armatures, and as finished pieces. It doesn't dry out, and it has the same properties today as it did when I bought it, even though it has been reused many, many times. I no longer have any of the original five slabs, but the wax is still very good. I recently looked up Victory Brown, to see how much it costs for a case today, and found a source that sells the case for $226.00USD, not including shipping. Twenty years ago, I thought $80.00USD was expensive, but over the years, this wax has proved to be one of the least expensive materials in my studio. Much of that is because it can be reused over and over without degradation.

I have the Victory Brown because it was recommended to me for use in making sculpture. It also comes in the color white, It can be made harder with the addition of paraffin, and softer with the addition of petroleum jelly (vaseline). Even though I have hardened and softened small quantities in the past, I usually use it as is.

The wax melts at 170 degrees Fahrenheit. It can be softened without melting it by adjusting the temperature of the wax pot accordingly, or placing it under a heat lamp and adjusting the distance of the heat lamp to the wax accordingly. I also use a low-wattage soldering iron for localized melting and joining. Good ventilation is important because the soldering iron smokes when it gets wax on it. A damp sponge keeps it clean.

At room temperature it is very firm, and can be carved with a knife. It can be warmed with the heat in your hands. It can be sticky, or smooth and slick. I rub a small amount of dish soap into my hands before I work with the wax. Cleanup is as easy as washing my hands afterwards.

The wax can be cast in wet plaster molds that have had the excess water dabbed out with a sponge. The wax thickens around the walls of the wet plaster mold, much in the same way that ceramic slip thickens. I use this technique when I'm working with waxes. Plaster piece molds can be made around a clay original, then wax can be cast into that mold after removing the clay original.

I recently heard about a modeling wax called FUSE. The MSDS of FUSE shows that it is a blend of waxes, including microcrystalline wax. A 5 inch by 5 inch by .6 inch block of FUSE costs about $7.00? It has a very nice gray-green color, similar to my Roma Plastilina oil clay. The video I saw of it was very impressive. When soft, it was very malleable, yet firm when cool. I like this property of waxes.

I'd like to hear more about different modelling waxes, and how you are using them to make BJDs.

 

I'm using Victory Brown(TM) microcrystalline wax to make the 60cm doll. I have made silicon rubber molds using Victory Brown wax originals. RTV silicon doesn't have an exothermic setup, so it doesn't affect the wax at all. At room temperature, Victory Brown is quite firm. I have also used Victory Brown as a model to make plaster molds, and plaster molds do have an exothermic setup. It just isn't enough heat to cause the wax to expand enough to do any damage to the mold or the model.

$226.00USD sounds expensive now, but that is for 55 pounds (25 kilos) of wax. That comes out to a little over $4.10USD per pound, not including shipping. That's about as inexpensive as a modeling material gets. I saw that Amazon.Com sells a 3 pound slab for $22.00USD, in white or brown. What makes it so economical in the long run is that it can be reused. Just toss the old models in the wax pot after you've made molds of them, and reuse the wax over and over.

 

I'm figuring that the 5x5x0.6 inch block of FUSE weighs about 1/2 pound, right? That would make it about $13.00USD per pound. After looking at the blend of waxes in FUSE, no wonder it smells delicious. Probably the reason it is so pricey is because of all the different waxes in the blend. Some of them are quite expensive.

How do you warm it up? In the demo video I saw, the fellow was using a heat gun. Have you melted it and cast it yet, in either a silicon rubber mold, or a wet plaster mold? Have you put a part in the refrigerator yet? It looks like it will carve nicely when it is cold. I also like the color of the FUSE wax.

Yes, wax is a perfect prototyping material. It is malleable, has good tensile strength, is firm at room temperature, is easily softened, can be melted and cast, cooled and carved, is easily joined to other pieces of wax, and to other materials as well. I really like the way it can be modified. It isn't quite as responsive a modeling material as good clay that is well cured, but that FUSE wax looks pretty close.

 

I like the tips on that manicure tool. I forged the tip on my low-wattage soldering iron into a flat shape, and it works pretty good.



I made the little blow torch in the photo (the tool with the brass cylinder). I use it to smooth surfaces by blowing through the tube and directing the alcohol flame over the surface.

The tool with the glass reservoir is a jeweler's lamp, which also uses alcohol for fuel. I use this to heat metal tools.



This is my wax pot. It is the tool I use the most when I'm working with wax. It is an electric single burner hot plate with an aluminum pot set on it. I used to have an electric pot with the heating element built-in, but it passed away several years ago. RIP.

I can work with clay, make a plaster waste mold around it, remove the clay, dampen the mold, and pour wax in it, then continue modeling with wax. That's the best of both worlds.
Unfortunately, none of my clay is currently usable, and I don't feel like crushing dry clay, soaking it in water, and setting it out in plaster bats to be reconditioned. I no longer have access to a pug mill. I love water clay, but it requires a good deal of maintenance to keep it usable. Microcrystalline wax is relatively low maintenance.

 

Tiranti is a very old sculpture supply house.

I think the Chavant you mentioned is more of a modeling clay, like plastiline?

This page has various waxes, for modelling, casting, and so forth:
http://www.tiranti.co.uk/subdivision_product_list.asp?Subcategory=43&Subdivision=

The microcrystalline wax I use doesn't have any clay fillers.
It is just wax. I can melt and pour it.

 

Jewelry fabrication techniques using brass, copper, and silver brazing, plus some wick and alcohol for fuel.

Plaster doesn't stick to clay. I've used thin clay slip as a separator for multiple piece plaster molds when detail wasn't important. Wet plaster and wax don't stick, so you can model your work in clay, make a quick multiple piece plaster mold around it, open it, dig the clay out, dampen the mold, then cast wax into the fresh mold. You don't have to wait for the plaster mold to dry because it isn't going to be sucking moisture from slip, right?

Plaster has several stages of set-up, so it can be thin and poured to capture every little detail, or thixotropic and buttered on with a spatula to make a quick mold. I work with it one way when I want to make a production mold for slip casting, and another way entirely when I want to switch from clay to wax.

I use a soap separator on wax, when I make a plaster mold around it, so it will release cleanly. A 50/50 soap/water solution that is lathered on the surfaces of the wax model and the plaster it is set into will usually do the trick, without losing any detail, if detail is what you're after. I always let the separator dry between coats. It is ready when there is a nice sheen when it is gently rubbed with a soft cloth. Note I really work up a lather. A really soft sponge is good for applying separator. The very best separator tool I ever used was a Japanese Hake brush, originally meant for applying glaze to ceramics.

Multiple piece plaster molds can capture undercuts, if you're careful to make good dividing lines. The trick is to always have draft on the piece, so it will release from the model and from the other pieces of the mold.

Am I rambling? Please forgive me.

 

Awesome! Wax can be hardened with crayons, which also tint the wax. sand3, you are an amzing source of doll lore! I find myself seeking out your posts to find out more about dolls. Thank you!

 

One popular way to smooth wax is to use some nylon stocking. Another way is to apply heat, for example with a hand-held alcohol blow-torch where the flame from an alcohol lamp is gently blown over the surface of the wax (takes some practice). Wax can also be smoothed by burnishing with hardwood or metal tools. Your practice piece is an excellent idea!

 

YMMV = Your Mileage May Vary.
It has to do with your experience, your technique, how your technique is applied, and so forth. I can do something and get very good results, but YMMV.

I made a small alcohol blow torch, after seeing instructions for making one in Richard McDermott Miller's book, Figure Sculpture in Wax and Plaster, which has been reprinted by Dover. I made my own version of the one in the book. Essentially, you have a reservoir that holds alcohol, a wick, and a tube positioned just behind the wick that you blow through, which blows the alcohol flame gently over your wax. It takes practice to do it well, but you can obtain a very smooth surface. YMMV due to the size of the wick, how hard you blow through the tube, how close you hold the wax to the flame, how fast you move the wax under the flame, or the flame over the wax, and so forth.

I have not tried mineral spirits, but I've read about it. I just don't have any personal experience about how well it works.

One other way of smoothing a wax that isn't readily apparent is to use very fine steel wool or other fine abrasive, to smooth the inside of your plaster mold. In this technique, you are working negatively. Here again, having a test mold is a very handy thing to have, so you can experiment with this method of smoothing. When the plaster mold is smooth, saturate it with water, dab out the excess moisture with a soft sponge or cloth, then melt and cast your wax in it.

 

How I model with wax

It took someone asking me how I model with wax for me to pay attention to what I do when I pick up a piece to work on.

Parts are built up rough on the armature with warm wax and a knife, spread like butter or cream cheese.

Later, when I'm refining a rough form, I hold it in my left hand, and hold my modelling tool (usually a paring knife) in my right hand. I'll also have a snake of wax about 2-3 inches long in the left hand, where the fingers meet the palm. That snake of wax is warmed by my hand. I use my right hand to pinch off small pieces of wax, which I press directly onto the form where it is needed. Then I carve with my knife.

I am constantly moving the form around, so it catches the light, and I can spot slack areas that need filling out. I also rely on touch to know where to add/carve wax. For defining a form, I usually outline it with a thin snake of wax, then fill in, and scrape/carve until it is smooth and looks good in the light. I take off very small amounts when I scrape or carve the wax with the knife - usually paper-thin or thinner.

If the wax gets too warm in my hands, I set it aside and work on another piece, or I put the warm piece in the refrigerator for awhile to cool down.

 

Martha Armstrong-Hand Wax Recipe

I do not have a copy of Learning to be a Doll Artist, so I grab whatever little bits and pieces I can find and add them to my knowledge base. I found this reference to the Wax Recipe that Martha Armstrong-Hand uses in her book on another BJD doll maker forum.

900 grams paraffin,
900 grams microcrystalline,
1800 grams industrial talc,
200 grams beeswax and
200 grams carnauba wax

From what I can gather, Martha's MO is to do the initial sculpt in oil clay over a wire armature, make plaster molds of the sculpt, then pour her carving wax recipe in the molds to make hollow parts, which are then finely finished to a high degree, then the molds for the porcelain parts are made from the carving wax parts.

 

Today I was reading a forum where they were discussing Victory Brown microcrystalline wax, and I learned that Bareco is no longer manufacturing this product. The reason is that the raw materials are no longer available. As a result of finding this out, I can longer recommend Victory Brown as a modeling material.

I am very happy that I have a good supply of it on hand in my studio. )