Hi folks, normally I post questions, but today I want to share a useful tip I came up with (I'm not saying no one though of it before me, just that I had the idea on my own).

It started with my buying and disliking beeswax - for me it wasn't soft enough, and would smear well on the sole. I tried Jojoba oil which worked well for 5 seconds. frustrated I looked online and saw a video from WoodByWright on Youtube who suggested a mixture of 2:1 beeswax to BLO. I didn't have any oat hand but I did have Jojoba.

The "twist was that I am not a fan keeping a greasy chunk of wax in my pocket or in an opened container where it can get dirty. I looked for and eventually found empty twist deodorant bottles for sale - they come with a cap

here is the result:

WhatsApp Image 2022-01-09 at 13.04.01.jpgWhatsApp Image 2022-01-09 at 13.03.54.jpg

I can now carry it in my pocket, mess free, and only the part used is exposed to dirt. Very pleased. the diameter comes to 1-1/2" so it is a decent size for plane soles (when I started looking I considered lipstick containers).

So in case anyone finds this useful here are some tips: The container is for 2 oz., I mixed up 2 oz. jojoba oil and 4 oz. beeswax, and melted it in a small pot. I suggest you keep an eye on the pot, once it melts and is stirred let it cool to around 75°C (167°F). Beeswax melts at 65°C (150°F). Plastics have a varying melting point. on my first try I did an amazing job at melting the mechanism and creating a mess on the counter. on my second attempt I prepared a bowl of ice water, and let the wax cool on the stove (while mixing) until I was under 90°C (194°F)
I pored a little bit of the wax into the container and plunged its outside into the cold water. this let the wax harden and create a better seal against leaking. after that I filled it up with the rest of the wax and let it cool until hardened.

Works great! the downside to this was I tried using the wax on my No.8 and it flew so fast I lost balance and dropped it. had to file down a corner to get the sole flat again

Cheers!
Assaf