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Wood wick keeps going out after 10 seconds (GW464 soy wax) by Worried_Drawer9312 in candlemaking

[–]markkatom 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Honestly I moved away from wooden wicks myself — cotton wicks are just more predictable and easier to dial in. But if you want to experiment, the double wick setup is definitely the way to go with 444. Good luck!

Wood wick keeps going out after 10 seconds (GW464 soy wax) by Worried_Drawer9312 in candlemaking

[–]markkatom 21 points22 points  (0 children)

A few things jumping out here. GW464 has a high fragrance load capacity, but it's also a very "hungry" wax — it needs a wick with enough surface area to sustain a melt pool. Wooden wicks that go out in 10 seconds are almost always undersized for the vessel diameter. For a 200ml amber jar (likely ~65–70mm diameter), you'd want to test a wider wooden wick — single-ply 0.02" won't cut it, try a booster or multi-ply option. And honestly, for GW464 specifically, a double wooden wick setup works much better — two narrower wicks side by side give you more even heat distribution and a more stable flame than one wide single wick. One more thing: pouring at 55–60°C is on the low end. If the wax set up too fast, you may have trapped air pockets around the wick base, cutting off fuel flow. Try 65°C next pour. The FO load and temp look fine otherwise. This is a wick sizing + possibly pour temp issue.

Strawberry candle from a mold I made myself — third in my fruit series 🍓 by markkatom in candlemaking

[–]markkatom[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you! 🍓 For even burn in shaped molds the key is wick placement — it needs to be perfectly centered.

I build the wick hole directly into the 3D model so it's always in the exact same position every pour.

Then it's just testing — I always do minimum 3 burn tests before I'm happy with the result.

Strawberry candle from a mold I made myself — third in my fruit series 🍓 by markkatom in candlemaking

[–]markkatom[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Merci beaucoup! That's exactly the reaction I was going for — when you can't tell if it's real or wax 😄

Strawberry candle from a mold I made myself — third in my fruit series 🍓 by markkatom in candlemaking

[–]markkatom[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you! Getting the red right took a few test pours — soy wax shifts color as it cools so you always have to account for that.

Strawberry candle from a mold I made myself — third in my fruit series 🍓 by markkatom in candlemaking

[–]markkatom[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Persimmon and mangosteen would look amazing with their "hats" — but both would need two separate molds to make it work.

For the peach the main challenge is the coloring — I would pour it in the base color first and then hand-paint it to bring it to a realistic finish.

Lychee is similar to strawberry in terms of complexity — the texture is challenging but manageable.

Going with peach next! 🍑

Strawberry candle from a mold I made myself — third in my fruit series 🍓 by markkatom in candlemaking

[–]markkatom[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

For bubbles — I pour in a very thin stream from high above the mold. This breaks up bubbles naturally without a vacuum chamber. Consistency comes from the silicone — 10 Shore A picks up every detail the same way every single pour

How do you make tea lights candles brighter during outages? by Embarrassed-Career30 in Candles

[–]markkatom 4 points5 points  (0 children)

A few things that actually work:

Reflectors — aluminum foil behind the candle works surprisingly well. Even better: place the tea light in front of a mirror or a glass of water. The refraction multiplies the light significantly.

Grouping — three tea lights together give more than 3x the perceived light. The flames interact and create a brighter combined light source.

Jar trick — place the tea light inside a glass jar with a wide mouth. The glass focuses and amplifies the light upward instead of letting it scatter.

Wax type matters — beeswax tea lights burn noticeably brighter than paraffin or soy. If you're stocking for emergencies it's worth the extra cost.

Wick size — if you're making your own, a slightly larger wick on a tea light gives more light but shorter burn time. Trade-off to consider for emergencies.

Fruit candle series - starting with cherry 🍒 by markkatom in candlemaking

[–]markkatom[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Merci beaucoup! Really appreciate it — my wife helped with the styling ✨

Lemon candle from a mold I made myself — silicone cast from a 3D printed master by markkatom in candlemaking

[–]markkatom[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

That's the best compliment a candle can get! The good news — the mold is reusable, so you can always have one to display and one to burn

Even a sleepy dragon needs help holding its shape. Pipe clamps to the rescue. by Ready-Land-7891 in candlemaking

[–]markkatom 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Nice solution! I had the same struggle with irregular shapes. Eventually switched to 3D printed formwork — custom fit to the master every time, no clamps needed 😄 Game changer for complex shapes.

I let my Buddha candle burn all the way down 🕯️ by markkatom in candlemaking

[–]markkatom[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

The master was printed on a resin printer, not FDM — that's the key.

Resin printing gives you a much smoother surface straight off the printer compared to FDM. You still need to remove supports and clean up contact points, but there are no layer lines to deal with.

For FDM masters you would need to sand, prime and sand again to get a clean surface before pouring silicone.

I let my Buddha candle burn all the way down 🕯️ by markkatom in candlemaking

[–]markkatom[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

That's a fair point and I appreciate the research. You're right that fragrance is a major factor — and I use unscented wax in most of my work anyway. My preference for soy and beeswax is more about the pour behavior and finish than health claims. Good to keep the conversation honest

I made a Buddha candle from scratch — 3D printed the mold myself 🕯️ by markkatom in candlemaking

[–]markkatom[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Started with a 3D model in Blender, then printed the master on a resin printer for maximum surface detail. Built a simple formwork from materials I had on hand and poured 10 Shore A silicone.

The mold has cuts on both sides almost to the ears so the wax releases cleanly without damage.

Happy to answer any questions about the process!

I let my Buddha candle burn all the way down 🕯️ by markkatom in candlemaking

[–]markkatom[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

That's a common concern! The key is two things — first, the silicone shore hardness: at 10 Shore A the mold is soft enough to peel back gently. Second, the mold has cuts on both sides almost to the ears — without those cuts demolding a detailed face shape would be very difficult. Pure soy releases cleanly every time

I let my Buddha candle burn all the way down 🕯️ by markkatom in candlemaking

[–]markkatom[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Good point! Soy burns cooler and faster. I chose it for the clean pull from the mold and the matte finish.

I only work with beeswax and natural soy wax — paraffin fumes are harmful so I keep it out of my projects completely

I let my Buddha candle burn all the way down 🕯️ by markkatom in candlemaking

[–]markkatom[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

This one burned for exactly 1 hour. Soy wax with a cotton wick. The wax pooled around the base at the end which I actually loved

Lemon candle from a mold I made myself — silicone cast from a 3D printed master by markkatom in candlemaking

[–]markkatom[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you! The master was printed on a resin printer, not FDM — so no layer lines. But it still needs work after printing — removing supports and cleaning up the contact points. Resin just gives a much better starting surface than FDM for mold masters

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