cutting beeswax

[Andrew Dewey]

What is the best way to cut bees wax? I have loaf size bricks of wax and need to give my son a piece maybe 1" x 1" x 2" to use on the zipper of his dry suit. When I use a knife, small chunks break off. Should I heat a wire up someway and use that to "slice" it?

[George Fergusson]

I've always put it in the freezer overnight, then take it out, put it on the floor, and hit it with a hammer. It shatters nicely into manageable pieces. Make sure you put it in a plastic bag first... I've never tried to cut it.

[Michael Bush]

If you want cute little blocks you should buy a mold for them. I've never been able to cut them into nice blocks. I just break them off or mold them.

[JohnK and Sheri]

If you want a nicely shaped small block or bar, a mold is your best bet. If you don't want to spend big bucks on molds, tupperware or even ice cube trays work fine.
Sheri

[Jeffzhear]

I use my band saw, works great... The only thing I do is use a wire brush on the rubber on the wheels to clean the wax off. You remove the covers to do this, otherwise the band doesn't grip properly.

And I do cut a fair amount of wax.

[Jonathan Hofer]

I heat the blade of a knife with hot water, and it cuts reasonably well.


JH

[ScadsOBees]

I also had a hard time cutting the wax. That is why I went with the ice cube trays (dollar store) and cubed all my wax.

I'm not dealing with a lot yet, though.

Rick

[power napper]

To cut a slap of bees wax use a guitar string, best to use a handle on each end of the fine guitar string and pull through the wax--really slick. The foot long piece of guitar string attatched to a furnace chain for pulling ease is how utility companies used to cut lead sleeves etc to make cable splice enclosures.

[fhafer]

Do you have an uncapping knife? Works well for me.

[fhafer]

Do you have an uncapping knife? Works well for me.