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  • #1

    Canteen wax

    I just picked up a nice Hadden, Porter & Booth canteen...looks exactly like a nice old marked one I have, but this one is a 'user'.
    BUT...some idiot reenactor put beeswax in the thing! Now WHY do they insist on doing such a thing...
    I thought this place was billed as the 'Authentic' Campaigner yet I search here and find any number of threads regarding waxing a canteen. That idea should be nipped in the bud plain and simple.
    Well, my question is how do you UNwax a canteen? To get it back to a more...(dare I say it?)...authentic configuration? You see the thing still has the sky blue cover which I am loath to unstitch. I figure lots of boiling water--has anyone had luck with just melting it out this way?
    Spence Waldron~
    Coffee cooler

    "Straggled out and did not catch up."
    Tags: None
  • #2
    Re: Canteen wax

    Yup, boiling water does the trick. I can't count how many good canteens I've had to fix in this manner. I go with about a cup of boiling water, sloshed around for a few seconds, then repeat once or twice more.
    Ross L. Lamoreaux
    rlamoreaux@tampabayhistorycenter.org


    "...and if profanity was included in the course of study at West Point, I am sure that the Army of the Cumberland had their share of the prize scholars in this branch." - B.F. Scribner, 38th Indiana Vol Inf

    Comment

    • #3
      Re: Canteen wax

      Up to your old tricks again Spence? You know, Ive got some re-pops sans beeswax (of course they don't have the stamp...yet). All you gotta do is ask, but I know how you work... nothing beats the real thing!

      Anyway, if Ross says his method will work, then it will work. That feller is a damn genious!

      Good luck!
      Bill Lomas
      Bill Lomas

      [B][SIZE="4"][FONT="Century Gothic"][COLOR="SeaGreen"]E. J. Thomas Mercantile[/COLOR][/FONT][/SIZE][/B]
      [FONT="Century Gothic"]P.O. Box 332
      Hatboro, PA 19040
      [URL="http://www.ejtmercantile.com"]www.ejtmercantile.com[/URL]
      [email]info@ejtmercantile.com[/email][/FONT]

      Comment

      • #4
        Re: Canteen wax

        Originally posted by Bummer View Post
        "...some idiot reenactor put beeswax in the thing! Now WHY do they insist on doing such a thing...

        I thought this place was billed as the 'Authentic' Campaigner yet I search here and find any number of threads regarding waxing a canteen. That idea should be nipped in the bud plain and simple.
        Spence,

        That sort of strong language could hurt the oh-so-tender egos of the usual suspects, who will argue until they are blue in the face that waxed, pitched, and stainless canteens are the way to go. Meanwhile, this crotchety ol' bastid truly appreciates your candor, and doesn't give a big fuzzy rat's ass if you make the little girls cry.

        Thank you.
        [B]Charles Heath[/B]
        [EMAIL="heath9999@aol.com"]heath9999@aol.com[/EMAIL]

        [URL="http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Spanglers_Spring_Living_History/"]12 - 14 Jun 09 Hoosiers at Gettysburg[/URL]

        [EMAIL="heath9999@aol.com"]17-19 Jul 09 Mumford/GCV Carpe Eventum [/EMAIL]

        [EMAIL="beatlefans1@verizon.net"]31 Jul - 2 Aug 09 Texans at Gettysburg [/EMAIL]

        [EMAIL="JDO@npmhu.org"] 11-13 Sep 09 Fortress Monroe [/EMAIL]

        [URL="http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Elmira_Death_March/?yguid=25647636"]2-4 Oct 09 Death March XI - Corduroy[/URL]

        [EMAIL="oldsoldier51@yahoo.com"] G'burg Memorial March [/EMAIL]

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        • #5
          Re: Canteen wax

          Hallo!

          Uncover the canteen, and place it in boiling water for a few minutes. Pour out the melted wax.
          Repeat endlessly until the wax is as gone as it is going to get.

          Curt
          Curt Schmidt
          In gleichem Schritt und Tritt, Curt Schmidt

          -Hard and sharp as flint...secret, and self-contained, and solitary as an oyster.
          -Haplogroup R1b M343 (Subclade R1b1a2 M269)
          -Pointless Folksy Wisdom Mess, Oblio Lodge #1
          -Vastly Ignorant
          -Often incorrect, technically, historically, factually.

          Comment

          • #6
            Re: Canteen wax

            Actually, the ease of 'unwaxing' is going to depend on what they waxed it with.

            If you are really lucky, they also didn't use 'real' wax--instead they used 'parrifin', 'gulfwax' or something similar--ususally when folks are going to do something wrong, they really do it wrong.

            Put the poor thing in the freezer for an hour or so, then lay it back out on the counter--the shock to its system will encourage the wax to let go of the canteen surface. Then do the boiling water trick.

            For especially clingy wax that does not come out in the first couple of tries (and real beeswax can be such) , I've also submerged the whole item in a big pot, placed a weight on top, brought it to a simmer, and waited for the wax to rise to top of the water. Turn off heat, drop in some ice cubes, and the wax will congeal around it. Depending on how much wax was used, you may have to repeat this process.

            Obviously you are concerned about your cover shrinking---since no soap is present, and no agitation, its unlikely your cover with shrink, especially if you allow it to dry gradually at room temperature.
            Terre Hood Biederman
            Yassir, I used to be Mrs. Lawson. I still run period dyepots, knit stuff, and cause trouble.
            sigpic
            Wearing Grossly Out of Fashion Clothing Since 1958.

            ADVENTURE CALLS. Can you hear it? Come ON.

            Comment

            • #7
              Re: Canteen wax

              Hallo!

              Originally posted by Spinster View Post
              Obviously you are concerned about your cover shrinking---since no soap is present, and no agitation, its unlikely your cover with shrink, especially if you allow it to dry gradually at room temperature.
              He had said that he was "loath to unstich."
              IMHO, the heat from boiling water inside the canteen may transfer to the cover and shrink it anyways- especially if it gets wet. While a trim and fitted cover is the desired effect, further shrinking may gap some of the seam-work.

              I am not quite clear on the loathing part, as the top half of a canteen cover is just whipped stitched closed- a 5-10 minute chore to replace?

              Curt
              Who has some yellow beeswax as tacky as glue Mess
              Curt Schmidt
              In gleichem Schritt und Tritt, Curt Schmidt

              -Hard and sharp as flint...secret, and self-contained, and solitary as an oyster.
              -Haplogroup R1b M343 (Subclade R1b1a2 M269)
              -Pointless Folksy Wisdom Mess, Oblio Lodge #1
              -Vastly Ignorant
              -Often incorrect, technically, historically, factually.

              Comment

              • #8
                Re: Canteen wax

                I've never had a problem with cover shrinkage when using the cup-at-a-time method. It may take a little longer than just throwing it in a pot of boiling water, but it works for smoothsides or those pesky bullseyes.
                Ross L. Lamoreaux
                rlamoreaux@tampabayhistorycenter.org


                "...and if profanity was included in the course of study at West Point, I am sure that the Army of the Cumberland had their share of the prize scholars in this branch." - B.F. Scribner, 38th Indiana Vol Inf

                Comment

                • #9
                  Re: Canteen wax

                  Well, I'll poke this dead horse with a stick, too.
                  I have bought quite a number of original canteens on eBay. I get them as bare shells,usually without a stopper, and always with a few dents,too. I sew on a new cover of correct material,and add the right strap. I end up with a canteen that often costs less than a high-level repop. Being a canteen-aholic means I have examples in various cover materials, cloth and leather straps,and chain or string-held stopper types. I bring out one or another as the situation calls for.
                  The point of this is, I have coated all of these with beeswax *gasp*. They are usually rusted inside when I get them, with a pinhole or two sometimes. This is the reason I coat them. I have not coated the new bullseye I have, because I have taken care of it from the start,and there is never a rust problem. On one occasion, I was not happy with my wax job (I think I got some water in with the wax), and I set the canteen on my dashboard of my truck on a hot summer day with the windows rolled up. After not too long, I just poured the beeswax out.


                  Doug Price

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                  • #10
                    Re: Canteen wax

                    What worked for me, though im sure that the boil method is probably more efficient (I wish i thought of that a few months ago) Was small pebbles in the canteen. Fill it up halfway with water, drop in a handfull of small rocks and shake the hell out of it. This method was also usefull in knocking some of the rust out later. (though i dont know what kind of long term effect it may have on the interior)
                    -Rob Williams
                    Ft. Delaware State Park
                    Independent Battery G Pennsylvania Heavy Artillery

                    "...as sometime happened, there was a company of cavalry out on drill, to engage in a sham fight with the battery...for while cavalry swept down on the guns at a gallop, with sabers flashing in the air, the cannoneers with guns loaded with blank cartridges, of course, stand rigid...until they are within a few rods of the battery. Then the lanyards are pulled..."                     p. 185 Hardtack and coffee

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                    • #11
                      Re-line a canteen?

                      Hello all,
                      I am about to Re-line a few of my old canteens, (a tin drum, a smooth side, and a bull’s-eye to be precise), and I was wondering if anyone knew the exact procedure on how to go about doing this starting with a hunk of beeswax and a couple of old rusty canteens.

                      Thanks,
                      Matt Sternad

                      Comment

                      • #12
                        Re: Re-line a canteen?

                        Before you reline the canteen with bees wax you may want to read through this thread first:

                        Authentic Campaigner
                        http://authentic-campaigner.com/forum/showthread.php?p=82256#post82256


                        Regards,
                        -Seth Harr

                        Liberty Rifles
                        93rd New York Coffee Cooler
                        [I]
                        "One of the questions that troubled me was whether I would ever be able to eat hardtack again. I knew the chances were against me. If I could not I was just as good as out of the service"[/I]
                        [B]-Robert S. Camberlain, 64th Ohio Veteran Volunteer Infantry[/B]

                        Comment

                        • #13
                          Re: Re-line a canteen?

                          And this...

                          How should I remove Canteen Rust?

                          Eric
                          Eric J. Mink
                          Co. A, 4th Va Inf
                          Stonewall Brigade

                          Help Preserve the Slaughter Pen Farm - Fredericksburg, Va.

                          Comment

                          • #14
                            Re: Re-line a canteen?

                            Thanks,
                            I read the posts and it was very helpful.

                            Matt Sternad

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