Any of you guys ever use bee's wax on a canvas coat. My friend has a really nice expensive field jacket from some outfitter in Montanna. They sent bee's wax along with it for him to reapply every season to water proof it-old school technique. I was wondering if anyone had ever done it to a Carhart or similar fabric and what were the results. Did it work or did it make the coat super stiff.
bee's wax on coats
- Thread starter dbarrett
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I have a bunch of Filson stuff that is oil/wax impregnated. I use it for hunting. I think the actual process involves a heat method to imbed the mixture in the cotton and it becomes part of the stranding of the fabric. I'm not so sure I would try it on a non waxed garment but it might be an interesting project.
- Thread starter
- #4
Considering I am flame retarded I never thought about that. I have an old Carhart I might just try it on and see what happens. Probably be so stiff I won't be able to move my arms. I'll let you guys know.
Once you put the stuff on you can't wash it. You must use a stiff brush to remove dirt and reaply the wax. The directions say to apply with your fingertips after warming the tin in warm water to soften the wax. Then apply in a circular motion and follow that with a hair blower to soften even more and work it into the garment, extra stuff on the seams, of course. The stuff Filson sends smells like it has a bit of pine pitch or solvent in it along with the parifin wax. Have at it and keep us informed.
And I would guess that it is a bit more fire retarded than any nylon garment would be.
And I would guess that it is a bit more fire retarded than any nylon garment would be.
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I own a crap load of Barbour waxed cotton stuff. perhaps the best outdoor clothing ever made with Filson a close second. The trick with the wax initially on a dry fabric is to get it to the melting point then rub it in while hot. Once it is already there the reproofing can be done by hand or with a hair dryer.
I doubt you will have much luck with normal canvas as the weve it too open to really take the wax well.
I doubt you will have much luck with normal canvas as the weve it too open to really take the wax well.
I had an old LL Bean tightly woven field coat that I treated with bees wax. It worked great. I put the coat in the dryer to heat it and also heated the wax, in the microwave. Then I rubbed the wax on the coat and used a hair dryer to work it into the fabric. It really turned a rather boring jacket into a good hunting coat.
Not sure how well waxing a Carhartt would work... I have a couple of Barbour coats and rewax them using the hair dryer to work the wax into the material once a year. It doesn't seem to come off on car upholstery...but material does get stiff in the cold and isn't my preferred cold weather coat even with the liner....they have great brass zippers though!
tried it on my carhartt pants when i was working in the bush, just on the knees and front of the pants, didnt notice much difference other than the colour changed, but i didnt use heat. I personally would not worry about fire with carhartts. And i cant see beeswax making it flammable. Theres a reason welders wear carharts or leather in the oil patch "even though there supposed to wear Nomex in some places"
Hi All:
Har, har! What model of "Land Cruiser" are your driving?
JK!
No Worries! I've worn a number of Filson brand "waxed" canvas garments and never experienced any problems with the waxy/oily coating staining upholstery.
Regards,
Alan
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Har, har! What model of "Land Cruiser" are your driving?
JK!
No Worries! I've worn a number of Filson brand "waxed" canvas garments and never experienced any problems with the waxy/oily coating staining upholstery.
Regards,
Alan
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Hi All:
Anyone have any suggestions for a good, inexpensive wax replacement for the expensive wax finish that Filson sells for re-treating their canvas garments?
Thanks!
Alan
Anyone have any suggestions for a good, inexpensive wax replacement for the expensive wax finish that Filson sells for re-treating their canvas garments?
Thanks!
Alan
Hi All:
Thanks for the tip, dd113! I'd never heard of "Sno Seal" before - a 'web search finds that it can be purchased for about $4 a jar.
Regards,
Alan
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Thanks for the tip, dd113! I'd never heard of "Sno Seal" before - a 'web search finds that it can be purchased for about $4 a jar.
Regards,
Alan
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bump... the weave on carhart fabric is too loose and weak for wax. weak meaning the thread that the fabric is made from is loose and open. Barbour and such jackets are made from fabric that comes from fabric mills already "pre waxed". They do not wax the jacket after manufacture. (you can buy the fabric from the mill) But there is nothing wrong with trying to wax something you already have. If you try to google the subject you'll run into dead ends quickly. There are short write-ups by David morgan, barbur, and filson. According to those write-ups, waxed cotton came from waxed sails. Depending on which type of sail cloth was used depends on which way it was waxed.
Horace Kephart covers waterproofing in his book "Camping and Woodcraft". If you like the outdoors it's worth finding a copy of this book as it makes great reading.
here is a link to an 1903 write-up of different types of textile waterproofing.
Waterproofing Textiles
it's three pages, scroll to the bottom and click part 2
Waterproofing Textiles
it's three pages, scroll to the bottom and click part 2
My barbour will probably make a trip back to the factory for a rewaxing after this winter... I figure it's worth $40 to me to have it done right and for me not to have to spend a weekend dealing with it.
Lifting this one out of the grave.
I recently got hooked on this idea after owning filson, barbour, red read, dux back, old hunting coats.
I had an older Polo canvas jacket that was actually very well made bird hunting coat with an actual game pouch. I will post pics tonight (yes in 2014).
What I've learned:
Creating your own recipe for thorn dressing or wax is trial and error. I studied dozen of posts and made a few batches of wax and none of them turn out quite as smooth as a barbour.
Use a real heat gun on low setting to get the wax to wick deep into the canvas. really makes a huge difference
This takes some time, not quite like polishing shoes or oiling a baseball glove.
Linseed oil does get gummy if not used right and this does create stiffness in the jacket
Turnpentine or White Spirits takes weeks to air out the strong smell if you use this in your recipe
Look for pine tar at a tack shop (saddle shop), I did not try but this could be a key ingredient for all I know
Experiment with some cheap canvas duffle bags and totes from thrift stores
My jacket turned out great as a hunting coat. I would take it through the meanest briars no prob. Probably not suited for the office and Winchester AAs would spill out of my pockets anyway
I recently got hooked on this idea after owning filson, barbour, red read, dux back, old hunting coats.
I had an older Polo canvas jacket that was actually very well made bird hunting coat with an actual game pouch. I will post pics tonight (yes in 2014).
What I've learned:
Creating your own recipe for thorn dressing or wax is trial and error. I studied dozen of posts and made a few batches of wax and none of them turn out quite as smooth as a barbour.
Use a real heat gun on low setting to get the wax to wick deep into the canvas. really makes a huge difference
This takes some time, not quite like polishing shoes or oiling a baseball glove.
Linseed oil does get gummy if not used right and this does create stiffness in the jacket
Turnpentine or White Spirits takes weeks to air out the strong smell if you use this in your recipe
Look for pine tar at a tack shop (saddle shop), I did not try but this could be a key ingredient for all I know
Experiment with some cheap canvas duffle bags and totes from thrift stores
My jacket turned out great as a hunting coat. I would take it through the meanest briars no prob. Probably not suited for the office and Winchester AAs would spill out of my pockets anyway