# String Makers Wax



## Raymond 1 (Feb 23, 2010)

Hey Folks,
I am just wondering if there is a certain recipe that you use when making string makers wax? I have the beeswax and was told to add rosin to it to at a ratio of 5 parts beeswax to 1 part rosin, and try that. Well rosin is pine sap isn't it? And if you boil the sap to a liquid and filter it out, isn't that turpentine? So instead of running around the woods looking for pine sap, can I purchase and use turpentine with my beeswax to make string makers wax? Any and all help will be much appreciated. 
Thanks,
Raymond


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## Andy. (Jan 12, 2011)

I use a little scorpion venom wax after building a set. Or lil johns clarifier for the entire string. 

I'd skip the turpentine and bees wax and get a product designed for these synthetic fibers we are using now.


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## Raymond 1 (Feb 23, 2010)

Turpentine is not what I need. Purified pine rosin is the other ingredient to mix with beeswax. And not 5 to 1 ratio either. I was wrong, it is 1/4 cup of roisin to 5 lbs of beeswax. I can get pine rosin from the trees and make it into what I need. 
Raymond


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## rhythmz (Jan 10, 2010)

Just to educate a newbie string builder, why the use of any wax in string building when it seems the common procedure would be to burnish the string thus removing the factory wax....I don't recall a step of "re-waxing" the string. If so, why not use something like Seal-Tite from Bohning for 452X, etc.?


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## Raymond 1 (Feb 23, 2010)

I thought that you used a bit to keep the bundle together when you started your loops. Maybe I explain that wrong. Can you set me on the right track. 
Thanks,
Raymond


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## Andy. (Jan 12, 2011)

No need to add any during the build process. It is already loaded with wax.


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## Arrowwood (Nov 16, 2010)

> Well rosin is pine sap isn't it? And if you boil the sap to a liquid and filter it out, isn't that turpentine?


Pine sap is resin. When it's heated, volatile gases are released (turpenes) and rosin is what's left. Rosin is what is added to beeswax for bowstring wax.

As far as I know the modern string waxes are silicone based, but a lot of recurve shooters still use dacron with beeswax - some of the old bows can't use the dyneema material.

beeswax + turpentine = furniture paste wax


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