How to melt shoe polish?
Kooky45
chunks making it difficult to wipe onto a cloth or brush. Can I put
the tin on the cooker and melt the polish so it sticks back together
again, like candle wax, or is there anything in the polish that's
likely to go on fire?
In fact, does anyone have any good tips on the best way to use this
polish (brush or cloth, cold or hot, etc.)
Ian Stirling
Put it in the oven at 100C or so.
On the cooker is a bad idea, as it may burn.
Neil
>I have a tin of Kiwi shoe polish where the polish has broken into
>chunks making it difficult to wipe onto a cloth or brush. Can I put
>the tin on the cooker and melt the polish so it sticks back together
>again, like candle wax, or is there anything in the polish that's
>likely to go on fire?
--
Neil Swann
Kooky45
coherers
"Mary Fisher" <mary....@zetnet.co.uk> wrote in message
news:41ab452c$0$2653$4c56...@master.news.zetnet.net...
>
> But it will still be too hard to use and will break up when you try to.
Some
> of the solvent has evaporated. You could try mixing a small amount of oil
of
> turpentine into it while it's molten - but shoe polish is pretty cheap
still
> (you seem not to have used it for some time!)
>
> Mary
>
I just add some white spirit - mind you that stinks the place out if you do
it indoors or, worse, in the oven !
Mary Fisher
"Ian Stirling" <ro...@mauve.demon.co.uk> wrote in message
news:41ab436b$0$4020$ed26...@ptn-nntp-reader01.plus.net...
But it will still be too hard to use and will break up when you try to. Some
OG
<rob...@freeserve.co.uk> wrote in message
news:n7smq0pikhi1o2edu...@4ax.com...
Then let the whole thing cool - don't try and lift it out until the
polish has solidified again.
I didn't - it went all over the place, and it's taken 9 months to get
the polish out of the vinyl flooring.
In my case I sat it in a saucepan with half a centimetre of simmering
water. Melted in less than a minute and cooled back to solid in about
30.
HTH
OG
Dave Stanton
Don't melt over a gas flame etc. Been there done that, got the singed
eyebrows and the large burn mark on the kitchen carpet !!!!
Dave
--
Some people use windows, others have a life.
Richard Sterry
news:223ee064.04112...@posting.google.com...
Yes you can; I have done this many many times over the years, (but not with
the same tin of polish, obviously). However, it is all too easy to overdo it
on the cooker, and the fumes can then catch fire with unpleasant results. It
would be better to heat it gently over a little spirit burner or one of
those squat little candles which used to be used as nightlights in the old
days, but which seem to be used for 'mood' lighting these days. However, do
be very careful as liquid shoe polish on the skin is extremely painful and
seriously unfunny.
Each time you do this some solvent is lost, so it may only be effective once
or twice. Unless the tin has a lot left in it, I'd bin it and buy a new one.
I suppose if I'm objective about it, from a health and safety point of view,
I should advise you not to do it - period! You could cause an expensive
fire, or burn yourself quite nastily, which is hardly worth it for a few
tens of pence worth of polish. However, I must admit to deriving a certain
miserly pleasure from it. ;-)
Rick
Mary Fisher
I forgot to say that it's not a good idea to melt any wax on a direct source
of heat.
Mary
Mary Fisher
"Richard Sterry" <no_...@all.ever> wrote in message
news:cofuho$spb$1$830f...@news.demon.co.uk...
Power and fuel costs money.
Mary
>
> Rick
>
>
Andy Dingley
>I have a tin of Kiwi shoe polish where the polish has broken into
>chunks making it difficult to wipe onto a cloth or brush.
Either buy some more, or melt it over your double-boiler and add a
little real turpentine and a few drops of ammonia (you might just need
the ammonia). If you don't have all of these already, just buy some
more shoe polish.
It's a foul task for a cheap product. Really not worth doing. OTOH,
I'm a bloody fool and can happily spend all day brewing wax polishes -
there's crateloads of the stuff in the workshop.
--
Smert' spamionam
Mary Fisher
"Andy Dingley" <din...@codesmiths.com> wrote in message
news:u36nq0lp1tmfm7s2g...@4ax.com...
> On 29 Nov 2004 07:39:16 -0800, ken...@hotmail.com (Kooky45) wrote:
>
>>I have a tin of Kiwi shoe polish where the polish has broken into
>>chunks making it difficult to wipe onto a cloth or brush.
>
> Either buy some more, or melt it over your double-boiler and add a
> little real turpentine and a few drops of ammonia (you might just need
> the ammonia). If you don't have all of these already, just buy some
> more shoe polish.
>
> It's a foul task for a cheap product. Really not worth doing.
Quite.
> OTOH,
> I'm a bloody fool and can happily spend all day brewing wax polishes -
> there's crateloads of the stuff in the workshop.
I make lots too, but only to sell. I never use it ...
Mary
>
> --
> Smert' spamionam
Harvey Van Sickle
Got me thinking, that. Starting point:
I have no idea.
Wondering:
One of the simplest ways to make "black polish" --
black-coloured shellac which one uses for ebonising
furniture -- is to "melt" a broken pre-vinyl record
(scratched 78rpm) by soaking it in meths.
Questions for the expurts:
Does shoe polish have shellac in it? (Hell -- does
*anything* have shellac in it any more?) Would a minimal
amount of meths revitalise shoe polish in the same way that
it melts 78rpm records?
--
Cheers,
Harvey
Peter Parry
> Can I put the tin on the cooker and melt the polish so it sticks back together
>again, like candle wax,
Yes
>or is there anything in the polish that's likely to go on fire?
Yes
--
Peter Parry.
http://www.wpp.ltd.uk/
Don Spumey
Ah..........the days of 'national service'.........the words "spooning" &
elbow grease spring to mind! ;-)
Don.
Mary Fisher
"Don Spumey" <Don.S...@pseudonym.com> wrote in message
news:dcGdnSPNe71...@karoo.co.uk...
My grandad had a piece of bone for that - in the First World War though ....
I still have it. Means more than his medals.
Mary
>
> Don.
>
Mary Fisher
"Harvey Van Sickle" <harve...@ntlworld.com> wrote in message
news:Xns95B0DF1E...@62.253.162.203...
>
> Questions for the expurts:
>
> Does shoe polish have shellac in it?
No.
(Hell -- does
> *anything* have shellac in it any more?)
French polish.
Would a minimal
> amount of meths revitalise shoe polish in the same way that
> it melts 78rpm records?
No. And it doesn't melt the records, it can dissolve them but it takes some
time.
Do you remember making plant pots from them by making them soft in hot water
and moulding them round a shape of your choice? They had a wavy edge ...
Never liked them!
However, I have a collection of 78s if anyone wants to try ... some from the
1930s. I keep forgetting how heavy they are.
Mary
Mary
>
> --
> Cheers,
> Harvey
Mary Fisher
"Peter Parry" <pe...@wpp.ltd.uk> wrote in message
news:608nq0tbtgdea3ege...@4ax.com...
> On 29 Nov 2004 07:39:16 -0800, ken...@hotmail.com (Kooky45) wrote:
>
>> Can I put the tin on the cooker and melt the polish so it sticks back
>> together
>>again, like candle wax,
>
> Yes
>
>>or is there anything in the polish that's likely to go on fire?
>
> Yes
LOL!
Richard Sterry
Curses! I never thought of that. :-(
Rick
Mary Fisher
"Richard Sterry" <no_...@all.ever> wrote in message news:cog8i2$gtg$1
>>
>> Power and fuel costs money.
>>
>> Mary
>
> Curses! I never thought of that. :-(
LOL!
That's why my shoes aren't polished ...
Mary
>
> Rick
>
>
Harvey Van Sickle
>
> "Harvey Van Sickle" <harve...@ntlworld.com> wrote in message
> news:Xns95B0DF1E...@62.253.162.203...
>>
>> Questions for the expurts:
>>
>> Does shoe polish have shellac in it?
>
> No.
>
> (Hell -- does
>> *anything* have shellac in it any more?)
>
> French polish.
>
> Would a minimal
>> amount of meths revitalise shoe polish in the same way that
>> it melts 78rpm records?
>
> No. And it doesn't melt the records, it can dissolve them but it
> takes some time.
Tell me about it....it took a while, but c.1985 it was the by far the
simplest way to source a small amount -- one chair's worth -- of black
shellac.
(I bought the 78s from a junk-shop-wannabe-antique store, and asked for
his "oldest and poorest-quality" records -- more shellac content in the
older ones, I was told. The look on his face when he found I had zilch
interest in what the recording was, and just wanted to render them down
for materials was...not pleased...)
> However, I have a collection of 78s if anyone wants to try ...
> some from the 1930s. I keep forgetting how heavy they are.
1930s would work well for shellac-making....
--
Cheers,
Harvey
Mary Fisher
>>>
>>> Does shoe polish have shellac in it?
>>
>> No.
>>
>> (Hell -- does
>>> *anything* have shellac in it any more?)
>>
>> French polish.
>>
>> Would a minimal
>>> amount of meths revitalise shoe polish in the same way that
>>> it melts 78rpm records?
>>
>> No. And it doesn't melt the records, it can dissolve them but it
>> takes some time.
>
> Tell me about it....it took a while, but c.1985 it was the by far the
> simplest way to source a small amount -- one chair's worth -- of black
> shellac.
Oh it wasn't difficult to find!
>
> (I bought the 78s from a junk-shop-wannabe-antique store, and asked for
> his "oldest and poorest-quality" records -- more shellac content in the
> older ones, I was told.
That's true. the later, lighterones weren't the same at all. some of them
were unbreakable! Took all the fun out of it.
>> However, I have a collection of 78s if anyone wants to try ...
>> some from the 1930s. I keep forgetting how heavy they are.
>
> 1930s would work well for shellac-making....
I know. but I don't want any. If I did I have some flakes. I also have some
ready-made button polish but I bet I couldn't get the stopper off ...
Mary
>
> --
> Cheers,
> Harvey
Don Spumey
You're becoming senescent Mary ;-)
Don.
Andy Dingley
<harve...@ntlworld.com> wrote:
> One of the simplest ways to make "black polish" --
> black-coloured shellac which one uses for ebonising
> furniture -- is to "melt" a broken pre-vinyl record
> (scratched 78rpm) by soaking it in meths.
Have you ever actually done this ?
I'm not disputing the basic theory (78's are shellac, shellac in
alcohol makes a "black polish") but with that much granted, this is
about as unworkable a proces as you can find.
78's aren't shellac - they're shellac and filler (presumably carbon
black, although I don't know for sure). This modifies shellac's
behaviour enormously.
Shellac won't just dissolve in meths. As someone who does a lot of
this, I use a coffee grinder to powder it first and even then it takes
a couple of days.
Fresh shellac makes polish. Old shellac doesn't make anything useful,
A few months is the limit for liquid, the age of a 78 is certainly
enough for solids.
Black shellac polish is the most foul-tempered and unworkable of all
shellac polishes. If you're expecting a good result, you need the best
quality and freshest you can find. Trying to make it out of recycled
78's is just asking for trouble.
> Does shoe polish have shellac in it?
No.
> (Hell -- does *anything* have shellac in it any more?)
Lots of things. Sweets (M&Ms / Smarties) and pills are eaten,
hairspray and furniture finishes still use it as a varnish or polish.
I use a couple of kilogrammes a year.
> Would a minimal
> amount of meths revitalise shoe polish
Maybe. But it would be unstable in storage and wouldn't keep working
for very long.
--
Smert' spamionam
Mary Fisher
>
> You're becoming senescent Mary ;-)
Don't worry, it's not catching :-)
Mry
>
> Don.
>
>
>
Mary Fisher
>
> Lots of things. Sweets (M&Ms / Smarties) and pills are eaten,
> hairspray and furniture finishes still use it as a varnish or polish.
> I use a couple of kilogrammes a year.
Of Smarties or hairspray?
>
Mary
Don Spumey
<LOL> Just sneaks up when you're not looking!
Don.
Suz
> chunks making it difficult to wipe onto a cloth or brush. Can I put
> the tin on the cooker and melt the polish so it sticks back together
> again, like candle wax, or is there anything in the polish that's
> likely to go on fire?
It's time for our Natural Philisopher to *wax* lyrical about the fringe
benefits of an Aga.
Suzanne
Harvey Van Sickle
> On Mon, 29 Nov 2004 21:55:58 GMT, Harvey Van Sickle
><harve...@ntlworld.com> wrote:
>
>> One of the simplest ways to make "black polish" --
>> black-coloured shellac which one uses for ebonising
>> furniture -- is to "melt" a broken pre-vinyl record
>> (scratched 78rpm) by soaking it in meths.
>
> Have you ever actually done this ?
Yes, but not for about 15 or 20 years; it gave me a jar-ful of polish,
which was enough for the bit of work I needed to do.
FWIW, I never finished the job -- it's still on the list... -- but the
test finishing I did on a leg and upright of the 19th-century chair I
was intending to do worked perfectly.
> I'm not disputing the basic theory (78's are shellac, shellac in
> alcohol makes a "black polish") but with that much granted, this
> is about as unworkable a proces as you can find.
Well....it did work; the re-ebonising looked fine.
-snip-
> Black shellac polish is the most foul-tempered and unworkable of
> all shellac polishes. If you're expecting a good result, you need
> the best quality and freshest you can find. Trying to make it out
> of recycled 78's is just asking for trouble.
It wasn't nice stuff to work with -- and working with shellac is a pain
in any event -- but it did the job at the time.
--
Cheers,
Harvey
Kooky45
> I have a tin of Kiwi shoe polish where the polish has broken into
> chunks making it difficult to wipe onto a cloth or brush. Can I put
> the tin on the cooker and melt the polish so it sticks back together
> again, like candle wax, or is there anything in the polish that's
> likely to go on fire?
Story update. I melted the polish in the tin over one of those little
mood candles. It took about 10 mins. When it was fully molten I blew
the candle out, and for an experiment I dipped a sponge gently into
the polish and rubbed it on my shoes. Wow! The polish went on
beautifully, nice and thick and even. I let it dry properly on the
shoe then polished it off, and it's the best shine they've ever had.
The polish in the tin hardened after about 10 mins to a nice smooth
finish so I should be able to use it again shortly.
Ian Middleton
> chunks making it difficult to wipe onto a cloth or brush. Can I put
> the tin on the cooker and melt the polish so it sticks back together
> again, like candle wax, or is there anything in the polish that's
> likely to go on fire?
>
> polish (brush or cloth, cold or hot, etc.)
about 10-20 seconds to melt enough in bottom of tin to stick the lumps in
place. Let cool and set cleaned shoes all done. No fire, no burnt kitchen,
no animals dying, just good clean shoes.
Mary Fisher
>>
>> Don't worry, it's not catching :-)
>>
>
> <LOL> Just sneaks up when you're not looking!
If you're lucky it will happen to the rest of you :-) It has its benefits.
Mary
>
> Don.
>
Mary Fisher
"Ian Middleton" <ia...@tcp.co.uk> wrote in message
news:KcGdnd4YeeI...@tcp.co.uk...
Sigh ... Andy, they're all doing us out of a job. We'll fade away from lack
of sustenance ... :-(
Mary
>
>
Owain
| > ... However, I must admit to deriving a certain miserly
| > pleasure from it. ;-)
| Power and fuel costs money.
Heavens Mary, you're not supposed to light a candle specially for melting
shoe-polish. Just wait until a night-time power cut when one of your
neighbours will have a candle lit anyway, and use theirs.
Haven't you discovered news:misc.consumers.frugal-living yet?
Owain
David
> chunks making it difficult to wipe onto a cloth or brush. Can I put
> the tin on the cooker and melt the polish so it sticks back together
> again, like candle wax, or is there anything in the polish that's
> likely to go on fire?
I'll leave the advice on solution to those here who know more. As far
as prevention is concerned, there seems to be a pinhole in many of
these tins (have a look). No doubt this is to ease opening of the tin
(hah!), but it also aids the evaporation of the solvent. When you buy
a tin. seal the hole with tape.
Yours stingily, wearing fingerless gloves.
David
Mary Fisher
"David" <spa...@davidmason.org.uk> wrote in message
>
> I'll leave the advice on solution to those here who know more. As far
> as prevention is concerned, there seems to be a pinhole in many of
> these tins (have a look). No doubt this is to ease opening of the tin
> (hah!), but it also aids the evaporation of the solvent. When you buy
> a tin. seal the hole with tape.
Hmm. Tape costs money ... the self-adhesive strips from the plastic bags
which come with junk mail are very durable ...
>
> Yours stingily, wearing fingerless gloves.
But tha's a lot to learn, lad!
Mary
>
> David
Mary Fisher
"Owain" <owain...@stirlingcity.co.uk> wrote in message
news:11018193...@damia.uk.clara.net...
> "Mary Fisher" wrote
> | > ... However, I must admit to deriving a certain miserly
> | > pleasure from it. ;-)
> | Power and fuel costs money.
>
> Heavens Mary, you're not supposed to light a candle specially for melting
> shoe-polish. Just wait until a night-time power cut when one of your
> neighbours will have a candle lit anyway, and use theirs.
We don't have power cuts any more ... and I wouldn't melt polish over a
direct flame even if it were free.
Not that we use shoe polish - don't wear shoes :-)
What I would do if I really wanted to melt shoe polish would be to put the
tin in a polythene bag in the greenhouse - or on the bulkhead of the car in
the sun.
>
> Haven't you discovered news:misc.consumers.frugal-living yet?
I'm off now!
Mary
>
> Owain
>
>
Mary Fisher
Hmm. Interesting. Haven't looked at a thread yet but there are some familiar
names :-)
Mary
>
> Owain
>
>
Andy Dingley
<mary....@zetnet.co.uk> wrote:
>Sigh ... Andy, they're all doing us out of a job. We'll fade away from lack
>of sustenance ... :-(
Given that I'm just about to fire up the lead-boiling pot-o-doom for
another batch of genuine lead-dried boiled linseed, I think "fading
away" is my least likely demise.
--
Smert' spamionam
Mary Fisher
LOL
My current pot-o-doom is full of the smelliest tallow I could find for a
theatre which wants stinking, smoking candles.
It goes against the grain ... but I don't think it will lead to my demise.
Mary
>
>
> --
> Smert' spamionam
Mike Barnes
It's certainly more attractive than the obvious alternative.
--
Mike Barnes
Mary Fisher
"Mike Barnes" <novemb...@mikebarnes.fsnet.co.uk> wrote in message
news:ZSoWkVDB...@g52lk5g23lkgk3lk345g.invalid...
Yes ... one of the benefits is planning your funeral :-)
Mary
>
> --
> Mike Barnes
Lobster
Great news!
Sorry, but I just had to check at Tesco.com for the price of a new tin of
the stuff.
82p...
Mary Fisher
"Lobster" <davidlobs...@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:Lt2rd.81$Ky...@newsfe5-gui.ntli.net...
Was that a big tin or a small tion?
Or do they all come in the same EU standard tins now?
Mary
>
>
DonK3866
It is ok to melt it i do it all the time on our stove on low heat in fact i
think it works better and get a high gloss on my boots
--
for full context, visit https://www.homeownershub.com/uk-diy/how-to-melt-shoe-polish-129455-.htm
Brian Gaff
Wots that pong, oh its my latest hot shoepolish and white spirit sponge
cake, want some?
Brian
--
----- -
This newsgroup posting comes to you directly from...
The Sofa of Brian Gaff...
bri...@blueyonder.co.uk
Blind user, so no pictures please!
"DonK3866" <caedfaa9ed1216d60ef...@example.com> wrote in
message news:R0ueB.490032$FB3.2...@fx14.am4...
Andy Burns
> It is ok to melt it i do it all the time on our stove on low heat in fact i
> think it works better and get a high gloss on my boots
gas hob...
Dan S. MacAbre
> replying to Kooky45, DonK3866 wrote:
> It is ok to melt it i do it all the time on our stove on low heat in fact i
> think it works better and get a high gloss on my boots
>
works well enough for me, but I'm not known for being very, er, soigné.
Brian Gaff
Its like a tie, never ever think about those either, never wear em.
--
----- -
This newsgroup posting comes to you directly from...
The Sofa of Brian Gaff...
bri...@blueyonder.co.uk
Blind user, so no pictures please!
news:olf08v$vqc$1...@dont-email.me...
Dan S. MacAbre
brassieres.
The Other John
> The missus thinks I'm weird, but I only ever use olive oil now. It
> works well enough for me, but I'm not known for being very, er, soigné.
the OP is still sitting there waiting for an answer?
--
TOJ.
Dan S. MacAbre
politics :-)
Fredxxx
> replying to Kooky45, DonK3866 wrote:
> It is ok to melt it i do it all the time on our stove on low heat in fact i
> think it works better and get a high gloss on my boots
>
https://tools.ietf.org/html/rfc1855
- If you are sending a reply to a message or a posting be sure you
summarize the original at the top of the message, or include just
enough text of the original to give a context.
Is the OP still alive? How old is the post you're replying to?
Clive Arthur
>
> Don't ask how I know.
It was supposed to be a practice with army boots to apply thick polish
and then light it before blowing it out and buffing. At least, that's
what I was told.
I tried it on a pair of shoes when I was at school and it made the
toecaps shrink, making them quite uncomfortable. My mother was not
impressed, and I had to keep wearing them.
Cheers
--
Clive
Rod Speed
> brassieres.
invented IMO.
Tho some things like top hats and tails come close.
Dan S. MacAbre
> Dan S. MacAbre <n...@way.com> wrote
>
>> Throwing away one's ties is the male equivalent of women burning their
>> brassieres.
>
> Like hell it is. I never ever wore one voluntarily, most stupid thing
> ever invented IMO.
(most commonly known as 'fashion'). With the possible exception of,
say, welding gloves and incontinence pants. But I wasn't being too
serious :-)
The Other John
> Nope. Just welcoming a chance to talk about something that isn't
> politics
year old posts.
--
TOJ.
Dan S. MacAbre
Vir Campestris
> Its like a tie, never ever think about those either, never wear em.
to a funeral.
Andy
soup
> <cli...@nowaytoday.co.uk> wrote:
>> It was supposed to be a practice with army boots to apply thick polish
>> and then light it before blowing it out and buffing. At least, that's
>> what I was told.
> toe caps. Boys in the school CCCF used to melt black boot polish in an
> old dessert spoon over a candle flame until it caught alight, pour it
> over the toe caps while still burning, and rub the back of the hot
> spoon over the flaming toecap to smooth the dimples and get the polish
> to penetrate. When cool, the toe caps would be spit-and-polished for
> hours, with spit, polish and a soft duster. You could get a mirror
> finish that way, just like patent leather.
I was specifically told NOT to use spit as it is greasy rather a small
amount of water in the polish tin lid should be used.
I was on parade once when I had to march out to the officer taking it,
he had brown shoes on but with black bulled toes.