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Subject:
From:
"F. HENRY" <[log in to unmask]>
Reply To:
Discussion of Bee Biology <[log in to unmask]>
Date:
Tue, 6 Dec 1994 11:27:52 -0800
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I am interested in hearing about unusual uses for beeswax, such as the
following two cases from my own experience:
 
1) A military friend asked me for beeswax to stiffen the points of his
   moustache - he had trained it out about three inches on each side
   but drooped at the ends. A light application of beeswax each morning
   fixed it for the day.
 
2) Another friend, who is into medieval jousting, needed to stiffen his
   leather armour because these enthusiasts get carried away in the heat
   of battle and whack one another pretty hard sometimes. (In the Middle
   Ages, the poor foot soldiers used leather while the knights used metal
   armour. Nowadays, metal armour is cheap but heavy - those who can afford
   it use lighter, leather armour). My friend had heard that leather could
   be stiffened by dipping it in beeswax. (Does anyone know if this is
   another medieval practice?). The individual pieces of leather were
   not large, so we heated them up a bit in an oven and dipped them in
   liquid beeswax. The results were very satisfactory on the field of
   battle and it was about five years before the leather had to be
   treated again.
 
Do you know any other out-of-the-ordinary applications for beeswax?
No need to mention candles and batik dyeing, as these are common uses.
 
Thanks in anticipation,
 
Falconer Henry,
Capital Region Beekeepers Association, Victoria, B.C., Canada

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