didgeridoo mouthpiece alternative to beeswax

[P***@gmail.com]

I've followed the instructions and made a moutpiece for my digeridoo
out of beeswax. Sadly this has caused an allergic reaction around my
lips - apparently the pollen in beeswax is known to cause this reaction
in people who have sensitive skin.

Obviously one solution, not my preferred one, would be to give up the
digeridoo. Another would be to remove the mouthpiece and simply play
the instrument open ended - this is quite rough though.

What substances could I use as an alternative to beeswax that are
likely not to cause this reaction?

Any useful suggestions gratefully received.

[sm_jamieson]

Post by P***@gmail.com
I've followed the instructions and made a moutpiece for my digeridoo
out of beeswax. Sadly this has caused an allergic reaction around my
lips - apparently the pollen in beeswax is known to cause this reaction
in people who have sensitive skin.
Obviously one solution, not my preferred one, would be to give up the
digeridoo. Another would be to remove the mouthpiece and simply play
the instrument open ended - this is quite rough though.
What substances could I use as an alternative to beeswax that are
likely not to cause this reaction?
Any useful suggestions gratefully received.

The "toy" digeridoo I have, had a slightly flexible plastic mouthpiece
that was just like an end-cap with a hole cut about the size �2 coin.
Got some pretty good sounds out of it.
Simon.

[HWtn]

1e: you can try to make one of parafine or stearine, the stuff candles are
made of.
2e: You can also try to make a mould from your mouth peace, from plaster or
from silicon rubber f.e. To describe the whole procedure is a long story but
there are plenty descriptions on the internet. Cast in that mould a mouth
peace from some polyester casting stuff.
3e or simply make it from wood, take a mouthpiece of and alp horn as
example.
Good luck
HWtn

Post by P***@gmail.com
I've followed the instructions and made a moutpiece for my digeridoo
out of beeswax. Sadly this has caused an allergic reaction around my
lips - apparently the pollen in beeswax is known to cause this reaction
in people who have sensitive skin.
Obviously one solution, not my preferred one, would be to give up the
digeridoo. Another would be to remove the mouthpiece and simply play
the instrument open ended - this is quite rough though.
What substances could I use as an alternative to beeswax that are
likely not to cause this reaction?
Any useful suggestions gratefully received.

The "toy" digeridoo I have, had a slightly flexible plastic mouthpiece
that was just like an end-cap with a hole cut about the size £2 coin.
Got some pretty good sounds out of it.
Simon.

[Guy King]

Post by HWtn
2e: You can also try to make a mould from your mouth peace, from plaster or
from silicon rubber

Search for "morphplast" on eBay. Thermoplastic that melts in hot water,
can be shaped like putty and then sets hard as it cools. Can be
repeatedly reshaped.

[Dave Plowman (News)]

Post by P***@gmail.com
Obviously one solution, not my preferred one, would be to give up the
digeridoo.

Sounds the best one. Or you could take up the bagpipes?

[kauhl-meersburg]

hello,

please don't believe all what people tell you
inside beeswax there is never pollen, it's just the cleanest product,
coming directly out of bees' glands, chewed and fixed
your allergic reaction surely comes from poisoned wax, chemical
treatment of the hive
look for a beekeeper who can garantee "virgin wax", visit him and have a
look how he gets it
btw, do you know, it's not the pollen which is causing allergies, it's
the aerial pollution dust particles, around which pollen is condensing

more info, you are welcome
cheers
kauhl
(Lake Constance)

Post by Dave Plowman (News)

Post by P***@gmail.com
Obviously one solution, not my preferred one, would be to give up the
digeridoo.

Sounds the best one. Or you could take up the bagpipes?

[Mary Fisher]

Post by kauhl-meersburg
hello,
please don't believe all what people tell you
inside beeswax there is never pollen,

There is, the bees make it into comb. Honey contains pollen and honey is
stored in the comb. Pollen is also stored in the comb. Pollen CAN be
filtered out of beeswax but it needs an incredibly fine filter, not
available to beekeepers. The smallest pollen grains are very, very tiny -
some even smaller than that :-)

Post by kauhl-meersburg
it's just the cleanest product, coming directly out of bees' glands,
chewed and fixed
your allergic reaction surely comes from poisoned wax, chemical treatment
of the hive

That's possible but not all beekeepers use chemical treatments.

Post by kauhl-meersburg
look for a beekeeper who can garantee "virgin wax", visit him and have a
look how he gets it

Even 'virgin' wax is bound to contain some pollen, it's everywhere in the
hive including on the bees' bodies.

Post by kauhl-meersburg
btw, do you know, it's not the pollen which is causing allergies, it's the
aerial pollution dust particles, around which pollen is condensing

Not always true. But there might be something else causing irritation to the
player/poster's lips. Paraffin isn't necessarily a good substitute for
beeswax for a mouthpiece because it's slippier and doesn't stick like
beeswax does. The person who suggested using a moulded flexible moulding
proably has the best solution.

Mary

[Huge]

Post by kauhl-meersburg

Post by Dave Plowman (News)

Post by P***@gmail.com
Obviously one solution, not my preferred one, would be to give up the
digeridoo.

Sounds the best one. Or you could take up the bagpipes?

hello,

Post by kauhl-meersburg
please don't believe all what people tell you

Please don't top post.

Post by kauhl-meersburg
inside beeswax there is never pollen, it's just the cleanest product,

Unmitigated tosh.

Post by kauhl-meersburg
coming directly out of bees' glands, chewed and fixed

Yuck. Honey is bee vomit, beeswax is chewed by bees. Why would anyone
want to have anythign to do with these revolting products?

Post by kauhl-meersburg
your allergic reaction surely comes from poisoned wax, chemical
treatment of the hive
look for a beekeeper who can garantee "virgin wax", visit him and have a
look how he gets it
btw, do you know, it's not the pollen which is causing allergies, it's
the aerial pollution dust particles, around which pollen is condensing

Rubbish.

[raden]

Post by kauhl-meersburg
hello,
please don't believe all what people tell you
inside beeswax there is never pollen, it's just the cleanest product,
coming directly out of bees' glands, chewed and fixed
your allergic reaction surely comes from poisoned wax, chemical
treatment of the hive

A Reinheitsgebot for pollen ?

interesting

doesn't sound right to me though

[Guy King]

Post by Dave Plowman (News)

Post by P***@gmail.com
Obviously one solution, not my preferred one, would be to give up the
digeridoo.

Sounds the best one. Or you could take up the bagpipes?

It'd be an ill wind which blew nobody any good.

[The Wanderer]

Post by P***@gmail.com
I've followed the instructions and made a moutpiece for my digeridoo
out of beeswax. Sadly this has caused an allergic reaction around my
lips - apparently the pollen in beeswax is known to cause this reaction
in people who have sensitive skin.
Obviously one solution, not my preferred one, would be to give up the
digeridoo. Another would be to remove the mouthpiece and simply play
the instrument open ended - this is quite rough though.
What substances could I use as an alternative to beeswax that are
likely not to cause this reaction?
Any useful suggestions gratefully received.

Dunno anything 'bout the digeridoo, but presuming you have to partially
close off the end, how about a modelling or casting latex? There are
numerous types available, take a look at

http://www.tiranti.co.uk/indexhome.asp

I used some when I wanted to centre an armature wire in porcelain doll arms
and legs. It has the advantage that it still retains a measure of
elasticity even after curing, so in theory you should be able to pull it
away to replace, IYSWIM.

Fred Aldous also keep a wide range of latex and resins for casting and
moulding - milliput comes to mind as a two-part hard-setting resin putty

http://www.fredaldous.co.uk/trolleyed/7/index.htm

[Guy King]

Post by P***@gmail.com
What substances could I use as an alternative to beeswax that are
likely not to cause this reaction?

Peel the red wax off some Dutch cheese and use that? It'd look stylish, too.

[Weatherlawyer]

Post by Guy King
Peel the red wax off some Dutch cheese and use that? It'd look stylish, too.

THAT'S WAX !!??

Shit!

[Guy King]

This post might be inappropriate. Click to display it.

[Andy Dingley]

Post by P***@gmail.com
I've followed the instructions and made a moutpiece for my digeridoo
out of beeswax.

Yellow or white beeswax? Yellow beeswax is usually low on pollen (it's
filtered) but it still contains enough of it, and the proteins from
pollen, to cause allergic reactions in those who are sensitive to it.
White beeswax (from Tiranti, not your local beekeeper) has considerably
more refining done to it and is usually regarded as "allergy safe" for
most people.

You could also use a microcrystalline wax (try Tiranti again), which is
much more inert and hypoallergenic.

Best of all though are some new polymers that become workable at
boiling water temperatures and remain mouldable afterwards down at
hand-safe temperatures. More stable than waxes though, especially in
hot climates. Now if only I could remember what the damn things are
called and where you get them from (Cooksons or Tiranti, most likely).

[dennis@home]

Post by Andy Dingley
Best of all though are some new polymers that become workable at
boiling water temperatures and remain mouldable afterwards down at
hand-safe temperatures. More stable than waxes though, especially in
hot climates. Now if only I could remember what the damn things are
called and where you get them from (Cooksons or Tiranti, most likely).

Like
http://www.maplin.co.uk/Module.aspx?ModuleNo=35511&criteria=modelling&doy=29m11 ?

[Guy King]

Post by ***@home
http://www.maplin.co.uk/Module.aspx?ModuleNo=35511&criteria=modelling&doy=29m11 ?

Grief, I just got 200g off eBay for £6 including P'n'P and thought that
wasn't cheap.

[Andy Dingley]

Post by ***@home
Like
http://www.maplin.co.uk/Module.aspx?ModuleNo=35511&criteria=modelling&doy=29m11 ?

That's the stuff. Price varies though.

If you over-heat it, apparently it does turn into bog-standard glue gun
sticks and it loses its magic behaviour. The peculiar properties aren't
just due to robust formulation, they're caused by sophisticated and
ephemeral processing of it.

[gort]

Post by Andy Dingley
If you over-heat it, apparently it does turn into bog-standard glue gun
sticks and it loses its magic behaviour. The peculiar properties aren't
just due to robust formulation, they're caused by sophisticated and
ephemeral processing of it.

Blimey you sound like that bird off the telly ad and the ' magic ' way they
make those museli ? bars.


Dave

[P***@gmail.com]

Post by Andy Dingley

Post by P***@gmail.com
I've followed the instructions and made a moutpiece for my digeridoo
out of beeswax.

Yellow or white beeswax? Yellow beeswax is usually low on pollen (it's
filtered) but it still contains enough of it, and the proteins from
pollen, to cause allergic reactions in those who are sensitive to it.
White beeswax (from Tiranti, not your local beekeeper) has considerably
more refining done to it and is usually regarded as "allergy safe" for
most people.
You could also use a microcrystalline wax (try Tiranti again), which is
much more inert and hypoallergenic.

The beeswax that I have is a fairly dark brown. I got it from a local
shop that was used to people buying it for digeridoos. It took a while
to put it on, too, dipping it to build up a thin layer at a time.

Post by Andy Dingley
Best of all though are some new polymers that become workable at
boiling water temperatures and remain mouldable afterwards down at
hand-safe temperatures. More stable than waxes though, especially in
hot climates. Now if only I could remember what the damn things are
called and where you get them from (Cooksons or Tiranti, most likely).

I'll look for a local (Cape Town) source, but that does sound like the
stuff!

Thank you to everybody for all the really useful information in this
thread!

[Mary Fisher]

Post by P***@gmail.com
The beeswax that I have is a fairly dark brown.

Then it was either not cleaned or it had been overheated.

Mary

[AL]

This post might be inappropriate. Click to display it.

[Mary Fisher]

Post by Andy Dingley

Post by P***@gmail.com
I've followed the instructions and made a moutpiece for my digeridoo
out of beeswax.

Yellow or white beeswax? Yellow beeswax is usually low on pollen (it's
filtered) but it still contains enough of it, and the proteins from
pollen, to cause allergic reactions in those who are sensitive to it.
White beeswax (from Tiranti, not your local beekeeper) has considerably
more refining done to it and is usually regarded as "allergy safe" for
most people.

Andy, don't believe everything Tiranti says. They don't produce was, they
buy it in and they believe the sales talk from their supplier.
Mary
a Tiranti customer - but not for beeswax :-)

[raden]

Post by P***@gmail.com
I've followed the instructions and made a moutpiece for my digeridoo
out of beeswax. Sadly this has caused an allergic reaction around my
lips - apparently the pollen in beeswax is known to cause this reaction
in people who have sensitive skin.
Obviously one solution, not my preferred one, would be to give up the
digeridoo. Another would be to remove the mouthpiece and simply play
the instrument open ended - this is quite rough though.
What substances could I use as an alternative to beeswax that are
likely not to cause this reaction?
Any useful suggestions gratefully received.

Blu-Tak?

plasticine