Altoids Tin Candle

[Murph]

As seen in KevlarKnight's BOB thread:
viewtopic.php?f=14&t=55268

I decide I was going to make my own Altoids Tin Candle. I took some regular tea candles, de-foiled them and cut them to interlock in the Tin.


From there I tried the infamous double boil. The tin was floating because I added too much water... in an attempt to level the Tin, I managed to mix the hot wax and water, both in the pot and tin. doh!


I managed to salvage the mess and came out with a crappy looking candle with only 2 wicks instead of the intended 4, but it works.


Now to try and clean out the damn pot.

[xxxDarksidexxx]

to keep your wicks up and in place where you want them, why not maybe make a little "jig" of sorts from some wire. just take a piece of wire and make some small loops in it and align it to where you want the wicks to stand up. then just set it accross the top edge of the tin. then stick it in the oven on like 300? maybe? if you dont want the wick to burn while in the oven ( or dry out if thats possible ) wrap a small piece of foil over each wick to protect it from the heat.


make the jig like this.

l________0__________0___________0________l

edit for another idea...

break apart the candles and put the wicks where you want them with your awesome homemade jig so they are held up nice and straight, now take a can..soup/soda can with the lid cut off or whatever, and drop in all the broken pieces of wax, now just melt that on the stove and pour it from the can into the altoid tin once its all melted. ta da!

[xxxDarksidexxx]

i dont have any altoids... i run around with foul breath . if i had one i would try it....makes me wanna run to the gas station to get some altoinds.

[JudgeDreadd]

Or you could wait until all the wax was liquified before even adding the wicks to ensure proper placement.

I'm not sure how practical this would be, you'd adda lot of carry weight and very little actual burn time. Not to mention that the metal of the altoids tin would heat up at the candle burnt, increases your risk of burning yourself and dropping the liquid wax all over. A shallow candle is not a good idea.

I think the Survival Candle is a much better idea, even if it costs a bit. 300 hours burn time, $40.00, decent heat output.

[Rednex]

Hey yall Darksides idea is kinda like the one in this thread about candles made from spent brass.
viewtopic.php?f=39&t=46919&p=970684&hilit=candles#p970684

JudgeDreadd survial candle is kinda cool im thinking i might be able to make somehting like that from an old sodacan and some scrap steel for a pot stand. Thanks for the idea

[BullOnParade]

i dont have any altoids... i run around with foul breath . if i had one i would try it....makes me wanna run to the gas station to get some altoinds.

In my experience no one buys breath mints in Canada. it just isn't a common purchase. I noticed it when I was in Malaysia and couldn't find a pack of gum. IMO survivalists probably keep the breath mint industry a float - with our home made B.O.A.Ts - I'm sorry it's horrible but I had to do it

[xxxDarksidexxx]

Hey yall Darksides idea is kinda like the one in this thread about candles made from spent brass.
http://www.zombiehunters.org/forum/view ... es#p970684

JudgeDreadd survial candle is kinda cool im thinking i might be able to make somehting like that from an old sodacan and some scrap steel for a pot stand. Thanks for the idea

cool, i had never seen that thread, but ive melted wax in a beer can to make the tuna fish can cadles with the cardboard and paraffin wax.

those are some small candles in the spent brass....i have to repeat what one of the responses on thread was and scream WHY? why such a small candle? i mean if i wanted such a small fire, say to light up a small cave i would just use a cut down q-tip like that guy who is not here any more!

[xxxDarksidexxx]

i dont have any altoids... i run around with foul breath . if i had one i would try it....makes me wanna run to the gas station to get some altoinds.

In my experience no one buys breath mints in Canada. it just isn't a common purchase. I noticed it when I was in Malaysia and couldn't find a pack of gum. IMO survivalists probably keep the breath mint industry a float - with our home made B.O.A.Ts - I'm sorry it's horrible but I had to do it

maybe i should move to canada

[Rednex]

[quote="xxxDarksidexxx
cool, i had never seen that thread, but ive melted wax in a beer can to make the tuna fish can cadles with the cardboard and paraffin wax.

those are some small candles in the spent brass....i have to repeat what one of the responses on thread was and scream WHY? why such a small candle? i mean if i wanted such a small fire, say to light up a small cave i would just use a cut down q-tip like that guy who is not here any more! [/quote]


I ment in the way of melting the wax with the empty can and oven or like the thread a propane torch. The spent brass candles are tiny , and i dont think we can cook off them to well. Then again if we had some 105mm.

[JudgeDreadd]

Soda can would work, maybe denser metal tho, bare in mind you'll have to hold this and move it around, if the metal is too thin or too conductive to heat it'll be a pain. Same concept could work for a those old chocolate hershey's syrup cans. They're solid, have a sealable cap, and could be easily filled with beeswax and a good quality wick.



P.S. Yeah altoids aren't all the rage around here, gum is more common.

[sheddi]

From there I tried the infamous double boil. The tin was floating because I added too much water... in an attempt to level the Tin, I managed to mix the hot wax and water, both in the pot and tin. doh!

I've frequently melted tealights, in their own foil cups, directly over a gas ring without ever setting fire to anything unintended. The trick is to keep the gas really low and not to be tempted to try and hurry it along.

I would fully expect this to work with a whole bunch o' tealights in an Altoids tin, and it saves you the whole "double boiler oh dear I've got to de-wax the skillet" problem.

[WY_Not]

There are easier ways to melt the wax. Wife has an electric melter/dispenser she got at a craft store. It looks like a big funnel with a handle. Plug it in and it heats the wax. Hold it over the container or mold and push a button. Valve on bottom opens and wax/soap pours out the bottom. Release button, valve closes. Comes with a stand. Can't for the life of me remember the brand/name/model. Will check when I get home and post and update.

WY_Not

[Murph]

Yeah, I foresee another attempt at this sometime in the future, but for right now it's working. It was fun to try something new.

Infact, I might try it with one of the Altoids "smalls" tin. It looks like it might be big enough to fit two wicks in. I'll just cut the candles to size this time and then light them to melt them together.

[NorrisUnleashed]

After thanksgiving I will try my hand at the altoids candle. If i have more luck than OP than I will post photos. If I dont, I will post a link of his pictures.

[Rednex]

I tried a Camel SNUS tin. Took the 2 tealight candles out of there little tin cups and they fit perfectly no cutting or melting needed. I left the wicks in the candles.

[WY_Not]

Home now.

My mistake. Looks like the thing she has is intended only for soap.

Natural Science Industries, LTD
Soap Melter/Soap Making Machine
Model 9292
http://lib.store.yahoo.net/lib/yhst-548 ... 7/9292.pdf

[Kip]

i dont have any altoids... i run around with foul breath . if i had one i would try it....makes me wanna run to the gas station to get some altoinds.

In my experience no one buys breath mints in Canada. it just isn't a common purchase. I noticed it when I was in Malaysia and couldn't find a pack of gum. IMO survivalists probably keep the breath mint industry a float - with our home made B.O.A.Ts - I'm sorry it's horrible but I had to do it

You may be on to something about mints (i just use mouthwash). I swear i went to at least 3 convenience stores looking for Altoids and found none (not very convenient if you ask me). On top of that i went to about 3 or 4 different drug stores and could only find medicated lozenges in plastic cases. I finally found Altoids in a drug store downtown, so i bought 2 tins and might pick up a third.

I painted the 2 i have a nice tan color and now i'll be a little bothered if they get scratched up. I'll throw those in a few places that might come in handy, like the car. I'll use the third as a non painted harder use tin that i can practice with and not worry about scuffing up.

Back on the topic of candles:

I used to hang out with some crusty homeless punk rock kids years ago. They were pretty good sources of info for urban survival. I was surprised how long and how bright a candle made out of a scrap of denim and a hunk of wax sitting in a tin can will burn. Try a BIG wick.

Sorry for the useless rant. It's the beer ranting, not me. At least i have a use for all those mints now.

[Murph]

Yeah, I foresee another attempt at this sometime in the future, but for right now it's working. It was fun to try something new.

Infact, I might try it with one of the Altoids "smalls" tin. It looks like it might be big enough to fit two wicks in. I'll just cut the candles to size this time and then light them to melt them together.

Yup... "smalls" worked a lot better, easier.

[xxxDarksidexxx]

sweet...now You can put it in your "tiny BOB"

[shrewbiter]

anyone ever try that "dryer lint" + "wax" = best disposable heater ever.

I haven't actually tried it yet but I have lint and thought of maybe stocking up...aka curing boredom.

[bltjr1951]

I think the Survival Candle is a much better idea, even if it costs a bit. 300 hours burn time, $40.00, decent heat output.

They do talk a good story.

http://www.philoxia.com/survivalcandles.htm

If folk complain about Sterno can not boiling water, I don't think a single wick will cook very well. Check out the Sterno 60 hour candle or the NuWick.

http://www.preparedness.com/st60hoemca.html

[WhoShotJR]

I think the Survival Candle is a much better idea, even if it costs a bit. 300 hours burn time, $40.00, decent heat output.

They do talk a good story.

http://www.philoxia.com/survivalcandles.htm

If folk complain about Sterno can not boiling water, I don't think a single wick will cook very well. Check out the Sterno 60 hour candle or the NuWick.

http://www.preparedness.com/st60hoemca.html

It all depends on your personal preference really. I have and have used lots of candles from Nuwick 44 hour (Bestglide has the best price I've seen http://www.bestglide.com/Nuwick_Info.html) to Catholic glass candles to the 60 hour Sterno. But price wise the 50 pack of tealights from Walmart is hard to beat. The Nuwick 44, even at the price from the link above, is 16 cents per hour. The WM candles come in at 1.5 cents per hour. Plus you can set up, maybe 6 candles under a camping pot for lots of heat to boil water, or just one for light. A lot of people may disagree, buy I think they are damn handy and cheap to boot.

[Banatz]

You are ready to survive the most impossible missions with an Altoids candle like that!

[bltjr1951]

A lot of people may disagree, buy I think they are damn handy and cheap to boot.

I have a tealight in my mini PSK. But, it's NOT a B.O.A.T.
I also have a cardboard tube full of tealights in/on my BOB.
Plus, I have the Sterno 60 hour candles and prayer candles for house.