110 liie-lvcejiinfi hi Victona. 



round to the operator on the left, the sheets have suthcieiitly set and 

 contracted to peel off easily. The strijts are pulled oft' the edges and 

 ends, the boards rinsed in the soaking water of 120 degrees and hung 

 np to drain. As each board reaches the operator on the right, it is just 

 of the right temperature and dampness for dipping. The dipped 

 boards are immersed in tlie dish behind the dipping tank, which is only 

 in part visible in the illustration. The water should be from 90 to 

 100 degrees; if colder the boards cannot lie stripped quickly; if too hot 

 the sheets take too long to set. For two-handed working, as in the illus- 

 tration, ten boards are required; for single-handed five. In the latter 

 case the boards are all dipped first and then stripped. 



The reversing of the boards produces sheets of more uniform thick- 

 ness than when dipping several times from the same end. Even when 

 reversing one end is smoother and somewhat thinner, and rolling should 

 be from this end. When peeling off, the sheets should be ]5laced on a 

 board, evenly on top of one another with all the thin ends one way. 

 "When about thirty sheets have accumulated, and while the sheets are 

 still warm, a straight-edge is put across the pack, and about iVinch cut 

 off at the thin end with a knife or a disk cutter. This trimming of the 

 ends greatly assists in getting a quick start when rolling. 



As already mentioned, the wax should be pure and clean. The most 

 convenient way is to melt it in two vessels, placed inside a larger one 

 containing water. This will greatly reduce the risk of over-heating, 

 and entirelj' do away with that of boiling over, while insuring a con- 

 tinuous supply. The temperature of the wax should never exceed by 

 much that required for dipping, for reasons previously explained. A 

 special tank, such as the soaking tank shown in the illustration, or a 

 wash tub sufficiently large to hold two 60-lb. honey tins, the top of 

 which have been cut out, may be used. A slow fire or a stove under it 

 will supply the heat. 



The dipping tank is a vessel oval in horizontal section, 12 inches 

 wide one way and 3 to 4 inches the other, and about 21 inches in height. 

 It is contained inside a similar tank of somewhat larger dimensions 

 with hot water in the space between. The water is kept at a uniform 

 temperature by means of a blue-flame stove, or other lamp contained in 

 the stand, which suppiorts the double tank, as shown in the illustration 

 (Fig. 3). To obtain sheets of uniform thickness and correct weight, 

 with a smooth surface, free from cracks or blotches, an even tempera- 

 ture of the wax during dipping, and after reiilenishing the tank is 

 essential. This is accomplished by means of a thermometer, with the 

 bulb in the hot water, and the tuirning up or down of the flame of the 

 stove. When the dipping tank is first filled with liquid wax from the 

 melting vessels it will take some little time before the temperatures of 

 wax in the inner and water in the outer tank are the same. After that 

 there will be but little fluctuation, unless the wax in the melting vessels 

 from which the dip)]nng tank is replenished is allowed to become too 

 hot. When the supply of wax is exhausted what remains in the dipping 

 tank may be worked out down to a few pounds by adding water of the 

 same temjDerature as the wax whenever the level of the wax has to be 

 raised to cover the dipping board. 



