Pipes Magazine » General Pipe Smoking Discussion

1. 

   bytor
   

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   Hi Gang...first post on this forum, and naturally it's a couple questions!

   First question: Have any of you used paragon wax on your pipes?

   I did a bunch of reading about it on the pipes.org forum and decided that I would give it a shot. I ended up purchasing through Iwan Ries (rather than direct) mostly because I was already ordering some tobac.

   Second question: Is it supposed to be such a bizarre consistency?

   I opened up the jar and some of it literally poured out onto the countertop! I expected that it would be a bit thicker. It almost seems as though it has separated and I'm wondering if I should contact Iwan Ries about it. I tried mixing it up a bit with a couple toothpicks...but now it looks more like...hmmm...runny cornbread mix.

   Last question: Is there a search function for the forum? I looked around a bit but nothing popped out at me. The "Search on site" box doesn't appear to search the forum.

   Thanks in advance!

   Posted 2 years ago #
2. 

   cortezattic
   

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   Welcome bytor. That runny consistency doesn't sound right to me. The folks at Iwan Ries are very helpful, and one of the few companies that sell Paragon Wax, so they should know. In any event, please come back with whatever you learn. I'm keen to know about it myself. (You might just experiment with the wax on a old pipe.)

   I find myself sitting idly on the line dividing past and future,
   as if I could kill time without injuring eternity. -- Thoreau

   Posted 2 years ago #
3. 

   Kevin
   

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   I like to know what you find out about the paragon wax too bytor.

   Bob has been telling me to add a search feature for the longest time, and when I just saw your comment that finally made me do it.

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   Posted 2 years ago #
4. 

   Bob
   

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   Welcome to the site Bytor!

   I have no experience with Paragon. I agree with Cortezattic, get in touch with Iwan Ries. They should be able to help.
   Keep us informed with any information that you find out about it.

   "When the Government Fears the People, There is Liberty;
   When the People Fear the Government, There is Tyranny." - Thomas Jefferson

   Posted 2 years ago #
5. 

   excav8tor
   

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   I know this is a bit of an old topic, but I have just received 2 x 1oz jars of both Paragon and Halcyon II.

   I used a Peterson SS 313 smooth to try the Paragon and a Peterson SS 364 to try the Halcyon II.

   Putting the Paragon onto a smooth finish pipe is a dream. You do not need to use very much at all to give the whole pipe, including the stem and nickel mount. Be very very sparing. I left it to dry off for 5 minutes and then it polised by hand with a normal household duster cloth. The results are as good as buffing with Carnauba Wax, but with a lot less time and effort.

   The Halcyon II was a little more difficult to apply, but no more than I expected since the problem lay in the rusticated finish and how to apply it evenly. I overcame this by using an old soft bristled toothbrush. Again, be very very sparing. After leaving it to dry for 5 minutes I then used a very soft natural bristled boot brush, making sure I brushed into all the nooks and crannies. I then finished off with a soft cloth. As with the Paragon, the results were very good indeed and infact better than using Carnauba wax and a mechanical buffer.

   Remember:
   Paragon - smooth pipes
   Halcyon II - rustic/sandblast pipes

   Overall impressions.
   For speed and ease of use they are remarkable. Whilst the finish on the smooth pipes are similar, you don't get quite the same depth of shine as you do with Carnauba. As for Halcyon II, it far outstrips any mechanical methods of putting a shine on a pipe. You can get the wax onto the whole surface and you get no residual build up of wax as you do when you use Carnauba.
   I will definitely use Halcyon II on all non-smooth pipe finishes from now on. As for the Paragon, well, if I have the time I will use Carnauba wax and mechanical buffers, however, if I have a quick job to do I'll use Paragon.

   If you have no means of mechanically buffing your pipes, you can do no better than these two waxes. They are so easy to use and produce a very good finish.

   "A pipe gives a wise man time to think and a fool something to stick in his mouth." - C.S. Lewis

   Posted 1 year ago #
6. 

   jship079
   

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   I wonder if this stuff puts a protective coating on the pipe like carnauba boes or is it just for shine

   Posted 1 year ago #
7. 

   cortezattic
   

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   Thanks for the report, Mark. I've been promising to try the Paragon for a long time and never got around to it.

   Jim, if one can believe the advertising hype...

   Paragon has a melting point of 228 degree F., 36% higher than carnauba alone and 11% higher even than Halcyon II. Thus it is highly resistant to heat. It forms a thin, flexible yet tough coating on the surface of the wood, a coating that is just under 30% harder than carnauba. Thus it resists abrasion from handling, repels moisture, and is far more effective in preventing oxidation, especially important for stems. It gives a deep, rich shine that is equal or superior to carnauba without a buffing wheel.

   Posted 1 year ago #
8. 

   excav8tor
   

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   I shall repost here once I have smoked my two pipes and let you have the results.

   Posted 1 year ago #
9. 

   jcsnaps
   

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   I bought both the Paragon and HalcyonII and thought the same thing about the consistency being a bit on the oozy side when I was expecting a "hard" wax. I just stirred it up on rubbed it on, buffed up nice on both types of finishes. I like the old soft toothbrush for the rough finishes. My only thought on the formulation is to allow an easy application by hand, as opposed to hard waxes applied to a buff wheel and then transfered to the pipe using friction to melt the wax on.

   Posted 1 year ago #
10. 

    Kevin
    

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    I've been using Paragon Wax since I bought some a month ago at the Vegas show. I think it's great. It is super easy to use and makes the pipes look great.

    I'm not sure what Cortez' quote means about the melting point though. The jar I have is semi solid / liquid, kind of like partially melted wax already. That is one of the things I like.

    I just put a little on my finger like Steve Monjure demonstrated and rub it on the pipe. Let it dry for a few minutes and polish it up. It is much easier than dealing with Carnauba, although as excav8tor said, it's not quite as shiny.

    Posted 1 year ago #
11. 

    wallbright
    

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    I just ordered some of both off ebay. I got the Halcyon II for less than $8 shipped and the Paragon for less than $10 shipped. I saw some flannel cloths at the dollar store and plan on picking those up to buff the pipes. I will let you guys know how it goes and please any tips would be most helpful.

    Posted 1 year ago #
12. 

    wallbright
    

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    I had bought a bench grinder to convert but it was too high of RPMs and the adjustable router I bought to control the speed did not work. I hope this works out better for me. Also, how do you guys suggest cleaning the pipe before waxing? I have some pipes that have crud on the outside and such.

    Posted 1 year ago #
13. 

    Bubba
    

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    Dang if it is that easy, I should have gotten this stuff along time ago!

    Mason jars and bale top jars, mason jars and bale top jars.... that is all!
    
    "There’s truth in the statement that pipe tobacco will never be any less expensive than it is today, so think of your cellar as a cost averaged investment" - G.L. Pease

    Posted 1 year ago #
14. 

    wallbright
    

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    Actually if you buy both from the guy on Ebay you can get them for less than $16 for each. He refunded $1.50 off shipping on one of them as I bought both.

    Posted 1 year ago #
15. 

    unclearthur
    

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    The consistency of the of the wax in the package is due to volatile carriers. Simply put, it's some kind of solvent that flashes off after you apply the wax to the pipe leaving behind the nice hard, hard to melt wax.

    If at first you don't succeed you are running about average.

    Posted 1 year ago #
16. 

    lordnoble
    

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    wallbright, the "guy" in question, Sam, is actually the owner of finepipes.com, the creators of these waxes. Nice guy, too. I ordered one small jar of each off ebay and he sent 2 of the paragon by mistake. I emailed him through ebay, explained the problem, offered to send the other jar of Paragon back to him, and he just sent the Halcyon 2 free of charge. So I basically got a free jar of PAragon out of the deal. When my jar get low, though, I'll be buying from finepipes.com...

    -Jason

    unclearthur on high nicotine blends:
    A few will leave you wandering around wondering who you are .

    Posted 1 year ago #
17. 

    jcsnaps
    

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    Wallbright, all the articles I've read about buffing suggest a very low speed. Even the variable speed buffer/grinder on ebay turns 2000rpm which everyone seems to say is too fast. Most suggest a Foredom that can be turned way down. I tell you this now because I just bought a little Foredom off ebay last week. It came in Sat and is the cutest little addition to the workbench. Now I'll get some old beatups cheap to practice on, before I ruin a good piece of wood.

    Posted 1 year ago #
18. 

    Bubba
    

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    So what is a Foredom jcsnaps? I am curious

    I was thinking of getting somethingLIKE THIS.

    Posted 1 year ago #
19. 

    wallbright
    

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    Well if you buy a adjustable speed bench grinder you can add a speed router control device and get the RPMs down. The problem I had is it was an induction motor so the router speed control device does not work. I would rather get this wax as I would have to buy waxes to buff anyways so in the long run this seems to be cheaper.

    Posted 1 year ago #
20. 

    wallbright
    

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    That one is a little high Jeremiah but I suppose it would still work. I think you want between 1000-1500 RPMs.

    Posted 1 year ago #
21. 

    wallbright
    

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    How is the Foredom different than a dremel? As far as it's use.

    Posted 1 year ago #
22. 

    jcsnaps
    

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    Foredom is a brand of tool, they make buffers/grinders for industry and often the jewlery trade where polishing and buffing of fine pieces is done carefully. They make a small unit that will handle a 4 inch buff wheel. If you google Foredom and go to their site they list a variety of products. It is a bench unit so you can bolt it down and use both hands to guide your work. They do make a flex drive system also.

    Posted 1 year ago #
23. 

    excav8tor
    

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    OK, I have tried it out fully now and can report that Paragon and Halcyon II is great ONLY if the pipe has had a Carnauba wax finish to work on.

    I have used it on pipes that I have stripped and re-stained. But putting Paragon or Halcyon does NOT do the trick. It cannot be regarded as a substitute for Carnauba Wax when using it with a 'virgin' surface, however, it does work well on top of previously well Carnauba waxed surfaces.

    It goes to show.... there is no substitute for good hard honest work

    Posted 1 year ago #
24. 

    excav8tor
    

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    How is the Foredom different than a dremel? As far as it's use.

    A dremmel (or similar) has an RPM in the region of 15,000 RPM. It is great for cleaning, rusticating or signing your name on the pipe, but polishing it...... it's a waste of money.

    As I have said on other posts, 15,000 RPM is about 10 times faster than you need to make a good shine. In fact it is 10 times LESS effective in doing what you want to do.

    Go ahead and buy one and tell me I am wrong!

    Posted 1 year ago #
25. 

    unclearthur
    

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    The best rig I have cone up with so far is a 1750 rpm motor and a couple of step pulleys. I can drop the motor speed way down to polish and bring it way up to do heavy sanding etc.

    Posted 1 year ago #
26. 

    Tommy
    

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    I've got a Porter-Cable 6" variable speed grinder from Lowes ($79) that turns from 2000-3400 rpm, I kinda wish it ran a bit slower but it works fine for me.

    Instead of pushing the pipe up against the wheels with any pressure when waxing, I just make a series of light "swipes" with the pipe across the wax wheel and again on the flannel buff. No probem so far.
    One of these days I may go look for an arbor and a couple of pullys to get the speed down. Maybe not.

    Posted 1 year ago #
27. 

    excav8tor
    

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    Stick with what you are comfortable with Tommy, I'm sure you do already.

    Posted 1 year ago #
28. 

    unclearthur
    

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    "If it works for you it must be right" as my old blacksmithing mentor used to say

    Posted 1 year ago #
29. 

    Bubba
    

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    I got some of the Halcyon II and it is amazing!!! I have got to get the Paragon wax now!

    Posted 1 year ago #
30. 

    obelus
    

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    I've never had Paragon separate like that, even when it's set for a very long time. I use Halcyon II and, when dry, a very soft brush (an old mushroom brush my wife was about to discard) on my rusticated/blast pipes. Love the stuff. I've had pretty good luck with Paragon, too, but I think your really do have to apply and polish several times to get the most out of it.

    Michael
    To hurry through one's leisure is the most unbusiness-like of actions.-- Chesterton
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/obelus1/sets/72157625700632656/

    Posted 1 year ago #
31. 

    Bubba
    

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    obelus, are you saying I should just stick with the Halcyon II? I have about a 50%/50% on the smooth to rusticated ratio!

    Posted 1 year ago #
32. 

    obelus
    

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    No. I use them both, but the Paragon takes several applications before I'm happy with it. Of course, I'm buffing by hand and that might explain it.

    Posted 1 year ago #

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