waxing at home

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pntbutter

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Hi all, I'm a first year and we just starting waxing at school. Does anyone have suggestions for something I could purchase to wax at home other than those spendy electronic carvers?
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How about a candle? Or a small ethanol wick thingy? That is what I used. You are talking about waxing up teeth right? All you need is something hot enough to melt the wax. Candles work great, or anything small and cheap that will produce a stable flame.
 
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Hanau torch and denatured alcohol.
 
Only way to do it, funny this popped up while I was at home...waxing...

IMGP0813.jpg
 
I tried candles and they suck. It makes a black smokey deposit on the instruments and ended up turning the wax blackish. Personally, I'm a big fan of the stove, if you have gas. If not, one of those nifty torches would work well.
 
yes i'm talking about waxing teeth. Where does one buy an alcohol lamp or hanau torch and denatured alcohol? Candles seem simple enough, but i don't want my instruments to turn black and make a mess of the wax. Thanks for the suggestions!
 
pntbutter said:
yes i'm talking about waxing teeth. Where does one buy an alcohol lamp or hanau torch and denatured alcohol? Candles seem simple enough, but i don't want my instruments to turn black and make a mess of the wax. Thanks for the suggestions!
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Your school doesn't provide them for you?
 
I'm sure your school has a hanau torch you can bring home (what are you using to wax in school?) Otherwise, ebay has super cheap waxing instruments and wax melters. I don't mean electric waxers (some profs won't even let you use them), but sort of like a hotplate that plugs in and melts the wax for you.
 
go to home depot or lowes and get a propane tank for like 25 bucks, and u can buy additional tank for like 5 bucks a piece. It will last u the semester
 
we use a bunsen burner at school. I tried the candle thing and it worked out alrite, but my instrument is pretty charred. the candle isn't as hot so takes longer to heat also, but it's better than nothing for now. I'll have to look into getting the torch or alcohol burner. its so nice to be able to wax at home in front of the tv after sitting in lab waxing for hours.
 
Denatured alcohol is sold at any hardware store or in little metal cannister at Home Depot/Lowe's. Make sure it's 'denatured.'
 
You can also use ethanol from any pharmacy/grocery store.
 
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I use the Gas burners on my stove. I love how it turns my PKT #2 red hot within a second of putting it in the flame. You could also always buy a camping grill. Its a lot faster then using a Bunsen burner but it also makes my apt ungodly hot after a few hours.
 
Buy an electric waxer. I use it all the time. Waxing doesn't end after first year. So, it's a good investment
 
http://www.ucs1986.com/Picture/ALCOHOL%20LAMP%202.JPG



Just make sure you don't burn down the house! 😱 :laugh:
 
I was installing a new gas furnace in the basement so I just T'ed off another valve, got a 15 foot hose, through the hole in my floor that used to have the cable-tv go through right in front of my big screen TV with a bunsen burner. Works perfect.
 
TucsonDDS said:
I was installing a new gas furnace in the basement so I just T'ed off another valve, got a 15 foot hose, through the hole in my floor that used to have the cable-tv go through right in front of my big screen TV with a bunsen burner. Works perfect.
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Instead of TucsonDDS you should call yourself MacGyver DDS😀
 
I concur with Armor. Get yourself an electronic waxer. The one we use if the Kerr Ultra Waxer It's a good $400 new and the different heads are around $40 to 50, but you only need a couple heads (check out this website below and I'd say head A and F are all you need)

http://www.ajstools.com/products/casting/wax39.html

I've used both the alcohol torch method and these ultra waxers. You'll be waxing all through dental school and even sometimes after dental school, so a machine is worth the investment. Also, you avoid the sooted instruments you get with alcohol torches. It also speeds up the process since you don't have to heat before each addition of wax and can control the wax better while adding it since there isn't any chance the wax will harden on your instrument as you're adding it to the wax up.
 
djeffreyt said:
I concur with Armor. Get yourself an electronic waxer. The one we use if the Kerr Ultra Waxer It's a good $400 new and the different heads are around $40 to 50, but you only need a couple heads (check out this website below and I'd say head A and F are all you need)

http://www.ajstools.com/products/casting/wax39.html

I've used both the alcohol torch method and these ultra waxers. You'll be waxing all through dental school and even sometimes after dental school, so a machine is worth the investment. Also, you avoid the sooted instruments you get with alcohol torches. It also speeds up the process since you don't have to heat before each addition of wax and can control the wax better while adding it since there isn't any chance the wax will harden on your instrument as you're adding it to the wax up.
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$400 dollars is a little steep for my wax ups. But, if you've got the money, I guess go for it.
 
Or if you have mad skillz like moi:meanie:, you could wax up your teeth during lab time and call it quits at home.

400 bucks for an electric waxer?!?!?!👍:laugh:👍
I could buy a couple of bowstaffs for that

😀
 
I guess I just don't think $400 dollars in the grand scheme of things is all that much. Maybe I'm wrong, but the average dental student shells out a good $10,000 a quarter to attend dental school for 4 years. $400 is only 4% of that, and you get to keep the waxer.

You'll probably spend $400 your first couple years on practice ivorine teeth...if not a lot more.

If you drink 3 cups of starbucks coffee a week, you'll spend $400 a year easily

The average person living with 2 roommates and getting premium Cable TV for a year will spend close to $250 a year.

In the end, it all depends on what you want to use to wax with. I find my waxer easy and fast and I don't mind having to have shelled out the cost for it. You can get clunkier looking cheaper ones and can find Kerr Ultra waxers for cheaper at trade shows and even with a little more searching on the internet.

I just think it's funny how often dentists and predents want to nickel and dime their costs while asking patients to shell out $1200 for a crown, $1000+ for a root canal, etc.

Hell, two 3 surface amalgam fillings almost cost the same as a Kerr Waxer in some areas of the states. But we all have our own priorities I suppose.
 
djeffreyt said:
I guess I just don't think $400 dollars in the grand scheme of things is all that much. Maybe I'm wrong, but the average dental student shells out a good $10,000 a quarter to attend dental school for 4 years. $400 is only 4% of that, and you get to keep the waxer.

You'll probably spend $400 your first couple years on practice ivorine teeth...if not a lot more.

If you drink 3 cups of starbucks coffee a week, you'll spend $400 a year easily

The average person living with 2 roommates and getting premium Cable TV for a year will spend close to $250 a year.

In the end, it all depends on what you want to use to wax with. I find my waxer easy and fast and I don't mind having to have shelled out the cost for it. You can get clunkier looking cheaper ones and can find Kerr Ultra waxers for cheaper at trade shows and even with a little more searching on the internet.

I just think it's funny how often dentists and predents want to nickel and dime their costs while asking patients to shell out $1200 for a crown, $1000+ for a root canal, etc.

Hell, two 3 surface amalgam fillings almost cost the same as a Kerr Waxer in some areas of the states. But we all have our own priorities I suppose.
Click to expand...

So why spend an additional $400 on something that a $5 candle warmer can do?
 
Save that $400 for your apex locator 😀😀😀
 
armorshell said:
Because it's faster, better and more convenient. More importantly, because they include it in our first year kits. :laugh:
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LOL. I love it when that happens. I bet you that your $400 dollar wax melter thingy actually cost you closer to $500. I love how everything in our kits is listed as almost double what any normal person would pay. Ha ha. Just jumpin through hoops, jumpin through hoops. 😀
 
I think the alcohol torch works great, I go through a lot of ethanol. I find working on my waxing projects to be a nice break from my didactic course work. I like to book study for a couple hours, wax for an hour, then back to the books. The only problem I have has is I have to over caffinate in order to not pass out while reading, this can lead to a slightly shaky hand. Happy Waxing.
 
waxing at home is gay

😴
 
johntara04 said:
LOL. I love it when that happens. I bet you that your $400 dollar wax melter thingy actually cost you closer to $500. I love how everything in our kits is listed as almost double what any normal person would pay. Ha ha. Just jumpin through hoops, jumpin through hoops. 😀
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I actually think the electric waxer reduces the number of hoops we jump through by a bit. It probably cuts down on the time it takes us to wax by a good bit, and time is precious here.

I also think our faculty gets pretty butthurt if we're not using the ultimate cutting edge of technology or research every single class, the cost to the student BE DAMNED!
 
dWiz said:
waxing at home is gay

😴
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only close-minded low class homophobic ******ed guys who do not come from good families use the term "gay"--which is just about the only non-insulting term for gay people--to denote something silly or stupid. this is A FACT!!! shame on you and on every low class heterosexual male who uses this term in a derogatory way like this. shame on our society for allowing that to happen. shame on the other SDNers who did not point that out. shame on the moderators who keep letting that happen.
 
fightingspirit said:
only close-minded low class homophobic ******ed guys who do not come from good families use the term "gay"--which is just about the only non-insulting term for gay people--to denote something silly or stupid. this is A FACT!!! shame on you and on every low class heterosexual male who uses this term in a derogatory way like this. shame on our society for allowing that to happen. shame on the other SDNers who did not point that out. shame on the moderators who keep letting that happen.
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Take a look at roman numeral I. Shame on you.
 
fightingspirit said:
wow! what an intelligent and creative reply.
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To pass your own opinions off as fact and to attempt to force them upon others is truly low class. I don't tell you how to live your life, what you can do, who you can date, or what you can say. Extend others the same courtesy. And if I'm not mistaken, this thread will be closing shortly...
 
low class? gay?

Stupid, yup.
 
clickytop said:
To pass your own opinions off as fact and to attempt to force them upon others is truly low class. I don't tell you how to live your life, what you can do, who you can date, or what you can say. Extend others the same courtesy. And if I'm not mistaken, this thread will be closing shortly...
Click to expand...

Yes, what I said is a fact. Guys who were brought up well, in a home that had parents who were sophisticated enough to teach them how to not insult those who do not do any harm, do not grow up to become professional school students who deliberately equate being gay/homosexual to being silly and stupid. and by class, i meant social class, not economic. So what I said is a fact. Families that have class observe what their sons say in the playground and make sure that they don't use such language. Straight men who are confident of who they are and what they are do not equate homophobia with masculinity, so they don't use such language.
I don't understand what the heck you were talking about when you mentioned "courtesy"….are you implying that I should extend the courtesy of insulting gay people to SDN members? I wanna see an SDNer use the n-word deliberately to insult black people and then see your post demanding disgruntled SDNers to extend the racist mofo the courtesy of using the n-word for derogatory purposes. Heck, I wanna see an SDNer use the term Christian or black to denote something silly or stupid.
why dont you try and post "man that movie sucked!! It was so black!!!" ....
then i wanna see how SDNers extend to you the "courtesy" of equating being black to being silly and stupid.

You are a major bigot! And you stink of bigotry!!! Look at you trying to veil your homophobia and hatred with the notion of free speech and expression. So pathetic.
clearly, you and dwiz believe that being gay is equal to being silly, stupid and inferior, as evident from the way you choose to abuse the word, gay, the only non-derogatory word that gay people have at this time. you are entitled to your opinion no matter how f-ed up and hateful it is. however, when you decide to disclose that opinion in a public forum, you better accept the biich slaps....

and remember, when the nazis went rallying in skokie, they also did it under the notion of free speech.....i bet you dont have the balls to defend those...
 
This thread contains so much useful information about waxing. So waxing at home is gay? If I think that I am both a bigot and "low class"? Okay, I see your just using this thread as a means to air you greifs at who? Anonymous Dental students. Come on.
 
pmantz said:
This thread contains so much useful information about waxing. So waxing at home is gay? If I think that I am both a bigot and "low class"? Okay, I see your just using this thread as a means to air you greifs at who? Anonymous Dental students. Come on.
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and yet another one ....

it's the night of the living bigots!!!
 
Only on the internet could a conversation as innocent as waxing teeth at home turn into a debate about homosexuality and political correctness.

Getting back on topic.

I wax at home sometimes..our school provides us with an alcohol torch. However...being a first year (and having loads of didactics), I usually just go to the school because it motivates me to study for other classes as well.

I tend to maintain focus when I'm in the lab as opposed to my living room. There are also upperclassmen in the lab that you can make friends with and get tips for doing pretty much any lab work.

I would have been screwed if the D-2's didn't help me out with my first diagnostic cast.
 
Chrono1984 said:
Only on the internet could a conversation as innocent as waxing teeth at home turn into a debate about homosexuality and political correctness..
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i am not discussing gayness or political correctness. i am busting bigots on this thread. great! from now on, let's allow bigotry on threads simply because the subject matter of the thread is "innocent"...when we discuss waxing, or dental anatomy, let's allow bigotry in the thread cus the subject of waxing is innocent! .....yup, great idea.
 
armorshell said:
Waxing at school would take up time for important classes like operative or fixed.
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:laugh:



and fightingspirit, I'm afraid you have quite a lengthy battle ahead of you if you pursue every idiot who says that something's gay. I say to use your energy to buy me some new waxing supplies. Or just a large gift.
 
I think we got the idea. PM each other from now on...

400$ IS a lot of money when you compare it to your SPENDING money. Sure, compared to 300K it is not a lot, but compare it to your monthly budget. Add a wife, kids, and a porsche (j/k about the porsche...) and 400 dollars doesn't seem to go far. I think a better investment would be to buy loupes or an apex locator.

Speaking of the last two, you must also compare the cost:use ratio. I will most likely never ever EVER use a wax-up thingamabob after 2010. EVER. NEVER. I would rather use that 100 a year to go on dates with my wife, or take my kid to a Temple Football game ( 3 wins in a row!) 🙂

I think a flame and an instrument gives the same results. This is MY opinion though and I do value yours, just giving my point of view.
 
what a narrow minded/low class assumption that 'something is gay' implies it being silly/stupid..tsk 👎 ... shame on you both...u know who u are

😴
 
The original guy seriously wasn't joking, waxing at hoe is totally gay. Just the other day I walked in on my electric waxer making out with another male electric waxer. It was totally embarassing for the three of us.

Anyway, this argument is totally mongolian.
 
Just use an alcohol torch, you can buy the torch in any dental supply for less than $10 . and also buy the denatured alcohol too from the same place. U can melt your wax by using a big spoon from the .99 cents store. I think this is the most reasonable thing to do.
If you want U can make a stand for the spoon : bend the handle and mount it on a can with plaster or dental stone.
Good Luck!!!🙂🙂🙂
 
1992Corolla said:
I think we got the idea. PM each other from now on...

400$ IS a lot of money when you compare it to your SPENDING money. Sure, compared to 300K it is not a lot, but compare it to your monthly budget. Add a wife, kids, and a porsche (j/k about the porsche...) and 400 dollars doesn't seem to go far. I think a better investment would be to buy loupes or an apex locator.

Speaking of the last two, you must also compare the cost:use ratio. I will most likely never ever EVER use a wax-up thingamabob after 2010. EVER. NEVER. I would rather use that 100 a year to go on dates with my wife, or take my kid to a Temple Football game ( 3 wins in a row!) 🙂

I think a flame and an instrument gives the same results. This is MY opinion though and I do value yours, just giving my point of view.
Click to expand...

Amen. It is one thing for Temple to take $400 out of my loan money before I see it, it is another thing to have it taken out of my own pocket.
 
toofshucker said:
Amen. It is one thing for Temple to take $400 out of my loan money before I see it, it is another thing to have it taken out of my own pocket.
Click to expand...

Especially since you end up paying an extra 200 a semester for extra teeth, alginate, etc. from the Schein store...
 
armorshell said:
You guys have to pay for alginate?!
Click to expand...
Well, yes and no, we get one bag of alginate with our kit. We also get a hundred dollar credit to the dental supply store. So if we use up all our credit then yea we have to pay out of our own pocket.👎
 
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