Silca Wax System

[glepore]

Originally Posted by unterhausen

An NTC thermistor and temperature controller costs $30 from amzon and makes any crock pot a precision heater.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...e?ie=UTF8&th=1

I've used this for a couple different applications. Its not exactly plug and play, you have to be somewhat conversant with PID programing, and you need to wire the pid to a plug and then the solid state relay to an an outlet. My last application was to control a wine cellar cooler.
The advantage of PID control is that it learns how fast the system generates and sheds heat, so it stays ahead of the "swing" unlike a thermostat which often varies by 10-15 degrees-5 on low side then 5 on high. But its wax, not critical.
I've not used one with a crock pot, which has a ton of thermal mass and changes temp rather slowly. A small wax melter for cosmetic use likely is a better application, and the whole unit, with built in temp control, costs what the PID does.

[fogrider]

Originally Posted by andrew+

I just bought a $25 wax heater intended for hair removal and the Silca unit. The Silca's wax pot is slightly larger and the heating system does seem faster and more accurate. The chain hanging stand is also super helpful. I kept the Silca.

I'm sure the Silca unit is premium, but for 20 bucks, I'm thinking it should be fine. I need it for the strip chip which needs it heated up to 125C, just heating the wax requires 75C. I've been using the Silca drip wax and it's been good so I'm not planning on full dipping often.

[Josh_W]

About a week before Silca announced their new setup, I bought a $20 wax pot and made a dipper out of a coat hanger.

Those Amazon wax pots are all so small that you can just barely get the chain in there, and it's extra hard to do so when the chain is strung on the stiff hanger. I have to plan ahead and count the number of links on each loop of chain as I thread them onto the hanger, and bend the hanger to get everything to fold and twist enough to submerge in the wax. And I don't know I've done it wrong until I dunk the chain and find I can't get the whole thing in (that's what SHE said). Then when I pull the chain out I struggle to get it hung so that it drips back into the pot instead of all over the sides of it and whatever it is sitting on.

I'm absolutely going to pick up a Silca before I do the chains for next season. Yes, I could Radio sHack a crock pot into compliance, but more likely it would sit on the workbench with the other 50 unfinished projects while my chains go un-lubed.