Wooden molds

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penelopejane

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Hi everyone,
I am back from my holiday and ready to make soap again.
I have silicone molds but have to make some wooden surrounds for them.

Can someone please tell me if it's best to use marine ply or timber to make them out of?

I have some exterior grade ply but it warps and I'm worried the molds will too as a gently CPOP.
 
I'm afraid I don't have much experience with wood to give an answer. My thoughts are that if the wood has a tendency to warp, it might not be a good fit for the purpose.
 
I'll have to check with my husband to see what he used. Whatever it is it's been awesome, no warping or issues. My molds are over 5 years old now. Perfect condition other than a few stains from soaping.
 
I would think ply wood would be fine. Some of the ones you can purchase are made out of plywood(Brambleberry).

I used poplar for mine. But I would think any hardwood should work.

20160608_170143_zpswvktjx9l.jpg
 
We used well seasoned, non-treated, pine 1 x 4s for mine. No warping, even with CPOP. I would worry about plywood glue leaking out if you CPOP.

ETA: gdawgs, that is an awesome mold! Very versatile! Would you mind sharing measurements?
 
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I would think ply wood would be fine. Some of the ones you can purchase are made out of plywood(Brambleberry).

I used poplar for mine. But I would think any hardwood should work.

20160608_170143_zpswvktjx9l.jpg

gdawgs, I have lust in my heart for your soap mold... Care giving us a tour of that beauty?
 
There's more info on my mold back here.

http://www.soapmakingforum.com/showthread.php?t=60174&highlight=mold

I made it because I had lots of small sample bottles of FOs that I wanted to use up, so I made it for four, 1 pound batches. Then I can take the dividers out to make larger batches if I want.

I don't have the dimensions anymore Susie. I just made up a napkin drawing at the time. But if you want actual dimensions, I could measure things up for you.
 
Thanks everyone.
I have been busy trying to make the molds to fit my silicone molds. Boy oh boy.
I am using plywood because I have it and because Nurture and Brambleberry use plywood and I started to make it before I read all your good advice.

If it doesn't work I will redo it and use 1 x 4 pine. : (((

Do any of you finish your timber mold with anything? Paint or varnish to waterproof it or something?
I have a silicone mold to line the timber mold so it shouldn't get much soap on it except I am a tiny bit messy (!!!!!!!!) and am a bit worried that if I have to wash them often they will get wrecked.
 
I made a homemade wooden mold for my first soaps. I coated it with a rub-on polyurethane just to seal up the pores of the wood. AFIAK, it's not officially lye-proof but it did make it easier to wipe away quick spills and such.
 
I made a homemade wooden mold for my first soaps. I coated it with a rub-on polyurethane just to seal up the pores of the wood. AFIAK, it's not officially lye-proof but it did make it easier to wipe away quick spills and such.
.

Thanks Brewergeorge,

Sorry I've been away on holiday for a while and I can't remember - do you CPOP?
I was wondering if even that light coat might be effected by CPOPing.
 
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Thanks Brewergeorge,

Sorry I've been away on holiday for a while and I can't remember - do you CPOP?
I was wondering if even that light coat might be effected by CPOPing.
I do now, but I didn't when I used that mold. It has a lid, and a couple of towels over the top was enough to ensure gel.
 
Thanks everyone.
I have been busy trying to make the molds to fit my silicone molds. Boy oh boy.
I am using plywood because I have it and because Nurture and Brambleberry use plywood and I started to make it before I read all your good advice.

If it doesn't work I will redo it and use 1 x 4 pine. : (((

Do any of you finish your timber mold with anything? Paint or varnish to waterproof it or something?
I have a silicone mold to line the timber mold so it shouldn't get much soap on it except I am a tiny bit messy (!!!!!!!!) and am a bit worried that if I have to wash them often they will get wrecked.

I do not stain, varnish, or finish my wooden molds in any way. I would rather not have chemicals reacting to that raw soap I am going to scrape off the side and plop back into the mold. I don't wash my molds, either. Just let that soap get hard and non-zappy, and I use a metal paint scraper to scrape the soap off. No one is going to see them but me, so it does not matter.
 
Another vote for 1x4 pine. Used the most expensive grade they had and so far no issues with warping.


20190125_173949.jpg
 
I used poplar for mine. But I would think any hardwood should work.

@gdawgs - That is a really good looking mold! Do you line each of the sections with freezer paper or have you found another alternative? Thanks much!

I don't 100% understand how you remove the dividers and use for a large batch - aren't there holes for the bolts? Or because small - liners take care of them?

Thanks!
 
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