Four Legit Uses For ProNature’s Wax Balm by Dylan from PlyCreations

I used to make my on paste wax finish.

I no longer need to.

I’ll let you into a secret. I’ve used ProNature’s finishes for a while now and since being introduced to their Wax Balm I no longer need to fire up the double boiler nor do I need to pay a premium for beeswax or plant based turps to brew up my own concoction.

The citrus solvent they use in theirs smell much better than the gum based turpentine I used to put in mine anyway!

I have until very recently considered the Wax Balm as an add on to their natural oil based finishes but I have done some experimentation of late and the wax has become the most versatile and oft used finishing product in my workshop.

I am about to tell you why you might be doing your workshop a disservice if you are not using it yet and if you do I might have some uses for it you might not have considered. I am relatively sure that one or two might not even fall within the design intent of its formulator, the Green Chemist.

Here are 4 tried and tested and one bonus use for ProNature’s Wax Balm.

1. Polish

I use the Wax Balm as part of the finishing process on my customer projects. Not on all parts but only where the client will likely be interacting with the piece the most, areas such as table tops would be typical where the wax will offer a harder wearing and water resistant surface, especially when partnered with ProNature’s Hardwax Oil. By the way, this combination has now become my go to for table tops and work surfaces.

There is another reason I use the wax and it is the tactile experience it offers to any surface it’s used on. I apply the wax with a fine scuffing pad and after a buff with a soft cloth the surface “feel” belies the fact that I have sanded it down to a final grit of only 150-180 depending the abrasive on hand.

Application:

• Product is ready to use.
• Apply 1 – 2 coats (depending on the surface) using a soft, lint-free cloth, i.e., ProNature Mutton Cloth.
• Can also be used with polishing pad or a floor polishing machine,
• Use product sparingly. Really! “Less is More”.
• Allow product to draw into wood for 2-3 minutes.
• Remove surplus with a clean piece of soft cloth or clean polishing pad.
• If a higher sheen finish is desired, apply an additional coat after drying.
• Wait a minimum of 12 hours between coats.
• Let the wax reach its final hardness (at least 24 hours) before polishing for a sheen finish.
• Polish the surface thoroughly.

I have copied the instructions directly from the ProNature website and it is exactly the method I use, apart from the floor polishing machine, I find it a bit clunky on table tops. As per instructions on their site I also wait 24 hours after the last oil application before putting on the wax layer.

I’ve written a how-to on how I apply their oil finishes and you can read it here.

The wax can also be used for routine maintenance on existing wooden furniture using the same process as described above.

2. Reviver

The sad thing is that wooden furniture often does not receive the TLC it deserves.

Wax Balm can come to the rescue of neglected wooden furniture and will revitalise a piece in no time, adding protection and feeding the wood at the same time.

Application:

• Simply apply as per instructions in point 1 above.
• Maintain by applying 3 times a year or when the surface appears lustreless and dry.

Go ahead try it, your furniture will love you for it.

3. Surface Protector

I’m interrupting the wood finish uses with this one and I am sure point 3 will come as a surprise to the guys at ProNature.

I use the wax to protect the surfaces of the cast iron tops on my machines in the workshop. Using a wax or oil on cast iron tops in the workshop is nothing new and I used my home brew wax to do the same. Once the stock of my home made stuff ran out I tried ProNature’s and so far it works a treat.

Why use it on cast iron tops at all?

Depending on the quality of the iron in the top it may sometimes be prone to staining and rusting. Applying a coat of wax helps seal the metal from atmospheric moisture and thus helps to inhibit rust. The protective layer also helps to keep dirt that may stain the tops off the surface. There is an added advantage offered by the oils and wax in that it makes the work surface more slippery which has a surprising effect on how easy it becomes to push the wood over the work surface when using the tool. Some will argue that the oil or wax will have a detrimental effect when glueing surfaces together that have come into contact with the cast iron tops but I have yet to experience any issues and the use of paste wax for this purpose has been a tried and tested way of protecting machinery all over the planet for quite some time.

Application:

• Apply the wax with a soft cloth onto the cast iron top.
• Move to the next machine and do the same.
• Come back to the first and buff it all off with a fresh, soft cloth.
• Apply to the next machine in line.
• Come back to the second and buff.
• Move on to the next.
• Buff………..

Keep repeating until all machines have had this treatment, in my case the jointer then the thicknesser then the bandsaw then the table saw and then finally the lathe, but only if it was used during the week. This has become a ritual for me every Friday!

Not only does the Wax Balm work but it leaves the workshop smelling like a freshly cut orange.

By the way if you don’t know yet, the smell of this stuff is one it’s strongest selling points. The fact that I works so well and that it is completely natural and environmentally safe is strictly secondary!

4. Friction Finish

Another one the Green Chemist might not expect and of special interest to the turners out there.

Again, nothing new here as friction finishes have been the staple for turners around the world for many years. From using a piece of raw beeswax to home made liquid finishes to paste waxes, every turner has their own go to finishes that they gravitate to. In my case I prefer beeswax or paste wax.

My go to finish on larger pieces such as bowls used to be my home made wax and I had a large can of the stuff living on a shelf under my lathe stand. Actually this can was the place into which I poured excess finish after filling my standard tubs during every production run of the homemade wax. The hot finish would melt into the upper layer of wax in the can and would simply amalgamate with the finish left after my most recent project. Once I stopped making my own the can ran empty. I recently had an opportunity to turn bowls again so the Wax Balm found its way next to the lathe.

I don’t turn enough by the way but that is a discussion for another time.

Anyway, someone gave me a pile of Yellow Wood turning blanks just over a year ago with the agreement that I would turn him a few bowls in return. I’ve had the rough turned bowls drying in a paper bag since September 2023 and I finally had an opportunity to turn the finished bowls as soon as I got back into the workshop for 2024. My newly discovered favourite finish became the obvious choice to finish these four bowls.

Two things I learnt during the process, ProNature Wax Balm works brilliantly as a friction finish and Yellow Wood makes incredibly beautiful bowls.

Application couldn’t be simpler.

Application:

• Apply wax with a soft cloth to the bowl turning on the lathe making sure all the surfaces to be finished gets a generous coat of finish.
• Don’t spin the bowl too fast during application, wax will come flying back at you.
• Increase the spindle speed on the lathe.
• Apply a clean area of a soft rag against the rotating bowl, allowing the heat that develops between the rag and rotating wood surface to melt the finish into the wood.
• Do not keep the position of the rag stationary on the same spot, the bowl could overheat but keep moving the rag all over the surface allowing the heat to melt the wax and allow it to penetrate the wood.
• With the speed still up use a fresh rag to buff the surface of the bowl to nice sheen.

This technique worked especially well and I see no reason that it wouldn’t on other forms of turning as well. Considering that Wax Balm is made from all natural raw materials as well as being environmentally friendly it would lend itself especially well to turnings that would be used in the kitchen and come into contact with food. I would allow the finish to cure for a week or so before putting the item into general use.

On to the bonus.

4. Leather Treatment

I can neither confirm or deny that a little bird might have mentioned to me that you could use ProNature’s Wax Balm to treat leather.

Not strictly woodworking related outside of South Africa but this would certainly be of use on riempie furniture, a traditional style here at the southern tip of Africa that uses leather strips to wave seats on chairs and benches.

Considering the raw materials that go into the product it makes perfect sense that it would be well suited to maintain and feed leather. Not having used the product on leather before, I’m not going to hazard a guess on the application method but I can’t imagine it being more complicated than “wax on, wax off”.

Should you choose to use the product on your expensive Italian leather coat and it doesn’t work I will remove this post and deny ever mentioning anything about Wax Balm and leather in the same sentence – a perk that comes with owning the website.

If you to do so and it comes out ok, please share your experience in the comments.

There it is, four confirmed uses of ProNature’s Wax Balm and one yet unconfirmed.

Written by Dylan van Graan https://www.plycreations.com