didgeridoo mouthpiece alternative to beeswax

[Peter.H.M.Brooks]

I've followed the instructions and made a moutpiece for my digeridoo out of beeswax. Sadly this has caused an allergic reaction around my lips - apparently the pollen in beeswax is known to cause this reaction in people who have sensitive skin.

Obviously one solution, not my preferred one, would be to give up the digeridoo. Another would be to remove the mouthpiece and simply play the instrument open ended - this is quite rough though.

What substances could I use as an alternative to beeswax that are likely not to cause this reaction?

Any useful suggestions gratefully received.

[sm_jamieson]

The "toy" digeridoo I have, had a slightly flexible plastic mouthpiece that was just like an end-cap with a hole cut about the size =A32 coin. Got some pretty good sounds out of it. Simon.

[Dave Plowman (News)]

Sounds the best one. Or you could take up the bagpipes?

[HWtn]

1e: you can try to make one of parafine or stearine, the stuff candles are made of. 2e: You can also try to make a mould from your mouth peace, from plaster or from silicon rubber f.e. To describe the whole procedure is a long story but there are plenty descriptions on the internet. Cast in that mould a mouth peace from some polyester casting stuff. 3e or simply make it from wood, take a mouthpiece of and alp horn as example. Good luck HWtn

"sm_jamies> I've followed the instructions and made a moutpiece for my digeridoo

The "toy" digeridoo I have, had a slightly flexible plastic mouthpiece that was just like an end-cap with a hole cut about the size £2 coin. Got some pretty good sounds out of it. Simon.

[kauhl-meersburg]

hello,

please don't believe all what people tell you inside beeswax there is never pollen, it's just the cleanest product, coming directly out of bees' glands, chewed and fixed your allergic reaction surely comes from poisoned wax, chemical treatment of the hive look for a beekeeper who can garantee "virgin wax", visit him and have a look how he gets it btw, do you know, it's not the pollen which is causing allergies, it's the aerial pollution dust particles, around which pollen is condensing

more info, you are welcome cheers kauhl (Lake Constance)

Dave Plowman (News) schrieb:

[The Wanderer]

Dunno anything 'bout the digeridoo, but presuming you have to partially close off the end, how about a modelling or casting latex? There are numerous types available, take a look at

used some when I wanted to centre an armature wire in porcelain doll arms and legs. It has the advantage that it still retains a measure of elasticity even after curing, so in theory you should be able to pull it away to replace, IYSWIM.

Fred Aldous also keep a wide range of latex and resins for casting and moulding - milliput comes to mind as a two-part hard-setting resin putty

[Guy King]

The message from [e-mail] contains these words:

Peel the red wax off some Dutch cheese and use that? It'd look stylish, too.

[Guy King]

The message from "Dave Plowman (News)" contains these words:

It'd be an ill wind which blew nobody any good.

[Mary Fisher]

There is, the bees make it into comb. Honey contains pollen and honey is stored in the comb. Pollen is also stored in the comb. Pollen CAN be filtered out of beeswax but it needs an incredibly fine filter, not available to beekeepers. The smallest pollen grains are very, very tiny - some even smaller than that :-)

That's possible but not all beekeepers use chemical treatments.

Even 'virgin' wax is bound to contain some pollen, it's everywhere in the hive including on the bees' bodies.

Not always true. But there might be something else causing irritation to the player/poster's lips. Paraffin isn't necessarily a good substitute for beeswax for a mouthpiece because it's slippier and doesn't stick like beeswax does. The person who suggested using a moulded flexible moulding proably has the best solution.

Mary

[Huge]

hello,

Please don't top post.

Yuck. Honey is bee vomit, beeswax is chewed by bees. Why would anyone want to have anythign to do with these revolting products?

[Guy King]

The message from "HWtn" contains these words:

Search for "morphplast" on eBay. Thermoplastic that melts in hot water, can be shaped like putty and then sets hard as it cools. Can be repeatedly reshaped.

[Weatherlawyer]

THAT'S WAX !!??

Shit!

[Andy Dingley]

Yellow or white beeswax? Yellow beeswax is usually low on pollen (it's filtered) but it still contains enough of it, and the proteins from pollen, to cause allergic reactions in those who are sensitive to it. White beeswax (from Tiranti, not your local beekeeper) has considerably more refining done to it and is usually regarded as "allergy safe" for most people.

You could also use a microcrystalline wax (try Tiranti again), which is much more inert and hypoallergenic.

Best of all though are some new polymers that become workable at boiling water temperatures and remain mouldable afterwards down at hand-safe temperatures. More stable than waxes though, especially in hot climates. Now if only I could remember what the damn things are called and where you get them from (Cooksons or Tiranti, most likely).

[unopened]

I hope you don't enquire too closely where milk and eggs come from, then, or cheese, especially blue (and even more especially Spinnenk=E4se and Mimolette). And some people apparently enjoy drinking liquids contaminated by the excretions of fungi. You'd better also check if any food you eat is coloured with cochineal. You mite want to look up Demodex folliculorum while you are at it. If you are a vegan and don't take B12 supplements, you might also want to check where your alternative source of supply is coming from.

Humans are omnivores, and our digestive & immune systems are pretty good at dealing with whatever we throw at them.

Cheers,

Sid

[dennis]

?

[Huge]

Yep, my digestive system is pretty good at operating in reverse where honey (bleugh) is concerned and in fast forward for mushrooms.

You may choose to eat insect vomit, but I'll pass, thanks.

[Guy King]

The message from "Weatherlawyer" contains these words:

Red marble-effect shit in your case, I presume.

[Guy King]

The message from "dennis@home" contains these words:

?

Grief, I just got 200g off eBay for £6 including P'n'P and thought that wasn't cheap.

[Andy Dingley]

You may indeed choose to eat it, but it's damned hard to choose not to.

Mmmmm..... Mimolette 8-)

[Andy Dingley]

?

That's the stuff. Price varies though.

If you over-heat it, apparently it does turn into bog-standard glue gun sticks and it loses its magic behaviour. The peculiar properties aren't just due to robust formulation, they're caused by sophisticated and ephemeral processing of it.