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Mineral Oil vs Vaseline in Whistle Mix


j3cub

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Hi, I just made my first batch of potassium benzoate whistle mix and used 3% mineral oil in the mix. It seems to work very well. I was just wondering what difference it would make to use vaseline instead of mineral oil in this mix.

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Hi, I just made my first batch of potassium benzoate whistle mix and used 3% mineral oil in the mix. It seems to work very well. I was just wondering what difference it would make to use vaseline instead of mineral oil in this mix.

 

Very little, they both work well. My personal experience has me using oil more often because it's more convenient. Your milage may vary.

 

WSM B)

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I'm going to add that wax can also be used. Personally I don't know any performance difference between the three. As WSM said, whatever real difference there is will be "very little".

 

Have fun! :)

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I have used both mineral oil and vaseline for whistle fuels.

I have also used a variety of solvents for wet mixing the compounds in a zip-lock baggie.

Some of the fastest fuels were made with Vaseline and Coleman fuel for whatever reason.

Fine mesh good quality chemicals are key to getting high performing super fast whistle fuels.

Acetone works fine and dries very quickly compared to some of the other solvents.

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I too have to agree with Mikee on this, I have noticed for some odd reason benzoate whistle mixed with Vaseline seems to be hotter , maybe its better being it kinda adds to the fuel value. ... not sure , just speculating , but M-oil seems slower IMO. I think there was a really nice write up on whistle testing by dan creagan on his site

.

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Thank you for your help. I have been lurking on the site for a while now and find all of your experience priceless in helping a novice get started safely. Thank you all.

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  • 1 year later...

I have used both mineral oil and vaseline for whistle fuels.

I have also used a variety of solvents for wet mixing the compounds in a zip-lock baggie.

Some of the fastest fuels were made with Vaseline and Coleman fuel for whatever reason.

Fine mesh good quality chemicals are key to getting high performing super fast whistle fuels.

Acetone works fine and dries very quickly compared to some of the other solvents.

Vaseline won't dissolve in acetone.

Edited by jerronimo
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except for this additive

I also used flaxseed oil

it quickly oxidizes and polymerizes, strengthening the fuel. it seemed to me that this gives a more gibrophobic effect

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Meh, pretty much any organic or mineral oil can be added in order to achieve the desired grain formation and improved handling.

- Lanolin in alcohol works great for me, I use it anyways (reloading), so there is plenty at hand.

- Vaseline and mineral oil work fine as well, vaseline just tends to be a pain to dissolve

- You could probably use the rest of the castor oil that you slipped the other guys at the last convention......

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Pirotex, (gibrophobic)? Doesn't translate, do you mean hydrophobic, or are you describing a different sound to the whistle?
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I have used both mineral oil and vaseline for whistle fuels.

I have also used a variety of solvents for wet mixing the compounds in a zip-lock baggie.

Some of the fastest fuels were made with Vaseline and Coleman fuel for whatever reason.

Fine mesh good quality chemicals are key to getting high performing super fast whistle fuels.

Acetone works fine and dries very quickly compared to some of the other solvents.

 

I've used Coleman fuel to dissolve Vaseline, and it works very well. It also dries fairly fast (it's very flammable and work with it should be carried on outdoors, away from any ignition source). I believe the mixture works so well because Vaseline and Coleman fuel are both petrochemicals and don't absorb moisture (but acetone and alcohol do).

 

WSM B)

Edited by WSM
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Pirotex, (gibrophobic)? Doesn't translate, do you mean hydrophobic, or are you describing a different sound to the whistle?

Hydrophobic--Russian does not have an "H"--for example-English 'hospital'--> Russian 'gospital.'

Bob

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I use canning wax.. 2% heated and dissolved in napth/colman fuel.

I like the way the fuel flows better when you scoop it, and It has a nice shiny slick surface after being pressed.

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I just got a deal of 5lbs of wax so as soon as I finish up my bottle of mineral oil I'm switching to wax. Didn't like the Vaseline. Seemed sticky after drying.

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I just got a deal of 5lbs of wax so as soon as I finish up my bottle of mineral oil I'm switching to wax. Didn't like the Vaseline. Seemed sticky after drying.

 

I agree about Vaseline in mixes seeming sticky. The wax (paraffin as it's called in grocery stores in the US), sounds like a good idea.

 

Years ago, a friend from the Eastern half of the US shared a process he used to make powdered wax. He ran a blender full of ice till it was like a slushy snowball and slowly poured melted wax in while it was running on the high setting. Afterward, he filtered the melted ice (water) out and dried the powdered wax. The wax stayed powdered after that.

 

I've always thought about repeating his process to make powdered wax, and use it as an additive in rocket nozzle mix.

 

One day, maybe...

 

WSM B)

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I have stearin powder which is the wax used in a mixture with paraffin for candles. It works well in nozzle mix but I've settled on graphite powder for my mix.
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You bring up a good topic Patrick. Stearin is a slow burning fuel, my experiments with waxed fuel has yielded a drop in performance. Maybe my wax is loaded heavy with stearin, it is candle wax. It stands to reason that a pure paraffin wax would work better.
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I have stearin powder which is the wax used in a mixture with paraffin for candles. It works well in nozzle mix but I've settled on graphite powder for my mix.

 

I've considered stearic acid (stearine) also, but never got around to trying it.

 

Graphite is an excellent additive to nozzle mix, for several reasons. It works as a sort of "heat sink", is nearly chemically inert and has lubricating qualities. It reacts slowly, if at all. As a smaller percentage, graphite is an advantageous component of high performance nozzle mixes.

 

WSM B)

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I've never used stearic acid, but I have used salts of stearic acid (I think I used calcium stearate). It has a tremendous effect on BP, as in, I had a nozzle core burner burn for 15 seconds then go out.

Regular paraffin wax is my preferred additive.

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