Using wax with paracord

Wax and paracord! How absurd! Or is it?

There has been talk about using wax when working with paracord. The process was first applied to paracord by Manuel Zambrano who used it in his work with leather. Since then, many were interested in the benefits of using wax in combination with paracord. In this article I will cover the basics as well as show you how to work with wax and paracord. I had some good help and advice from Darren Barford, so I would like to thank him for the useful input he provided, which made my work a ton easier.

What are the benefits of applying wax to paracord?

Wax use in paracord crafts is relatively new. Many advantages have already been discovered, some have yet to be. Major benefits include:

Is it worth it? In my opinion it is. It is one of those neat little tricks of the trade that they do not teach you in paracord school.

A waxed wrap made by Manuel Zambrano.

Getting some wax puns off my chest

I am sorry, but before I go any further in this article I have to get rid of some puns which would reduce the quality of this article if they got out in the wrong places:

1. Wax on, wax off (Mr. Miyagi from Karate Kid)
2. Getting waxed (women, who understands them?)
3. Mind your beeswax (mind your own business)

That feels much better, let’s get waxin!

Before or after…or both?

You can apply wax onto the cord before doing your project, after or both. It depends entirely upon the results you would like. In my experience, ff you apply it before, it gets absorbed into the cord easier. After is nice if you just want a protective layer and applying wax both times is for those projects that are really high value, since it takes time to do it.

After I did my first project, which was waxing a fishtail paracord bracelet I realized how to use wax, or rather, how it works great for me. If you apply the wax before you make the project, meaning on the cord itself, you have the ability to remove the bits that are left before you make your item. This will ensure no wax is left anywhere, other than on the cord.

If you apply the wax after the project is done, it hardens on the surface. This can then be removed by applying heat, but some of the wax gets into the spaces between the cords. But fear not. After the wax hardens, simply use a hard brush to brush off the wax that hardened between the cords.

Beeswax or paraffin?

Although you decide what works for you, I like natural bees wax for many reasons. It is more friendly to the body, it smells great, it does not irritate the skin and somehow, the texture is a lot better (in my opinion). I simply used the leftovers of some candles I had lying around.

Paraffin wax on the other hand is usually cheaper.

Safety

Applying hot wax is naturally risky, if done without regard for safety. Getting burned, as Darren Barford says, feels like napalm. I mean, I do love the smell of napalm in the morning, just not on me! So take the necessary precautions!

How to apply wax

You can apply wax dry, by simply rubbing it on. This is a good way to do it. The alternative I will describe is to melt it and then apply it.

I prefer to apply wax after the project is done. You can choose to do it before, the process I used to apply wax to a bracelet looked like this:

1. I put the wax into a ceramic cup, put the in a larger pot full of water and heated it. The wax melted slowly.
2. I then used a toothbrush (you can use a regular, cheap brush, I just found the toothbrush to be more robust) to dip into wax and apply it all over my bracelet.
3. I waited a bit for the wax to harden, then took a cooking paddle and placed the bracelet on it
4. I put the paddle over boiling water and let the heat do its work. It sweat the wax into and off the bracelet as well as tightened it up a bit. I turned the bracelet around a few times for all sides to be worked on evenly.
5. After that I let the wax harden again. The small bits of wax left between the cords were brushed out using a hard brush.

Darren Barford suggested using a hot air gun to work with the wax. I think it is a great idea to try out. Again, mind safety!

The result

I am happy with the result. I still need to consider the use of wax in making bracelets, but the one I made feels awesome! The extra effort involved does make me wonder if this is practical for larger quantities.

In short, the applications for wax in my opinion are:

1. grips! The leather like texture provides added friction and durability to paracord
2. on gutted paracord. It just looks and feels a lot better.
3. select, high value projects. I just love my new, waxed bracelet!

Thank you for reading this article and you know, mind your own beeswax. Duh! Almost finished without a silly overused pun. Well, better luck next time!

Another image of a waxed paracord bracelet by Manuel Zambrano.
See how he made lines through the wax so he can easily wax the cord!