"todd" wrote in message ...

I think I probably need to a) warm it up and b)shake it more often. After
grinding in the coffee grinder, it was a dust consistency. Only way to get
the particles any smaller would be to take them over to Fermilab. I've
transferred the whole mess into a quart Mason jar and it's sitting in hot
water.

What I usually do is wrap the flakes inside an old (clean) t-shirt
and then break them up by pounding with a deadblow mallet. (Hey, it's
therapeutic! :-)

Then I pour alcohol into the container and add the flakes to it.
In the meantime I run some hot water into a bucket (just enough to
cover the jar to the level of the shellac). Then I put the jar in the
bucket, stir, cover and place in the sun.

I stir it every time I think of it (maybe every 15-30 minutes for a
couple of hours), and replace the water a couple of times as it cools.
If I'm not in a hurry, I'll let it sit overnight.

Disclaimers: I recommend just using hot tap water. (Don't use
boiling water, etc., as heat sources and alcohol don't mix.) You
might want to tighten the lid on the jar completely and then back it
off a bit, to release any pressure that may build up. Be careful not
to get water into your jar, either from the bucket, or from letting
your stir-stick come in contact with the water before or after
stirring. If you prefer to shake the jar, you may want to put some
plastic wrap over the threads of your jar mouth before tightening the
lid. This will keep things from getting stuck. (I prefer to stir,
and use a jar with a plastic lid, and have never had any problems with
the lid sticking, but YMMV.)


Chuck Vance
Just say (tmPL) I stole most of what I know about shellac from
Paully Rad (who's probably looking on and smiling about now) and Paddy
O'Deen.