How do you use acrylic beveler?

[lenarenee]

I've watched the videos, looks easy....just slide the bar along and viola...instant straight bevel! Right?

What's the secret?

 

[DeeAnna]

What kind of troubles are you having? I don't know that there's any secret, really.

 

[lenarenee]

Mostly I get a wide bevel at the start which tapers to almost nothing at the end.

I tried pushing down more at the end of the bar, which works sometimes, but can also backfire by shifting the angle of the bevel.

I've also tried simply turning the bar around and re-beveling, with mixed results.

 

[dibbles]

Maybe try not pushing down - just slide the bar across. Does your beveler have a place to rest the soap against?

 

[snappyllama]

Lenarenee, I have a love/hate relationship with mine. Try letting the soap get harder before beveling it - that helped me. Now I do it right before I wrap. I still sometimes end up with inexact sides... Weirdly, if I don't really focus on what I'm doing and go faster while jamming out to music, they look a little better.

 

[lenarenee]

Maybe that’s the ticket snappyllama....I was listening to an old radio mystery instead of music LOL!

I have tried harder bars, but had the same issues.

This does have an angled plate to guide the bar, it’s from Custom Soap Stamps on Etsy.
Maybe there’s just a bigger learning curve than I expected given the angled plate. I don’t want to waste soap practing though. When using a potato peeler I get uneven results, with occasional chunks taken out.

 

[dibbles]

@lenarenee that's the same planer I have now. I will sometimes get an uneven bevel, but not often. It does seem to work better if I wait a week or so after unmolding to plane and bevel the bars. I don't find that I really have to apply any pressure other than enough to keep the soap flat against the guide plate.

If I could ask you, though, how much does the planer take off the surface of your bars? If I plane all six sides of mine, I lose over .5 ounces of soap from the bar. My other planer, which I dropped and broke, was from Soapmaking Resource and took off only a paper thin layer. I've gorilla glued it back together, but I don't use it much. I love the angled plate on the new one, but otherwise like the old one better. I'm just wondering if mine was maybe put together with a larger than normal gap for the plane part, or if this is just how these planers are.

 

[Marilyn Norgart]

I have tried trimming up the edges with my mandolin--not the greatest but better than a potato peeler for me. but if I wait too long my soap just kinda crumbles on the edges

 

[lenarenee]

@lenarenee that's the same planer I have now. I will sometimes get an uneven bevel, but not often. It does seem to work better if I wait a week or so after unmolding to plane and bevel the bars. I don't find that I really have to apply any pressure other than enough to keep the soap flat against the guide plate.

If I could ask you, though, how much does the planer take off the surface of your bars? If I plane all six sides of mine, I lose over .5 ounces of soap from the bar. My other planer, which I dropped and broke, was from Soapmaking Resource and took off only a paper thin layer. I've gorilla glued it back together, but I don't use it much. I love the angled plate on the new one, but otherwise like the old one better. I'm just wondering if mine was maybe put together with a larger than normal gap for the plane part, or if this is just how these planers are.

It takes off a lot! Another reason I regret this purchase.

 

[DeeAnna]

Is it this one? https://www.etsy.com/listing/700758515/blade-less-acrylic-soap-hand-held

This beveler comes in two versions -- 1/8" or 1/16" bevel. I'm assuming you have the 1/8" version? I agree 0.5 ounces (~15 grams) is way more waste than I'd like. I lightly bevel all corners with a potato peeler and remove only a few grams per bar.

If you want to keep using this particular beveler, but adjust it to take a smaller cut, you could add layers of clear packing tape on both inside faces of the soap holder. The tape will keep the soap from going as deeply into the corner. Keep testing the depth of cut and adding tape until you're happy.

edit: Or is it this one? https://www.etsy.com/listing/251970832/blade-less-acrylic-soap-beveler-no-more

This beveler is going to be more tricky to use than the other one and there's no good way to reduce the depth of cut with this design. The idea is to keep constant, light pressure and don't rock the bar through the cut. But it's going to take practice to build the muscle memory and also a little bit of "zen" to get consistent results.

 

[dibbles]

It is this one https://www.etsy.com/listing/272556...-planer?ref=landingpage_similar_listing_top-1

I think it’s like the second one you linked, but is a planer/beveled in one. It takes off way more than I like, but it is the planer part not the beveler that is the problem. I do love the acrylic though. As long as it doesn’t get dropped

 

[lenarenee]

Yes, it's the one dibbles linked....planer and beveler.

 

[earlene]

Mostly I get a wide bevel at the start which tapers to almost nothing at the end.

I tried pushing down more at the end of the bar, which works sometimes, but can also backfire by shifting the angle of the bevel.

I've also tried simply turning the bar around and re-beveling, with mixed results.

For me, it's all about the pressure I apply. I noticed that I had the same problem and realized I was applying more pressure at the start and less at the end. By adjusting my pressure to be very light and more even throughout the process, I get nice even bevels.

The lighter the touch, the less it takes off.

 

[Marilyn Norgart]

this is going to be my next "tool"--I love my tools and I love the effect this tool gives

 

[DeeAnna]

It is this one https://www.etsy.com/listing/272556...-planer?ref=landingpage_similar_listing_top-1

Then my advice for the second gadget in my earlier post applies to this one. They both are based on the idea of turning a potato peeler upside down, so the user runs the soap over the blade rather than the blade over the soap. In both designs, keep the bar as steady through the cut as possible and use a very light touch. Practice will be important.

The first gadget in my earlier post is going to be less dependent on technique and experience. I suspect this gadget might be more prone to chipping the soap if you try to bevel a brittle soap.

 

[dixiedragon]

Try covering the whole bar with your palm. Don't grip, just rest the weight of your hand evenly across the bar.