Drying secrets? (wiggly woes)

Nathan

One of my biggest struggles has always been drying. I'm using all of the tricks at the minute: as little water as possible, the old drying box + wet sponge trick, putting something on top of the sticks (although I haven't tried plastic wrap yet); regardless, I can never seem to avoid at least a little warping.

Am I just being unrealistic, or does anyone have a tried and true route to perfectly straight sticks?

My latest batch for reference:
{My latest batch of sticks, partially dried and slightly wiggly, on a drying screen between two plastic rulers with three broad acrylic sticks on top of them.}

EspritDeLaNature

How thin are those sticks? They seem quite long. While commercial sticks are super straight, even at around 4 inches in length, I notice warping in artisan sticks like Kyarazen's and Ken Cannata's.
My sticks are shorter than yours. Even so, the ones at the very ends tend to bend. I use a method that Dave posted about. Snugging your sticks right to the edge of the drying screen and putting a pieces of wood, I use hardwood pen blanks, on top of the ends of the sticks and one at the end of the row to nush everything tight and straight. I have a photo somewhere. I will try to find it. I had a fellow artisan tell me that he dried his sticks in the bathroom, because he showered everyday and that kept the humidity high (with the door closed).

Nathan

EspritDeLaNature How thin are those sticks?

They were extruded at 2.5mm, and they are a little under 20cm. I seem to have better luck keeping them straight when I cut them down after they are dry for some reason ¯\(ツ)/¯

EspritDeLaNature I notice warping in artisan sticks like Kyarazen's and Ken Cannata's.

Yea, maybe I'm asking for the impossible, at least in my wee home setup.

EspritDeLaNature Snugging your sticks right to the edge of the drying screen and putting a pieces of wood, I use hardwood pen blanks, on top of the ends of the sticks and one at the end of the row to nush everything tight and straight.

The two rulers here were an experiment; I think they're too light to do much. I'll have to get something heavier as you say - I recall seeing someone (Dr. Incense?) using pieces of metal!

EspritDeLaNature I had a fellow artisan tell me that he dried his sticks in the bathroom, because he showered everyday and that kept the humidity high (with the door closed).

This is clever. I have a feeling that the box + sponge method would do better for me if either the box were smaller, or if I made more incense at one time. My dream is to make something like a fully-automated mushroom fruiting chamber to dry in.

EspritDeLaNature

EspritDeLaNature Nathan Pieces of metal!!!!! That is serious. Carla from IG posted a photo where she used picture frames moldings. I think for your size sticks, a 1×1 from the hardware store could work. Try one end piece cut to 25cm and two pieces to lay on top of the ends of the sticks to whatever size your rows are.

IncenseApprentice

I actually like it when sticks aren't perfectly straight. It tells me a human made it and not a machine...I like that evidence of someone's touch and the wabisabi/ imperfection.

EspritDeLaNature

IncenseApprentice Truth! I actually call my sticks Wabi Sabi incense, in order to get by the slightly bent thing. But, even for me, some are toooooo bent. There is difference between a subtle bend and a real curve. I think that part of the art is at least trying to get them somewhat straight. 😁

Nathan

IncenseApprentice great point!

EspritDeLaNature

An interesting experiment for you would be to add a wee of clay to see if that would slow down the drying and stabilez the sticks. A positive side effect would be that clay would slow down the burn and hold fragrance too. Since you don't use onycha perhaps part of your secret sauce?!

Nathan

EspritDeLaNature it's interesting you mention that. I've actually been reading about Onycha, and how it's mostly made of chitin, something it (strangely) has in common with mushrooms. I got a bag of dry-frozen mushrooms some time ago to experiment with, so that'll be interesting.

SamsaSpoon

Nathan something it (strangely) has in common with mushrooms.

For real? Wow! 😃 Mushrooms are so fascinating (and delicious)!

EspritDeLaNature

Nathan I've been on the chitin trail too. It was the original reason that I started collecting mushrooms, and then eventually lichens, for incense. I've strayed far from the chitin trail but am happy to get back on. I think bracken fungus and other really hard fungi have the most chitin.
One thing that occupied my mind for a while is that ambergris is caused by a whale having swallowed a cuttlefish, or a squid, beak that is extraordinarily high in chitin. The whale secretes a substance to enrobe the beak, to stop it from cutting its gastrointestinal system. Somehow I got the idea that there is a kind of polar, alchemical reaction with the chitin molecules that causes the ambergris to become such a transformative ingredient in fragrance. I have to go back and look at my notes, its been quite some time.

SamsaSpoon

I struggled with this as well (as we all did, I assume).

I found the curling was the worst when I packed them tightly, but I never put any type of weight on them because it felt odd to me to partially cut them off from airflow.

Do you move or remove the wood blanks (or whatever you are using) after a certain time?
Does it lead to issues if the wood brim on the drying rack is different in height to the thickness of the sticks?

I know what Dave described is commonly seen as the best and therefore most used method of drying, but I never actually tried it nor looked too deep into it, as I found a different solution that works for me.
I don't use these kind of drying racks that have the wooden brim, so there is no outer edge I can snug the sticks onto.
I found that spacing out the sticks, so there are no areas with significantly less air exposure helps a lot. For the first day, I usually cover them with a very thin cotton cloth. I dry them Either in my attic during the cold season or in a cellar-like room we store fire wood during warmer days. I try to find a place that is below max. 16°C; I found around 12°C to be ideal.
Spacing out the sticks while making sure they lay straight is a bit tedious and time intense. Definitely not something that works for someone doing this commercially. But for hobbyist small and micro-batches, it's quite ok.

I'd like to have an alternative method for the rare cases I make larger batches, though.
And to make me less dependent on seasons and temperature. (If it's too warm, I just don't make stick incense.)

Nathan

SamsaSpoon I found the curling was the worst when I packed them tightly, but I never put any type of weight on them because it felt odd to me to partially cut them off from airflow.

I've wondered about this - people always say that even airflow is important, but also we see the same technique used time and time again whereby two sides of most sticks are completely cut off from air, not to mention anything placed on top!

EspritDeLaNature

SamsaSpoon I agree that 12-16C is ideal for drying. Where I dry always has fairly high humidity too. The wood pieces I put on top have no ill effects. I dry the sticks on small, plastic window screens that are constructed with "an edge" to nush up to. I always loose a couple of sticks at the far end of the row, but for the most part, the sticks dry in an acceptably straight manner.

Nathan

EspritDeLaNature I never would have made that connection! Fascinating. Some time ago I read Christopher Kemp's Floating Gold, which is an interesting book on ambergris. He attributes the chemical changes from brown to white ambergris to years adrift on the ocean currents.

Nathan

EspritDeLaNature I agree that 22-16C is ideal for drying. Where I dry always has fairly high humidity too.

I wish I had a space where I could reliably maintain this temperature range. I've been thinking about trying to fit a wee piezoelectric cooler to the drying box at some point, but I don't know if I can be bothered with all the effort!

EspritDeLaNature

Nathan Even the brown has "properties". A high quality white is truly a wonder!

EspritDeLaNature

Nathan I would give the bathroom a try.....