Hand Made Shellac

 

Seedlac is converted into Shellac either by traditional hand made process or comparatively modern machine-made process. Hand made shellac is produced by properly blending Seedlac into a long narrow cloth bag and heating one end over a charcoal fire and the other end is attached to a windlass and is gradually twisted. The heat produced by the charcoal fire melts the lac which is forced out through the cloth by pressure. The molten lac is scraped out and drawn into sheets manually and left to dry. This process requires considerable manual skill and long experience.

Grades of Hand Made Shellac :-

1. Lemon One

2. Lemon Two

Lemon One Hand Made (Physical Data)
Essential RequirementsMatter Insoluble in hot alcoholBasic Limit - 1.0%
Relaxed Limit - 1.5%
Color Index12 Max.
Rosin and OrpimentFree from Rosin and Orpiment
Optional RequirementsVolatile MatterNot more than 2%
Ash0.5%
WaxNot more than 5.5%
FlowAs agreed between buyer & seller
Heat PolymerisationAs agreed between buyer & seller usually at temperature of 150 degree cel.
Matter Soluble in Water0.5% (Max.)
Acid ValueAs agreed between buyer & seller
Lead ContentAs agreed between buyer & seller
Iodine ValueAs agreed between buyer & seller
Lemon Two Hand Made (Physical Data)
Essential RequirementsMatter Insoluble in hot alcoholBasic Limit - 1.25%
Relaxed Limit - 2.0%
Color Index15 Max.
Rosin and OrpimentFree from Rosin and Orpiment
Optional RequirementsVolatile MatterNot more than 2%
Ash0.8%
WaxNot more than 5.5%
FlowAs agreed between buyer & seller
Heat PolymerisationAs agreed between buyer & seller usually at temperature of 150 degree Celsius.
Matter Soluble in Water0.5% (Max.)
Acid ValueAs agreed between buyer & seller
Lead ContentAs agreed between buyer & seller
Iodine ValueAs agreed between buyer & seller