If you have a reed that it’s sides won’t stay closed and/or sealed well, I’m told wax (of some sort) is a good way to cure the leak(s). Any suggestions for types of wax to use that will seal, remain somewhat flexible and not just gum up the whole mess? The bacl cobbler’s wax that I have seems much too hard or pliable for this purpouse. Is pure beeswax too soft and would it melt if the temperature got to be much above 80 degrees or so? I’m told those little BabyBel red and yellow cheeses use a wax that’s great for this purpouse but haven’t tried those yet. Still…to get to eat a whole thing of little cheeses all in the name of a good reed… 
Brian, the black cobbler’s wax you get from GHB suppliers can be softened somewhat by melting it down, and then mixing it half-and-half with beeswax (use a pot you don’t want for anything else). I just use straight bees wax from a handicraft shop. My pipemaker uses some of the above as well as the the wax coating from the Baby Bel cheese. I can’t stand the cheese, so have chosen to forgo that route. 
djm
Keep the wax - send me the cheese!
Brian,
Try plain beeswax first. Make sure it’s real beeswax, as the stuff they sell as “beeswax” in some sewing and hobby stores is mostly parafin. You can fortify it with cobbler’s wax if necessary. I think the 50/50 mix, while great for waxing hemp, is a bit too sticky for sealing reeds.
I use an old tin can in a pan of hot water to melt & mix beeswax and cobbler’s wax–as DJM says, you won’t want to use it for anything else afterwards!
YMMV,
No E
Larry,
That would explain why the “beeswax” I bought from the craft store is as hard as a rock…
How about wax from “beeswax” candles? Probably the real stuff?
M
What about edam cheese which has red wax. All you have to do is eat the cheese then roll the red wax into small balls and rub the wax into the leaking parts of the reed.
I use this wax also for waxing unwaxed thread hemp, putting on the drone cane/reg tuning pin to flatten pitch. If a note on the chanter was sharp I would fill the note hole with the wax until in tune (Rogge would do this)
All the best
Michael-
The easiest way to tell is the color & smell. The stuff with parafin in it usually has an odd yellow cast to it, and smells like candle wax. Real beeswax sort of a beige color and smells a bit like honey (go figure).
You may have real beeswax that’s just dried out. Melting it in a double-boiler (aka tin can in a pot of water) will soften it up nicely.
I bought a big brick of beeswax from a guy selling honey at a farmer’s market. Oneof these days I’ll break it up into useful pieces and bring it down to the club.
-Larry
Put me down for some of that Larry. I am still using a small brick I bought about 8 years ago. It’s about 4" long and 1" high and deep. This stuff lasts.. unless of course you are a maker. I have waxed nearly every persons joints (cough cough) at the SCUPC meetings with this stuff and still have 3/4 of it left. It’s time to retire the dirty little morsel 
PD.
Anyone tried earwax?
Being an old fart I’ve got heaps I could sell…if’n ya don’t mind a few hairs stuck in it!
Now, wasn’t that just gross?
me go now…
Duuuude! I had a lump o’ bee’s wax in my case at last night’s session!
Just to raise the ire of the folks with the wax/cheese fetish 
, I’ll say that I use nail polish to seal the edges of my reeds - it will not melt and smell like rancid cheese come summer - but maybe that is your ulterior motive?
Personaly, I think you should try the ear wax and present your findings at the next piper’s meeting. But if you want the bee’s wax you can get it at The Leather Factory (no it’s not some S & M shop, although I’m sure they would have wax as well), 1107 S. State street.
Or, if you want some of mine all you have to do is shovel my driveway after the next snow storm
Cheers!
~John
I buy my honey with the comb in the jar. I know that my beeswax is real beeswax unless sombody takes the trouble to make artificial comb and put honey in it..
To seal the sides of my reeds, I prefer a spot of Elmer’s glue on my finger, then drag it along the edges of the reed, pulling away just before the tip.
Let dry until transparent and you should have fixed any side of the reed leaks. It is flexible and easy to remove if needed.
I think the beeswax may get inside the reed as when I used that instead of Elmer’s in an emergency, that reed never played again.
I could never see anything definately wrong with it using my old eyes and a 10X jeweler’s loupe.
What about using lipstick? Isn’t there some old Irish tale about ‘loose lips sink slips’?
Brian,
Don’t worry about beeswax melting. If this happens you can forget using the reed (or chanter) again because beeswax has a melt point about 62C or 146F.
Beeswax has worked for me. It’s easy to apply and easy to remove.
O’Grady recommends white glue (Elmers) applied the way fancypiper suggests. Unless you’ve soaked the reed in neatsfoot or almond oil, you may not be able to remove it.
Childress has used small square cut pieces of clear (packing) tape about 1/4" x 1/4" folded over the edges. This works well, doesn’t affect the tone of the reed and is removable.
Add to the list… nail polish (nail shellac) but that’s hard to remove.
And don’t overlook ptfe plumbing tape…
I’m referring to the slips above the wrap just in case there was some question. When a reed is either poorly made from the get go or separates down the road, it’s those ‘above the wrap’ gaps that I’m hoping to fill.
So ptfe doesn’t work here. I’m curious to know what the packing tape would do to the tone if anything and exactly how well it would seal in my cases. As for the glue I’d still be worried about it not being flexible enough and spliting itself down the road…hmmm…so many questions - so many things to try.
Anyone worked with silicone sealant?
You’re quite sure about that?
It has worked for me in the past..
It’s always been my experience that gluing edges of the blades will dull the tone of the reed. I’ve never seen a good reed that had to be glued. I’ve seen a little glob on the edges right at the end of the winding, where the winding didn’t close the gap, but even then, by removing this on other peoples reeds, and replacing with wax (wax dulls the tone here too, but is flexible) the tone has always improved. To get the desired snapiness, the entire edges (all the way up to the winding) has to be allowed to vibrate.
And, it’s always been my experience that ptfe tape, applied to properly made blades, will work fine to seal all small leaks–from the end of the tails up to where the winding should end. The reed can be played at this point. Winding can be put over the tape can add rigidity. For big leaks, start over, or something. Waxed thread/hemp will seal everything too, even before or sometimes w/o any varnish, tar, or nail polish applied over it. The white string that AB uses is strong and great for unwinding/rewinding. No mess, and just that easy. The fit is nearly perfect anyway, the winding just adds stability and rigidity to the reed.
How the winding is applied is as important as anything. I sometimes get the idea there’s a huge difference in what everyone thinks a good reed should sound like.
Although I actually recommended in my book the use of Sobo glue for this purpose, I’m afraid I have to agree with Lorenzo. If you have a first or later edition of the Piper’s Despair (no matter how much you paid for it) you should make a note in the margins to the effect that the author has since seen the error of his ways, and has sworn to glue no more forever.
Get it right with the mechanical fit of the blades, staple and binding, and you won’t need such fixes as glue and teflon tape.