Johnson's Paste Wax

Better bargain,
$0 last month at County household waste free store.
The tin alone is probably worth something to collectors, LOL.

FUN FACT: I have very many old cans, different stuff like smokeless powder, auto oil, wood finish products, food products (saltine crackers, spices) and I've tried selling them, and never made enough money "TOTAL" to buy a cup of coffee.

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Before the " CRAZE ", I walked into a local grocery store. There was a buggy in an isle with a yellow clearance sign on it. There were cans of JPW for $4 each. I knew what it could be used for and bougt 5 or 6 of them.

Ben
 
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Ben said:
Before the " CRAZE ", I walked into a local grocery store. There was a buggy in an isle with a yellow clearance sign on it. There were cans of JPW for $4 each. I knew what is could be used for and bougt 5 or 6 of them.

Ben
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So you have $1000 to $1200 worth of product. All you have to do now is find a buyer for that willing to pay $200/can and you'll turn $980-$1176 profit on that $20 to $24 investment...... ;)
 
Without getting too political: I am still dazzled and more than a little ticked off that someone (anyone) decided that something as imminently useful as paste wax should be declared evil and hounded out of existence. "Useful Idiots" indeed.
 
Don’t get too upset because the useful idiots were only a part of that decision to discontinue the product. The consumers were the other part.

Stoddard Solvent is a major ingredient in Johnson Paste wax and likely the factor cited as the regulatory problem S.C. Johnson was facing. Volatile Organic compounds have seen increased regulation across many industries for decades. Personally, I think we went a little overboard on the regulation of organic solvents but that’s another topic.

S.C. Johnson could have continued to make their paste wax but they chose to discontinue it. The product wasn’t banned outright by law, as is often cited on the internet. S.C Johnson claimed the cost of compliance was the issue, that doesn’t mean that’s true. Perhaps, S.C. Johnson wanted to stop making the product. Had sales and profits been strong enough, S.C. Johnson (a privately held, multi-national company that generates billions in annual revenue) I suspect they would have found a way to continue making the product. I suspect strongly that sales had decreased to the point that S.C. Johnson wanted to discontinue the product anyway. By blaming the “evil government” for the demise of a product they weren’t making money on anyway, they could save money and still look like the good guys. I’m not claiming there was no outside government intrusion in the form of regulation but if there was a way to make a profit, I’m sure S.C. Johnson would have found it.
 
I suspect had the product been profitable, S.C. Johnson would have complied with the regulations and passed the increased expense onto the customers in the form of a higher per unit price.

I have an intense hate for government intrusion into private enterprise, but I am very suspicious of S.C. Johnson’s claim that increased regulation was THE sole reason they discontinued the product (one of dozens of brands they own including Windex, Pledge, Ziploc bags, Kiwi wax, Drano, OFF, Raid and many others). I think sales of Johnson Paste Wax were down, the profit margins were slim, and S.C. Johnson was looking to discontinue it.
 
Ben said:
Before the " CRAZE ", I walked into a local grocery store. There was a buggy in an isle with a yellow clearance sign on it. There were cans of JPW for $4 each. I knew what is could be used for and bougt 5 or 6 of them.

Ben
Click to expand...
Same basic when the liquid was discontinued. I bought 3-4 cans, even tho regular price (still only about $8/can, irrc). Also in agreement that I am not aware of many that wax a floor anymore...
 
For my trial batch of Ben's Red I used TREWAX.

My final finish on gun stocks is always Renaissance Wax. I also like Axe Wax for some things that need a satin finish.

Here's what the magic google says about Johnson's.

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A LOT of similar waxes use that same basic formula.
Paraffin wax, Carnauba wax, some microcrystalline wax all suspended in a volatile carrier such as Stoddard solvent or some other organic solvent that evaporates after the wax is applied and buffed out.

And many of those products are still in production, which makes S.C. Johnson’s explanation a bit dubious. I think they just weren’t selling enough and wanted to drop the line.
 
I work for a global company that the cheapest unit off the line runs a little over $145K, and the most expensive is just shy of a half million. We only hold about 9% of the North American market. I've seen 60 to 80 units per shift leave the inspection deck, three shifts. Every single thing you depend on for daily life depends on the type of product I build every day.

In recent company history a decision was made to completely change the product line, build a new plant next door to produce a major component, and phase out the old legacy product line. My department which is being replaced by the new plant is currently down to a single shift struggling to work a full 8 hours per day building units that customers are begging us to continue building. We built five today and went home before lunch.

The new product recieved a rather cold welcome on all levels attached to it's consumption. Too expensive, too heavy, too much technological "improvements", replacement parts too hard to get, all have been the main complaints. There's just enough demand for the old units though from long time customers to keep a puny few of us busy for a little while longer.

The company cited environmental regulations, production costs, and a shift to renewable energy at some point in the future, for the product change.

The old product is predicted to finally wrap up next March or April and my department will be shut down permanently. Despite a niche market still wanting the old product, customers will buy the new ones or they will buy elsewhere. Things change and all good things come to an end eventually.

Johnson's Paste Wax came on the market in 1888 and lasted until 2021. That's a pretty good run considering all the cultural and market shifts it endured. It was invented by Samuel C. Johnson after running a parquet flooring business for two years prior and needing something to better protect his flooring product.

When synthetic flooring came on the market drastically reducing the use of wood flooring and eliminating the need for a wax product to protect it, Johnson's Paste Wax was living on borrowed time with or without governmental interference with VOC regs.

There's simply not enough bullet casters and cabinet makers in the world to keep it afloat.

The bottom line is ALWAYS the bottom line. Adapt and overcome is all we can do. I can live just fine without Johnson's or paying $200 for it, I just wish they'd bring back the 70s and 80s Pizza Hut, juke box and all.
 
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