Perfecting the bottom edge of a molded bonbon

[gfron1]

I've been looking really closely at some of the molded pieces I see in magazines and many have flaws or rough spots on the bottom edges. But others don't. I wondering what the difference is.  One thought I have is maybe I'm wiping my excess cocoa butter spray too aggressively. Currently I'm wiping the mold on a towel, but in the past I've scraped. So maybe the towel fibers are wiping away some of the cocoa butter. But when I look at older pics of mine I still see some of the same issue.

 

Any thoughts?

[Kerry Beal]

Are you heating your molds before backing off?

[gfron1]

Very slightly. Explain why that would make a difference please.

[keychris]

Looks like you're getting a tiny amount of chocolate slipping into the gap that's created between the mould and the shell when it contracts. I'm not sure if there is a fix for that.

[Kerry Beal]

Very slightly. Explain why that would make a difference please.

I've just found that that changes the edge and interferes when I'm working with coloured cocoa butter.  I do better if I don't heat.

[gfron1]

Makes sense - you guys are saying the same thing essentially. So I will go back to scraping instead of wiping, and not heat before backing off and see what that does.  Thanks.

[Jim D.]

As you said, in the yellow piece, it looks as if some of the colored cocoa butter you used to decorate got wiped away.  I find that scraping makes a mess, pushing some cocoa butter into the cavities, from which it is very difficult to remove entirely.  I now use paper towels to wipe away excess cocoa butter.  I can fit a small piece of towel over my finger and avoid catching the c.b.  I have also found that doing this while the c.b. is still a bit liquid makes it much easier.

[Chocolot]

Rob, I used to use a terry towel, but the "fingers" wiped away the cb. Now, right after spraying, I place paper towels on the table and turn the mold upside down on the towel and push/wipe the excess onto the towel. It doesn't seem to wipe away any color. I also don't heat before closing.

[Kerry Beal]

I like those blue Scott shop towels.  Like a nice thick paper towel.

[keychris]

heh, I scrape and wipe! Scrape the mould upside down back into the melt tank for the excess cocoa butter, then wipe on a thick layer of paper towels, long enough so I can do a long wipe without wiping off the end of the paper. I always heat before closing, too.