Dealing with mold release marks

I'm finding that all of my 1 oz bars are getting mold release marks once they are set up. I'm positive they are the artifact of slow/uneven cooling (as per some good tips/advice from a member here), but it seems that no cooling method I try gets rid of the marks.

What is the preferred method of cooling solid bars in the absence of a cooling tunnel/cabinet?

Thanks in advance
Mike

updated by @mike3: 04/10/15 04:40:15PM

What kind of molds do you have? Thin/flexible, or rigid?Alan

Alan, I'm using these molds: http://www.tomric.com/ItemDetail.aspx?cmd=local&item=1955 They are thin and flexible.In retrieving that link, I noticed many of the Tomric stock photos show bars with the same type of release mark I'm getting (its easily seen on bars with smooth and flat areas).Mike

I really believe that good quality polycarbonate molds greatly reduce marks.

I'm in the process of looking for higher quality molds now---are the rigid poly carbonate molds the quality i should be looking into, or is there higher quality?

There are diff qualities. I think chocolatform of Italy is a lower quality one AND LEAVES MARKS. Ones from chocolateword (CW), I know are good and I am sure most the polycarb molds are fine. I love the designs in chocolatform (CF) and so it is a real pity. Even so, slightly warming up the mold beforehand and then after the choc starts setting in the mold, place it in a cooler than the room you are working in area-fridge even.

thanks for the tip. I will look into the molds from chocolateworld. hopefully they will have a 1 oz bar similar to the one i'm using now.in thinking about cooling, do i need to cool more from the bottom than the top to ensure even cooling and a clean release? out of probably 100+ bars, i've had maybe 5 or less come out with no mark (but bars in the next compartment over come out with a mark), but i didn't do anything special to cool those (left them on a wire rack for a few minutes, then into the fridge to complete the set up).-mike

Try using a large fan in a cold dry room. The turbulence helps remove the heat from the areas around the molds. I found this method speeds up the contraction time.-jo

Mike;The marks you are getting are from the mold itself and not your processes. Tomric molds are thermoformed plastic (even their rigid ones), and will leave tiny ridges along the sides of the bars. I know this because in researching my business, I sampled molds from all over the world.In fact, I have two bar molds from Tomric here in my shop, and the bars they make look like crap.When researching your mold purchases in the future, make sure they are injection molded polycarbonate.Pavoni (Italian company), and Chocolat-Chocolate (Quebec) supply great commercial grade polycarbonate molds. In fact I believe Chocolate-Chocolate buys theirs from italy as well.Cheers.Brad ChurchillChoklat

thanks brad...will look into the brands you've suggested. i think the whole time (over on chocolate alchemy) you were helping me work out my tempering problems, the whole second half of my problems were these release marks that i though was bloom. at least now i can temper by hand with my eyes closed

i tried a fan a few nights ago, still got the release marks, but i feel like its a more gentle and even cooling than throwing then in the fridge or freezer. my plans, after getting new molds, is to build a simple cooling cabinet with a few fans so i can standardize the cooling.

It also seems to help if you make sure not to place your fingers, which may be warm, on the bottom of the mold but on a ridge or place that there is no chocolate on the other side. Chocolat- chocolat has molds from many places, including CW and others.

I'm not saying anything here that hasn't been said, but I can also assure you that the molds are the problem.With properly-tempered chocolate molded into relatively warm (i.e. near the chocolate temperature), heavy-duty, injection-molded molds, and cooled properly, you will have none of the marks that are bothering you. With the thin molds that you are using, you'll never get rid of them.

Don't just look at the molds. A thin vacuum formed mold like that is affected faster by room and table surface temperatures. If you have the molds on a cold surface the chocolate can crystalize too quickly, forming unstable crystals. Try making sure the molds and table surface is slightly warm. Also, if placed in cooling that works for polycarbonate, it may be allowing the bar to set up too quickly. Bottom line, make sure you're not cooling the bar or surface too quickly.

In my most recent trial, I warmed the molds on a wire rack on a heating pad prior to filling, and i still got the same result (whether cooled at room temp for 10 mins then into the fridge to fully set, or cooled in front of a fan blowing around around the top and bottom of the mold). I feel like there is a way to get it to work under the conditions i have available, but with the amount of time i've already spent, i think the new mold solution sounds just right (worst case is i end up with a higher quality mold in my collection

Just following up....got my injection molded molds from chocolat chocolat on monday. i molded a few test bars, and was very happy to see the release marks were gone, but i was even happier that over the course of molding we were able to produce the shiniest bars i've ever made.thanks again everyone for the tips, now i can sleep at night