 Poster: A snowHead
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OK, i've decided to try waxing my new skis# (total newbie)....
got some 'data wax' structure (scotch brite like) pads, some 'rub-on or iron' wax and dug out my old travel iron (was always rubbish)
using "data wax" fluro yellow and red.
I've just ironed on my first coating of 'yellow' (magma = warm snow) onto the skis after giving the base a quick wipe with the rougher pad to give some fine structure. (ie put tiny scratches on the base)
my iron was 90 something deg C according to my temp probe ( but I'm not sure how accurate that is) certainly no smoke !
I kept the iron moving and the wax has melted well. I think my 1st coat is very thick though ! but I don't want to risk putting the iron directly on the p-tex.
The impression I get from reading various sites is, new bases (new skis!) need lots of wax to get them going, often soft wax is good to start. so that's what i've done, I plan to put a coat of red wax on afterwards.
often people say you should do multiple cycles with new skis, ie (hot-wax, let cool, scrape, brush) -repeat and repeat...
NOW, i read that hot boxing allows more absorption into the base that a hot-iron. this is a long time at low temp. ( the whole ski will be at say 60 deg C. for hours) and this can be equivalent to many hot-wax iron cycles.
SO WHY NOT repeatedly cycle over the same wax with your iron, just heating it enough to re-melt fully and heat the ski base up a bit (but not too much) ? won't this be a little bit more like hot-boxing ??? *
OR am I actually using such a low heat that I'm not really heating the bases enough to let the p-tex absorb the molten wax ?
ie why do the scrape & brush if you're doing many cycles ?
I can see why you want to scrape and brush at the end, and why you need to before putting a different wax on-top.
any and all constructive advice greatfully recieved !
Gareth.
* also what about applying a safe is 60-70 degree heat cycle to an unscraped but wax-covered bass with say a hairdryer ? this would avoid possible hot spots that you might get with an iron and be a little bit like a hot box ? the temps would be too low to damage the ski, but should melt the wax a bit ? or at least soften it.
* another wacky idea re 'not-hot-box-ing'... what about suspending the ski above a radiator ? it would gently heat the ski up a bit and you could leave it for a reasonable time for the wax to soak in..... base might not get warm enought though as the bindings will space the ski a fair distance above the rad. (obviously make sure you don't damage the bindings...)
# couldn't be arsed driving for 20-30 mins to nearest ski shop got get service, maybe 2hours of my time and petrol that I could use DIYing it.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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My skis get waxed once every 10 days or so. If they're particularly filthy, I clean the bases with wax solvent and allow to dry. Then I melt the wax against the iron (that's an 'any old iron', on its lowest heat setting), dripping it onto the bases so there's a line of drops running end to end and thoroughly, repeatedly iron it in, not worrying too much about excess heat especially underfoot where there's a lot of mass to warm up. Repeat for the other ski, leave them to cool and then use a plastic scraper to level off and collect the scrapings for reuse next time. I then run a metal textured brush from end to end to make the bases look pretty as much as anything else.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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well, i've given them a good 1st going over with soft yellow (sunfire warm snow) wax, and scraped & polished with the scrubby-pads and waxed them again with the softer yellow wax. I'll scrape 'n' polish again tomorrow then 1 final go with the red (magma medium cold-ish snow) wax. I didn't actually use a huge amount of wax, maybe 10g per ski per go, which is possibly a bit over the top but better than too little.
Seems to be going ok apart from not having a proper wax scraper thingy. doh !
(the bit of acrylic I hoped would be ok, actually bends very slightly so I'm having to be careful not to scrape any dents..... might see if there are any for sale in town tomorrow, but I doubt there's anywhere that stock them)
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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fatgaz, Just do with what you are happy with. Any waxing is better than no waxing, but the law of diminishing returns definitely applies - as does the psycological effect. Just use good universal wax and ensure you give it a good scraping off and a good brushing to reduce the suction effect between ski and snow which can lead to a grinding halt.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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If the skis are dirty the molten wax gets the dirt out. Then you scrape off the dirty wax and discard it (do NOT reuse the scrapings!). New skis are clean so you can iron in the wax several times over without scraping.
a proper ski wax iron is much cheaper than a pair of skis. I know a number of friends who went the cheatskate route of using an old clothes iron and ruined the bsses of their skis.....
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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10g of wax per ski is definitely a lot......
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I waxed and scraped my new skis a number of times, I think it was only after five that the wax was coming off clean!
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How did the anecdotal cheapskates ruin their ski bases with their old clothes irons ? Were they using 110V irons on the 240V mains or did they just fell asleep while they were ironing ...
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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well, part of the reason I'm giving it a go is that when i asked peeps in work who I knew ski-ed or boarded, they all said they just used an old clothes iron. none have knackered their kit. this included one couple who have lots of kit, both work OK jobs and could easily afford the 40 quid for a proper ski iron.
having said this, I'll probably go and knacker my ski's now!
i think i hear zebedee... time to turn off the comp. (just caught up to date with watching the bridge 2 on tv.)
g.
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I think they were also cheapskate with the amount of wax they used. Minimising the amount of wax means the iron is in much closer contact with the ski. With a hard wax you also have to have a hotter iron, which increases the risk.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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or the old ski racer trick of "accedently" leaving your skis in a hotel sauna room overnight 
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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fatgaz,
The wax you use should tell you at what temperature to iron. If your old iron is only getting to 90deg that might not enough - the flip side is that you are less likely to cause any damage - but the base does need to be warm enough to absorb the wax.
New skis may look clean but there are lots of very tiny shavings if you like that are in the structure. The best thing to do is wax and scrape until the wax comes off clean - and ONLY scrape from tip to tail - this leaves the microscopic fibres with you and not against you. As someone else has said don't use the scrapings again you'll just be putting the dirt back in.
On your final wax with your red one, scrape until next to nothing comes off, then brush - again only tip to tail. Happy Skiing 
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| mozwold wrote: |
| As someone else has said don't use the scrapings again you'll just be putting the dirt back in. |
This seems like a daft premise to me but funnily enough it does boost the sale of more very expensive wax.  Need evidential not anecdotal citations please (not from wax vendors) or this remains just hearsay.
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You know it makes sense.
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moffatross,
Only meant if the scrapings were still dirty - it was what Spyderjon told me
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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Poster: A snowHead
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Worth having a butchers at these threads. If nothing else so you can see the little controversies that can rear up regarding edging and waxing ski's.
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Have you ever visited a cross country forum - they throw up controversies. These aren't even mild disagreements
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