 Poster: A snowHead
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So far i have been using a standard steam iron (with no water in of course) when i wax my skis (Someone gave me the thing before i went to uni, and for some reason it spent 3 years sat in a box!)
Anyway, when i started waxing the skis this week they started to fill the room with smoke So i guess its finally time to replace it with a propper waxing iron.
So far i have tryed looking for one in the ski shop in cardiff, along with EB in milton keens yesterday and both shops havent stocked any irons.
Where can i get one???
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Have a word with Spyderjon, he's doing ski tuning now so should have a source or 2, there's a link in his sig to get in touch with him.
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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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S&R sell them online (and I'd guess that EB would as well). If not try Ski Bartlett who have two or three different models to choose from.
Why did your 'normal' iron start to smoke? Was it just too hot (try turning it down?), or is there a fault with it?
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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rob@rar, he did say steam iron so I'm guessing it's got holes in the bottom and they've got bunged up with wax.
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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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FenlandSkier, why would that smoke? If they iron wasn't too hot...? I used to use an old (water-less) steam iron and I can't remember anymore smoke than I get with my wax iron now.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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Probably not so much the wax but other bits in it getting pushed up through the soleplate and getting a lot closer to the heating element than they normally would, of course I could be totally wrong but I have seen an iron go that way in similar fashion.
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see if your local comet/currys etc still has any rowenta non steam iron for < £10
Massive base plate and keeps a pretty good temperature. I would say you have to go to the higher level Swix/toko irons before you get an improvement form that.
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Car boot sales are a wonderful source of old non-steam irons. of course they don't all work, but at 50p or £1 each that's not the end of the world.
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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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i'm withy the get a cheap one with argos school, non steam of course..... problem with specialist wax irons is they are too expensive 
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Cheap dual voltage travel irons cost less than a tenner and do the job fine provided you don't get them too hot & you can take them with you for mid trip waxing.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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fatbob, that's what we've got, and it works really well. We take it with us to re-wax during the holiday.
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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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the_fatadder, as has already been mentioned I sell tuning gear but I'll try to give an unbiased opinion.
This is the most common question I’m asked re base tuning. Many tuners use a flat base travel iron (without the holes!) without any problems, it always depends how lucky you get. Unfortunately there are no guarantees before you buy so you could find an iron that works well or one that doesn't.
In general, clothes irons are not very controllable with their thermostats having very wide ranging tolerances (+/- 50C) & thin bases which get hot spots, either of which can overheat the wax (smoke!) & can lead to base burn etc.
A specifically designed wax iron has a far narrower tolerance thermostat (+/- 15C) & a ski width rectangular base that’s a lot thicker than a conventional iron, enabling it to hold a constant & equal temperature across its width. It's operating range is also wider enabling you to go from very soft base prep wax to mega cold temp/rock hard wax in total control.
I know a number of tuners who said they were happy waxing with a clothes iron & then once they upgraded to a specialist iron realised that a proper waxing iron was far superior.
Overall a specialist wax iron is just way easier & safer to use so it’s up to you to balance the cost/risk/ease equation for yourself.
If you decide to go for specialist iron then my offering starts with the Kunzmann 2200 at £40 which is far heavier/more controllable than the entry level Swix/Toko offerings at a higher price.
CEM, it's a bit like comparing Superfeet insoles to custom ones - they might do the job or they might not  .
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spyderjon,
i am not arguing the point against an expensive ski wax iron, just that for someone who occasionally tunes their skis the expense of the official one is probably a luxury. with a bit of care, [keeping the heat down] there is no problem with a GOOD flat iron, i would not use a travel iron as they do not tend hold their heat evenly at least i have rarely found one that does.
it all comes down to the amount of use and the buget available
BTW Superfeet make both off the peg insoles and custom ones
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You know it makes sense.
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| CEM wrote: |
| BTW Superfeet make both off the peg insoles and custom ones |
I noticed that when I was looking on their website last night. I figure that if they make a big difference in my ski boots then I ought to get a pair for my work boots as well, all I've got in them at the moment is a pair of blue sorbothane jobbies.
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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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Thanks for the advice, pm sent.
As Im skiing on plastic every week, they are getting waxed very oftern. Hence thinking it will be best to buy the propper kit.
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Poster: A snowHead
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the_fatadder,
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As Im skiing on plastic every week, they are getting waxed very oftern. Hence thinking it will be best to buy the propper kit.
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If you are using very cold wax (CH-4, Polar-X) it's worth the extra dosh to have the proper iron. My old iron (used for 15 years - and fine on warmer wax) just would not get and stay hot enough.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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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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I got the cheapest clothes iron (no holes) in the shop. about 12Euro. Does the job. While I'm sure a professional iron would be better, this setup is far better than no waxing and costs next to nothing.
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