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post holiday tune up

 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
Got back from 6 days skiing so I need to do a tune up. I used an alu-oxide stone to keep things more or less intact during the 6 days but wondering what to do specifically about:

1/ Side edge burrs
Essentially, these look like little scratches across the surface of the metal. Just polish these out?

2/ Base edge burrs
Again, scratches across the surface of the metal. I suspect I can polish these out using an alu-oxide stone. Is this the way to tidy them up or do you just leave them on the base edge and only take off hanging burrs?

3/ Edge nicks (dents in the metal)
I don;t have any bad ones but there is the occasional dent in the metal where I have hit some small stones/rocks. It doesn't seem like these can be polished out as they are a surface structure change in the metal so what's best to do?

4/ Mild base burn
I'll try and take a pic of this but there is some very very mild greying of the base under foot and nearer the edges. I waxed before I went skiing and then used Zardoz every day after 3 dayas skiing so I'm surprised if this is base burn but unsure. The snow conditions were fairly cold (-3 to -7 degrees air temp) and dry powder with occasional icy patches on some days.

5/ Waxing
I'm just gonna hot scrape a few times until clean then hot wax them.
Hot wax them 2 or 3 times and good to go for the next session ?

6/ Binding care
I have some silicone spray made by the WD40 company which can be used to grease things up like skates, hinges, etc. Okay to just spray some of this on the screws and moving parts of the binding? There is still a little bit of grease left on parts of the binding from the factory but I've peobably rubbed most of it off with my boots and I don't really want other areas like the DIN screws, etc. to rust.
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 Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
After your final wax, do NOT scrape it off the edges (or scrape the base) - leave a good coating on, as it will protect them.
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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?
I forgot to mention that! I'll definitely do tat as I hear it protects the edges from rust and then you can just scrape it off before the next time you ski.
Any thoughts on the other problems/
Are you supposed to polish the base edge at all or do you only remove hanging burrs?
What about the base burn?
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 You need to Login to know who's really who.
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GordonFreeman, I reckon that the grey base areas are only a little dry. Mine always go like that in exactly the same places after a few days without a wax.

I'd just use a medium and then fine diamond file in a guide to polish your edges and resharpen them. Any proper little dings can be smoothed with your stone. Very small imperfections are probably not worth filing and removing too much metal for IMHO.


Last edited by You need to Login to know who's really who. on Mon 12-02-07 18:50; edited 1 time in total
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 Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
GordonFreeman,
1/ Base edge burrs
Again, scratches across the surface of the metal. I suspect I can polish these out using an alu-oxide stone. Is this the way to tidy them up or do you just leave them on the base edge and only take off hanging burrs?
Do the base edge before the side edges. Just tidy up with alu-oxide removing the bare minimum (see no.2)

2/ Side edge burrs
Essentially, these look like little scratches across the surface of the metal. Just polish these out?
Alu-oxide stone to remove case hardened dings. Sharpen with fine file (if necessary) & sharpen/polish with diamond file(s). Remove hanging burr with gummy stone. If the base edge is particularly bad skip the gummy stone stage & use a 600grit diamond file (nothing heavier) in a base edge guide to give them a light polish which'll also remove the hanging burr.

3/ Edge nicks (dents in the metal)
I don;t have any bad ones but there is the occasional dent in the metal where I have hit some small stones/rocks. It doesn't seem like these can be polished out as they are a surface structure change in the metal so what's best to do?
There's nothing you can do

4/ Mild base burn
I'll try and take a pic of this but there is some very very mild greying of the base under foot and nearer the edges. I waxed before I went skiing and then used Zardoz every day after 3 dayas skiing so I'm surprised if this is base burn but unsure. The snow conditions were fairly cold (-3 to -7 degrees air temp) and dry powder with occasional icy patches on some days.
Give the bases a good brash brushing before no5

5/ Waxing
I'm just gonna hot scrape a few times until clean then hot wax them. Hot wax them 2 or 3 times and good to go for the next session ?
Yes, but if you had good snow then reconsider your wax selection as it should have lasted more than 3 days. If you were skiing on old & manmade snow then it can be pretty aggressive but that amount of wear (greying) sounds a bit excessive so I'd still look at your wax selection

6/ Binding care
I have some silicone spray made by the WD40 company which can be used to grease things up like skates, hinges, etc. Okay to just spray some of this on the screws and moving parts of the binding? There is still a little bit of grease left on parts of the binding from the factory but I've peobably rubbed most of it off with my boots and I don't really want other areas like the DIN screws, etc. to rust.
The only lube you should use on bindings is pucka binding spray
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You'll need to Register first of course.
I only have a nylon brush at the moment. I was thinking of getting a brass brush to use for cleaning the bases as well - what do you think?
I think the nylon brush will do the job enough but a brass brush may open up the structure a bit better...

I had red medium temp wax. I should have probbaly gone for a cold temp universal but I'm pretty sure the red stuff would have covered the temp conditionms in Austria. It was old snow though and there was a lot of manmade stuff about to fill in the gaps on the lower pistes. Higher up was all powdery type snow with the very occasional bit of ice.
I hope they're not damaged. If they're dry then fine, I'll just wax them up.

The lube I have is a silicone spray lubricant (protects electrical parts, golf equipment, boots, skates, gardening equipment, sedwing machines, and more). The other choice was a white lithium grease but I didn't think that was suitable. Out of interest, what's different about the pucka spray ? I realise that oily stuff should be kept away from the bases but this stuff dries pretty fast and doesn't leave a residue.
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 Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
GordonFreeman,
- Don't worry, you're skis are fine.
- A nylon brush is not really agressive enough for initial base brushing (as it's really a polishing brush). Use fiberpads to knock down the fuzz after brushing.
- Use a decent universal wax. IMO Dominator Zoom is the best but the Holmenkol is very good too. Pucka base prep wax also aids durability & performance.
- I dunno what's in the Snoli binding lube that I sell as it's not on the can. Biggest difference I'm told is operating temperature. It's approved by all the binding manufacturers so you know it's not going to affect DIN settings & forward release pressures etc. A can which will last for ages so in the overall scheme of things it's not expensive. It's better to leave the bindings 'dry' than use the incorrect lube.
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 After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
After all it is free Go on u know u want to!
spyderjon, The actual lube that was on it originally was of a vaseline consistency (no funny jokes here peopel! snowHead )
Is that what the spray is like you're talking about or is it more of a greasy substance?
Actually, come to think of it wouldn't vaseline do the job ?! There must be some similar mechanical car grease?

BTW, have you got your website up and running yet?
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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.
GordonFreeman, It's an actual spray rather than a grease. Website is part up & running but I've been so busy I just haven't got round to getting it sorted, especially the online shopping bit. Hopefully I'll get it finished in time for the end of the season rolling eyes
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 Ski the Net with snowHeads
Ski the Net with snowHeads
I have any number of "dry" and "wet" lubes for mountain biking. Will these be appropriate for binding mechanisms? Most seem to be water dispersants which dry leaving a film of PTFE.
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 snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
sproggski, they soundlike they could be similar, hubby has a winter lube he uses on his bike too, which is more of a 'vaseline' cdonsistency. They're silicone based I think.
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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.
Helen Beaumont, thanks. Yes, there's a drippy bottle-based winter lube but that's mainly for chains. I fgure something that leaves a dry film and does not attract dust is whats needed not to foul up the mechanism.

My skis are new, so I hope not to need to do to much but these little nuggets in the forums do get you thinking!

How's weather in Sairshay? I had to laugh at another post today saying 116cm at ADH. I'm off there next week so, being Mr Gullible, got all excited.

Still, a foot of fresh since the weekend can do no harm, even if its all looking a bit warm and moist for the next week or two. Confused
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 So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
going back to this quickly...
a ding is like a scratch on the metal, yes?
I'm finding this much harder to polish freehand on the base edge than the side. The side I can use my edge tool and polish it shiny and smooth.
Any thoughts?

Doing this though still means they're sharp enough to remove the back of my nail when scraped across them and the entire edge is still smooth not serrated so must be doing something correctly Smile
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 You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
GordonFreeman wrote:
.....I'm finding this much harder to polish freehand on the base edge than the side....

Get a base edge guide wink
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 Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Yeah, might do! Probably not worth the money for me though.
Just wondering whether the base edge needs to be as smoothly polished or not? In general, most people just say worry about the side edge don't they?

One other thing. When running an alu-oxide stone along the base edge, it often overlaps onto the actual base of the ski. Does this damage the base at all ?
snow report
 Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
GordonFreeman,

Quote:
One other thing. When running an alu-oxide stone along the base edge, it often overlaps onto the actual base of the ski. Does this damage the base at all ?

Only if you've got a 90° base bevel. Otherwise it shouldn't touch the base at all unless the base is too high in which case it needs a grind.
snow conditions
 Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Well, the base bevel is 0.5 degrees or possibly 1.
The problem is that doing this by hand leaves some room for error and running along the length of the ski almost always means you touch the base ?
snow report
 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?
GordonFreeman, Wrap some tape around one end of your stone.
You can even make an accurate hone, using the Arc Tangent of the base angle and length of stone between cutting zone and tape.

tape depth = file length / ATan(0.5)

which for instance is 53mm for 2mm of tape winding (don't mean to insult your maths).
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GordonFreeman wrote:
Yeah, might do! Probably not worth the money for me though.


visionset wrote:
Wrap some tape around one end of your stone. You can even make an accurate hone, using the Arc Tangent of the base angle and length of stone between cutting zone and tape....


A base edge guide is only £5 & gives a repeatable angle every time rolling eyes
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 Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
spyderjon wrote:
GordonFreeman wrote:
Yeah, might do! Probably not worth the money for me though.


visionset wrote:
Wrap some tape around one end of your stone. You can even make an accurate hone, using the Arc Tangent of the base angle and length of stone between cutting zone and tape....


A base edge guide is only £5 & gives a repeatable angle every time rolling eyes


Stop saying that and sell me one of the damn things!!!! ps. 0.7 Laughing
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