HelperElfMissy 42 Posted March 19, 2010 Share Posted March 19, 2010 Hi guys, I have a problem I need some help with. I ordered a Burton Waxing Iron thru my local MainPeak store, and just got a call today saying "sorry, out of stock" ... umm ok...so there are NO SNWOBOARD WAXING IRONS anywhere in Australia for sale it seems. I want to buy an iron (board is in being waxed now, but I want it for the future) - but it looks like my best bet is to pick one up while I am in Japan. Does anyone know if there is anywhere I can buy one in Hakuba? I will be arriving Wednesday early evening into Hakuba, and leaving Saturday morning. Depending on train times etc I MIGHT have time to duck to Kanda Ski area before hitting the airport, but I highly doubt it. What I really need is somewhere to buy one in Hakuba (or someone to get one in for me over the next couple of days so I can buy it when I get there). Any suggestions? Link to post Share on other sites
TJ OZ 0 Posted March 19, 2010 Share Posted March 19, 2010 I know of a couple of places you can pick one up. The ski shop next to Hakuba Station has the best stuff for waxing and tuning. The other option is to buy a cheap normal iron with the flat non stick surface. I used one of those for many years. Link to post Share on other sites
HelperElfMissy 42 Posted March 19, 2010 Author Share Posted March 19, 2010 Thanks TJ! So...I should be able to find this shop pretty easily and they SHOULD have an iron in stock? I have toyed with the idea of using a regular iron, but I am worried about the fluctuations in temperature and the damage it cold potentially do, particularly to the sintered bases. I reckon it is about time I bit the bullet and bought one! Link to post Share on other sites
wattiewatson 0 Posted March 20, 2010 Share Posted March 20, 2010 Any iron will do. It doesnt need to be non-stick or have a flat bottom. Ive found plenty of irons down at the local discount store Link to post Share on other sites
Jynxx 4 Posted March 20, 2010 Share Posted March 20, 2010 I used to do it with old cloths irons. That was the norm. Now I use Toko and I like it better. Iron temp approx. 130 degrees C Mamabear, Japan & USA approx 100 V EU & Australia approx 230 V What are you doing buying a iron in Japan? Do you have a Voltage converter back home? Link to post Share on other sites
quattro 1 Posted March 20, 2010 Share Posted March 20, 2010 I would steer clear of normal irons with Teflon non stick bases. The ski edges has a way of peeling this stuff up and winding up in your wax. Not good. Normal irons with out the non stick stuff is fine. Link to post Share on other sites
quattro 1 Posted March 20, 2010 Share Posted March 20, 2010 If you have time and don't mind mail order. Tognar has the best stuff for tuning hands down. Link to post Share on other sites
HelperElfMissy 42 Posted March 20, 2010 Author Share Posted March 20, 2010 I do have the time. Board is being waxed now, and I wont be riding until June/July after next week - although I would like to give them a decent storage wax. I didn't realize about the voltage Jynxx... I thought a simple power adapter would be all that was needed. I am not keen on using a regular iron, as I am not experienced enough to deal with the wild temperature fluctuations of a regular iron and potential damage to the base. Maybe it is the voltage issue that is the reason it is hard to get an iron in Aus? If I order thru Tognar - that is US right? Well I will still have voltage issues... arrgghhhh!!! Wah - I just wanna buy a simple waxing iron... It should be relatively simple, shouldn't it? Link to post Share on other sites
Jynxx 4 Posted March 20, 2010 Share Posted March 20, 2010 Voltage is an issue and when my parents went to Australia they took a heavy expensive voltage step down transformer. You probably don't want to do that but have a look in hobby shops if you can get one cheap. I had a look in Amazon.de for you but all sold out. The one I have is a 800 Watt and it does the job. None at Amazon.co.uk I'm going shopping tomorrow in Munich so I'll have a look if there are any I'll let you know. Link to post Share on other sites
quattro 1 Posted March 20, 2010 Share Posted March 20, 2010 MB They have irons that are 230volt listed. That should work in Aus. Link to post Share on other sites
s3phis 0 Posted March 21, 2010 Share Posted March 21, 2010 Personally, I don't think it's worth getting an iron if you're considering using a step-down transformer back at home. If you're using something with 800-1200w @ 110v, you end up getting a pretty heavy and pricey transformer. The one I have at home is pretty huge and is definitely not something you want to move around too much... but then again I've got it powering my 110v sockets in my house. I have a soft spot for Toko irons but I'm not particularly bothered by using a normal clothing iron with wax paper. However, you can buy waxing irons for about JPY 3,000~5,000 for the cheaper ones. Link to post Share on other sites
HelperElfMissy 42 Posted March 21, 2010 Author Share Posted March 21, 2010 Thanks for the help guys. Given that I am not in a rush for one (it has been 3 years after all!), and the voltage issues, AND Quattro was spot on - Tognar have an Aus/NZ/AU toko iron available ...... I think I will go that way. May as well get me some vices and decent waxes while I am at it. Link to post Share on other sites
scouser 4 Posted March 22, 2010 Share Posted March 22, 2010 Originally Posted By: Mamabear May as well get me some vices... Liker smoking and drinking...? Link to post Share on other sites
HelperElfMissy 42 Posted March 22, 2010 Author Share Posted March 22, 2010 ROFL! Already done the 17yr addiction to smoking thing ... not too keen to go there again. I like a drink every now and again...I reckon I can count that as a vice I already own. nahh... I was thinking more along the lines of a snowboard vice for the workbench Link to post Share on other sites
Jynxx 4 Posted March 22, 2010 Share Posted March 22, 2010 I use a ladder and the snowboards sit very well on it. Get yourself a metal and a plastic scraper, WIDE for snowboards Mamabear. And a very fine metal file, soap stone or diamond file to finish off the edges. Link to post Share on other sites
deanrobi 2 Posted March 22, 2010 Share Posted March 22, 2010 Mamabear, have a look on Ebay. you can find the whole kit for a very reasonable price and that will save lugging it back home from Japan Link to post Share on other sites
HelperElfMissy 42 Posted March 22, 2010 Author Share Posted March 22, 2010 This will give you a laff. I got a call from Main Peak Cottesloe today to let me know that the Burton Snowboard Iron that I ordered was unavailable (I already knew that coz she left me a message on Friday, but I felt no need to call her back - no point - they couldn't source the product - end of discussion). ...however.... she was able to order me in a different brand seeing as there are and will be no waxing irons available in Australia this year. A Korjo Travel Iron: She was a little offended when I politely said "ummm...no...thanks but a Korjo Travel Iron is not a suitable replacement option, I will order a snowboard iron online. Thanks anyway." Honestly. I was gobsmacked. It is pretty sad that a store that , while also doing hiking and paddlesports, is a ski and snowboard store can not source something like this. Surely they are not trying that hard. Link to post Share on other sites
wattiewatson 0 Posted March 23, 2010 Share Posted March 23, 2010 Any iron will do. A cast iron wiould probably work best! The Korjo would work just dont put any water in ther steamer part. Also expensive waxes wont make any difference to snowboarders. If youre a cross contry skiier it make a differnece but any wax will do if your riding the pow! Link to post Share on other sites
Jynxx 4 Posted March 23, 2010 Share Posted March 23, 2010 Expensive waxes - they are expensive aren't they ! I don't know about the any wax will do bit but I take it as any manufacturer's all temp wax. I find hi-tek surface like the zeolite probably don't need waxing and I just base wax so the all-season tube wax goes on easier. It slides better when the base wax is really scraped down and on piste the paste wax applied every few hours (wipe excess water off) and buffed with a cloth. I think it's just making a difference now because it fills the scratches which don't get fixed. The Rome vinyl really soaks up the wax and makes a big difference. It goes faster and I reckon it is one of the faster boards. This one gets a lot of gash to p-tex. SantaCruz Fusion TT has dimples. Not sure how to treat them. Link to post Share on other sites
blu 3 Posted March 23, 2010 Share Posted March 23, 2010 The effort is not so much in the iron but in the scrapping and finishing. It's nice to have a wax iron, but not essential. You can regulate the heat OK with a cheap iron - by watching how easy is the wax spreading, and also watching for smoke. For O/S trips I just use the Toko rub on synthetic stuff. Link to post Share on other sites
HelperElfMissy 42 Posted March 23, 2010 Author Share Posted March 23, 2010 Wattie...I certainly notice a massive difference when my board is well maintained and recently waxed. Riding POW is a luxury, and often our boards are put through tough icy conditions. I wouldn't have a clue if a flouro wax would make any difference to my boards ride or not, as we have only ever had hydrocarbons on them - and the choices of wax in Perth are pretty limited...so it is not like I am looking to buy race waxes - just trial something a bit better than what is on offer in snow-lacking Perth. But it is not only about the ride, either...it is about maintaining expensive equipment. With our own iron and big supply of hydrocarbon wax I can thickly wax base and edges to protect them in storage as well. Bit like sticking baby powder in my swimming cap... As for the iron...I know you can use a regular iron, but everything I read from the experts says it is a big risk due to the fact that clothing irons do not hold constant temperature well, they heat up well past the set temp and then cool well past it, cyclically. If I am buying an iron to specifically use on waxing snowboards I would think that it would make sense to buy one specifically designed for the purpose, even if it did turn out to be slightly more complex and convoluted than I originally thought. If I had a spare iron laying around I might give it a go...but I don't. My clothing iron looks like this: Link to post Share on other sites
quattro 1 Posted March 23, 2010 Share Posted March 23, 2010 MB A good all purpose wax like Dominator ZOOM is fine. When you start looking at race waxes they are usually temperature specific. All purpose waxes work at a wide variety of temperatures and relatively cheap especially when you buy in bulk 500g. Link to post Share on other sites
quattro 1 Posted March 23, 2010 Share Posted March 23, 2010 Originally Posted By: wattiewatson Any iron will do. A cast iron wiould probably work best! The Korjo would work just dont put any water in ther steamer part. Also expensive waxes wont make any difference to snowboarders. If youre a cross contry skiier it make a differnece but any wax will do if your riding the pow! Regarding Cross country waxes. There usally two types of wax used. Glide wax which goes on the tips and tails. This is the same wax that is used on alpine skis and snowboards. The other wax that is used is called kick wax and this goes in the camber area of the ski. This is what provide traction when going uphill. This can be used on telemark skis for low angle assents where skins may be a bit much. Not sure about skate skis Link to post Share on other sites
Jynxx 4 Posted March 23, 2010 Share Posted March 23, 2010 Reminds me of my days when I put on high temperature wax first for the bottom section and low temp wax for the top section on my downhill runs trying to imitate the pro waxman. Irons are handy but not compulsory. I used hair driers to warm the surface and brushed on melted wax. Melted in a tin can over camping stove, Link to post Share on other sites
Jynxx 4 Posted March 23, 2010 Share Posted March 23, 2010 I better warn this. Most things have a combustion point temperature. Don't do this if you don't have a keen sense and prepared to put out fire- ie: blankets and extinguishers. And well vented area and nothing that catches fire around. Link to post Share on other sites
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