tuning

[mattlucas 0]

Nobody has answered my question

 

What is going to happen if I don't wax my skis and the base dries out

Lets say over the summer

 

I do like wax in the winter. Spring and summer I'd rather go without though for touring reasons.

[Ezorisu 0]

Don't think anything catastrophic happens... Supposedly the P-Tex can "oxidize" (how plastic oxidizes is a little beyond me), but it isn't anything a good cleaning and hot-wax at the beginning of winter can't fix. Guessing the dried-out P-Tex might get a little fuzzy, but again, that is a curable condition (metal scraper).

[sock_monkey 0]

the dried out p-tex doesn't absorb wax the same way and the performance degrades. you'll need a base grind to get rid of the dried out material and get them back up to their former selves (scraping helps but really only gets rid of the fuzz). waxing at the end of the season before you store them saves you that trouble.

 

that said, if you plan on using the skis for a long time then it's worth keeping them in good condition. if you'll get rid of em after a few seasons and don't care too much about speed and performance (as you've expressed) then yeah they'll still get you down the mountain.

 

personally i think spring is the time waxing is most important. the mix of snow types and temperature means a minefield of fast and slow conditions that make for an unpleasant ride. a good wax helps to minimize the differences and lets you enjoy even the low angle stuff at no cost to enjoying the steeps. relying on the skis to slow you down is wrongheaded in my opinion. if i'm going too fast then i should be working on my technique and fitness not detuning my skis...

[jgraves 0]

Don't think anybody mentioned cork to optimize your wax job. Elbowgrease.

[sock_monkey 0]

that's cause we use irons. hydroelectric/nuclear/coal burning grease.

[quattro 1]

You probably don't need to cork your skis after waxing unless your using a fluoro wax which is usally used for racing.

 

It is more important to brush your bases after you scrape.

Brass for cold waxes

nylon for warmer waxes

horsehair to finish (optional)

[jgraves 0]

 Quote:

Originally posted by sock_monkey:
that's cause we use irons. hydroelectric/nuclear/coal burning grease.

Glad you said it and not me.

[SerreChe 2]

I am kind of in Toque's camp here. I am not racing and I have never bothered too much about tuning (or just get the edges filed when they're rusty).

 

That's until this year. I decided to give it a go and I got my board tuned.

 

Then they asked me to scrape the base with a plastic scraper the first day before I hit the slopes. Why is that?

 

How much scraping am I supposed to do? Is some stuff supposed to peel off as I scrape? Am I supposed to brush after that?

 

A hassle for a dubious performance enhancement. I will see if it really makes a difference first time out.

 

I have been wanting to try. A friend of mine has the same board and told me that after tuning it was as if the board was on wheel barrels...

[quattro 1]

Without getting into the science behind it. Basically you only need a fine layer of wax.

 

Start off with a plastic scraper and scrape off all excess wax. You should see the wax come off in thin layers. Look at your base you should not see any gobs or excess wax. the next step is to brush the base. I then use one of those green scrub pads to help pick up the dust.

 

As far as a wax goes use a all temp hydro carbon wax

[SerreChe 2]

Cheers for the info quattro.

I will give it a go.

 

So you basically scrape off the excess wax from the tuning and then once smooth, brushed and all, you add your own wax.

 

Still a bit worried I scrape off too much (I will try to judge based on your comment above), will try to be gentle.

[damian 0]

Wax is great for maintaining a consistent smooth glide. It makes snowboarding more fun and much safer as you don't need to bomb the bastard out of icy steeps just to make it over the approaching flats as a well waxed board just keeps on sliding rather than decelerating the moment you lose some slope. To me, wax is about effortless glide, speed is secondary.

 

But having good edges on a snowboard is very important, makes a hue difference. Although once you have scraped a few rocks you wont get a 90 degree edge back very easily. But that I localised damage, seldom the length of an entire edge.

 

Adding texture to the wax is great for about half a run, then its gone. If the wax is soft enough to texture with a bristle brush then its soft enough to be removed entirely from your base by ice and especially by riding over 2000m of spring corn. Even after the textured wax has been stripped from the base, the wax remains in the pores of they p-tex and that makes a big difference.

 

I tune my boards before nearly every outing. If I am going to walk up something for up to5 hours I want the ride down to be worth it. And unless you are in powder, a tuned ride makes a big difference.

[quattro 1]

SC

 

Sorry if I did not explain myself very well.

 

step 1. Hot Wax

Step 2. Allow the wax to cool

Step 3. Scrape

Step 4. Brush

 

I usually can do the whole family's ski in about an hour.

 

 

Post more latter

going to make some turns

[muikabochi 208]

Turns? Where?!

[AK 77 0]

 Quote:

Originally posted by SerreChe:
Cheers for the info quattro.
I will give it a go.

So you basically scrape off the excess wax from the tuning and then once smooth, brushed and all, you add your own wax.

Still a bit worried I scrape off too much (I will try to judge based on your comment above), will try to be gentle.

No!
You can't scrape too much!
Scrape hard until nothing more comes off - the wax is supposed to be IN the ptex, not ON it.

[SerreChe 2]

Thanks Quattro, Ak & EC.

The whole family's in one hour. Not sure how many kids you got (4 maybe?)but sounds pretty efficient to me.

Turns? yeah wonder where as well.

[quattro 1]

Was up at Sapporo kokusai. It's not to bad for early season. They have about a meter base up top. It was snowing hard all day. Had several inches powder packed powder. a little wet but not too bad all in all.

 

Usually do about five pairs in an hour. Take my time do all the hot waxing first. By the time i"m done waxing the last pair the first is ready for scraping.

The hour does not include edges or base repair.

 

Check out Tongar for tips for waxing and repair. They also have about the best site for tuning supplies. They also ship international

[damian 0]

No!

You can't scrape too much!

Scrape hard until nothing more comes off - the wax is supposed to be IN the ptex, not ON it. [/quopte]

 

Really? Well, what are you texturing if you scrape all the wax off? It can't be both.

[quattro 1]

Spud

 

Correct scrape all the wax off. Then brush. The brush removes what the scraper doesn't.

 

I think you may be getting texture and structure confused. Structure is thin lines that are placed into the ptex. The depth and width varry with snow conditions. However for most of structure is not need.

[damian 0]

oops, I was supposed to be saying structure, not texture.

 

I was confused about the p-tex vs wax structure: I thought you left a micro thin film of wax and it is into that which the structure is brushed, thanks to the useless instructions that came with some tuning gear I once bought. They always say something like "...structuring is important! When your finished don't forget to give it a good structure with a brush then go

out and shred!" or some such uninformative shit that doesn't actually tell you anything but uses a lot of buzz words..

 

I used to scrape the wax off my base until no more came off. Then, on this forum, I was told no, don't scrape too much as you will damage the base. So I left a film of wax so thin that I could only just see a finger nail scratch in it, almost non left at all. And then using my plastic brush I put a criss-cross pattern into it.

 

Before every waxing I used my brass brush length-wise down the base to remove gunk from the p-tex pores and to open then up to receive the wax. So by doing that I was actually structuring before I waxed. The pattern in the film of wax was just a waste of time.

 

Even this doesn't precisely tell you what a structure is nor how to do it at home

http://www.tognar.com/base_structure_tips_ski_snowboard.html

[bushpig 0]

so what wax would you guys recommend?

[SerreChe 2]

Man forget about nuclear physics, real geeks learn about tuning. It is all very confusing...

[samurai 0]

what about edge guides? what kind of guide do you use for your files/stones? oh... and what BP said; wax?

[bushpig 0]

Mate, I went to the shop thinking it would be easy to pick up some wax. But instead I got totally confused by the different types. I don't wanna go ultra expensive, but don't really even know what a mid range price would be!

[quattro 1]

Use a good general purpose wax. Dominator zoom is good it comes in 400g blocks. Should last a while at least 50 waxing. Green Label http://www.dominatorwax.com/newzoom.html

 

Edge guides there are two basic types ones that can do both sidewall and bottoms. These usually you can adjust the amount of angle. I usually travel wiyh one of these in my bag.

The other type is a specific base or edge tool. these are preset for a specific angle. I use these at home. You will also need a clamp to hold your stone or file

Use a panser file if you edges need a lot of work. I always finish with diamond stones getting progressively finer grit. This will polish your edges. These will also fit my adjustable multi angle tool.

Other tools that come in handy is a true bar. to make sure your bases are flat. if they are not I suggest to take them to a shop.

Ptex strips for filling gouges in the base. Metal scraper and sand paper with a block to take it back down level.

Irons you can buy a wax specific one or buy a clothes iron from a second hand shop. NO TEFLON it will scape of and get into your wax. Use a temp around 130c. if your wax starts smoking it is to hot.

[bushpig 0]

cheers quattro What would that wax cost?