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Waxing advice

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a2freeski
Posts: 73 - Karma: 10
so i got 08 chronics last year new but didnt wax them before shredding. unfortunately i only skied prly 4 weekends out of the whole season. but im deffinitely skiing more this year and i want to wax my skis really well so i have a base thats in good condition for awhile. im on the east coast and i was just wondering what type of wax and other advice people could give me from experience on waxing their own skis
Nov 12 2010 11:36AM
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LMPJibbin
Posts: 1607 - Karma: 17
swix makes some good wax. basically youll want the big blocks of basic wax. try to stay away from "all temperature" wax. get 2 blocks from swix each for a different temperature range and that should last you depending on how much you wax/ski. your local shop should have a tech that can help you out.
Nov 12 2010 11:38AM
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joshua
Posts: 5046 - Karma: 1,280
Buy a good iron. Some shops will to be happy to teach you how to wax, that's how I learned. There are also some pretty good instructional vids on youtube.
Nov 12 2010 11:50AM
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I_Am_Mod
Posts: 13214 - Karma: 3,753
what i'd do, get some different waxes, i mainly use the regular red and yellow TOKO wax....

then wax in the yellow wax, make sure it penetrates good and then when it's still warm, scrape it off.
^^this is called a hotscrape and will clean your bases...

then take both the red and yellow stick (or just the red stick if youll be riding in colder weather) and perform a regular wax job

let the wax harden out completely (takes some time, base must be completely cooled off

then scrape your base with a scraper and brush it with a base structure brush ...

good luck !
Nov 12 2010 11:53AM
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I_Am_Mod
Posts: 13214 - Karma: 3,753
also stay away from fluor waxes, they're super expensive and bad for your bases (only a little bit faster, but takes much more work to feel the effect and is not needed for park skiing ...
Nov 12 2010 11:57AM
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a2freeski
Posts: 73 - Karma: 10
Does that really clean your bases? ive herd tht before but i wasnt actually sure it it was that effective. haha
and how long should i wait before doing a hotscrape?
Nov 12 2010 11:59AM
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joshua
Posts: 5046 - Karma: 1,280
Just do a hotscrape before you do a wax, if you wax with a dirty base then dirt and stuff will get burned into the base and wax won't penetrate as well.
Nov 12 2010 12:04PM
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I_Am_Mod
Posts: 13214 - Karma: 3,753
right after you waxed it, wax should peel off in soft curly junk and it's the best way to clean bases, professional techs even prefer hotscraping above basecleaner because basecleaner is too agressive ...
Nov 12 2010 12:04PM
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a2freeski
Posts: 73 - Karma: 10
should i use a dense brush or even a brass brush after hotscraping to get the finer dirt particles out? or is tht just over the top
Nov 12 2010 12:42PM
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I_Am_Mod
Posts: 13214 - Karma: 3,753
no need to brush after hotscraping ...

you only brush after your final waxing and scraping to bring out the base structure...

brushing the ski is not to "clean" the ski....


however i usually take the brush over my ski before applying wax for hotscraping, just to eliminate any dirt or dust that has fallen/sticked on/to the ski...


and using a brass brush or nylon brush doesn't make much difference, i do everything with a nylon brush and it just takes a bit more patience....

but hey, waxing and tuning skis is like foreplay, so i don't mind the extra minutes of work :)
Nov 12 2010 12:46PM
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I_Am_Mod
Posts: 13214 - Karma: 3,753
http://www.gearwest.com/images/P/Toko-White%20Nylon-Brush.jpg
^^this one works fine for everything

and if you don't have a brush, scotch pads work wonders (they even work better than a brush imho)

Nov 12 2010 12:49PM
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nutsnbolts
Posts: 1110 - Karma: 16
green wax, organic and goooood
Nov 12 2010 12:58PM
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a2freeski
Posts: 73 - Karma: 10
yeah i know brushing isnt to clean the ski. but i was just wondering after hotcraping if it was needed to get some of the finer stuff out just so it doest get absorbed when the final coat is applied.

thanks for the help bro! ++k
Nov 12 2010 1:02PM
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I_Am_Mod
Posts: 13214 - Karma: 3,753
it's not gonna be bad for the ski if you do so, so feel free, but i personally don't brush after hotscraping ....
:)
Nov 12 2010 1:07PM
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Justo8484
Posts: 3905 - Karma: 204
if you're going with swix, for the east coast you're most likely going to want to use CH7 and CH8. they're on the lower end of the price range of swix's temp specific stuff, and i find myself using those two the most. also, i'd get a cheaper universal/all temp kind of wax to use for hot scraping so you're not wasting your better stuff just to clean your skis.
Nov 12 2010 1:33PM
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Bar_Down
Posts: 5896 - Karma: 395
swix makes good shit, but i usually use toko. like someone said above, go to your local shop to see if they can give you advice, i know the shop i used to work at used to do clinics for free.
and definitely buy a good iron. i've been doing it the old school way ever since i started using a metal spatula type thing and a blow torch to heat it up, and that shit is a pain. after using one of my buddies new irons, i fuckin tripped out, that shit was fantastic
Nov 12 2010 3:05PM
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mattridesskis
Posts: 635 - Karma: 16
if you go to most lss they have big brick waxes they have for like... general season.... at the shop i work it its a big brick of red KUU wax. thats what i use and my skis never fail me...
fuck everyone saying you have to go with swix.... you arent a racer buddy.... (sorry for being like that, but yeah -k me if you want)
Nov 12 2010 3:52PM
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Tucks
Posts: 2120 - Karma: 161
this should help you a little bit:
everything you will need to know
Nov 12 2010 6:47PM
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gr4
Posts: 1499 - Karma: 945
i bought a brick of the purple purl wax and its great. pretty cheap too. the cheap dakine iron works good enough. get a scraper shapener, they are so worth it. vices really help too.
Nov 12 2010 7:00PM
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pdxplanker
Posts: 137 - Karma: 53
nobody is saying you have to go with swix. swix makes good shit and you can find it for just as cheap as the other waxes (~$15 for 180 grams online is a damn good deal). who said anything about being a racer and using swix, sounds like sour grapes or some kind of lame stereotype.
Nov 12 2010 7:10PM
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andrew95
Posts: 2090 - Karma: 124
bump and i want this for the future
Nov 12 2010 7:56PM
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ShortTeeLongPole
Posts: 31 - Karma: 13
No, they are not bad for the bases, nor do they need more work, but sure they're not needed for park skiing. It doesn't matter at all if it's Swix or Toko or whatever, just pay attention to the temperature range if you want to be fast. If not, any universal wax will do, even ordinary paraffin (solid, not liquid)  that you can buy dirt cheap in pharmacies and which is particularly good for cleaning bases.
Nov 12 2010 8:22PM
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I_Am_Mod
Posts: 13214 - Karma: 3,753
fluoro wax isn't bad indeed, but your base will dry out faster, also if you want to feel effect of the fluoro components, you need to brush it out very well otherwise it'll just ski like any other wax...

thats what i meant with the "more work"

also if your bases dry out they will start to deteriorate and get hairy ...

Nov 13 2010 6:48AM
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OMGHEDIDNT
Posts: 706 - Karma: 12
i almost came when the girl said click on me...
Nov 13 2010 7:41AM
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SmoKinSkier
Posts: 5501 - Karma: 20
Are you referring to the System 3 wax they offer?
Nov 15 2010 10:20AM
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ShortTeeLongPole
Posts: 31 - Karma: 13
Obvious difference in performance when brushed and not brushed is the same regardless of the wax type. As you said before, it's just the matter of the surface structure.
Nov 16 2010 3:47PM
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binturong-qwerty
Posts: 1506 - Karma: 146
what is the difference between red, yellow, and blue toko wax?
Nov 25 2010 1:15PM
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nutsnbolts
Posts: 1110 - Karma: 16
red is warm weather
yellow is usually all weather (the wax i use for all weather is white so iono)
blue is cold weather

BOOM
Nov 25 2010 1:16PM
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binturong-qwerty
Posts: 1506 - Karma: 146
so should i get:
all three
just yellow
yellow and red
red and blue
yellow and blue?
I ski on the east coast mostly, but I get about 2.5/3 weeks on the west coast a year
Nov 25 2010 1:31PM
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nutsnbolts
Posts: 1110 - Karma: 16
well i would get yellow or blue right now...then towards the end of the season get red
Nov 25 2010 1:48PM
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minibus4
Posts: 517 - Karma: 13
I hate organic/natural wax. It never works, doesnt last long, and doesnt give you as effective glide. I tried 3 different natural waxes and SYNTHETIC IS SO MUCH BETTER.
Nov 25 2010 2:18PM
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nutsnbolts
Posts: 1110 - Karma: 16
have you tried Green Wax?
Nov 25 2010 2:20PM
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minibus4
Posts: 517 - Karma: 13
Yes, and Purl. Purl is a bitch to scrape but lasts a bit longer then Green wax. I dont really like either of them. I have had the best of luck with synthetic waxes.
Nov 25 2010 6:44PM
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nutsnbolts
Posts: 1110 - Karma: 16
OH WARD
Nov 25 2010 7:25PM
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