{"id":4835,"date":"2018-07-26T01:44:41","date_gmt":"2018-07-26T01:44:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/rangetoreel.com\/?p=4835"},"modified":"2018-07-26T01:44:41","modified_gmt":"2018-07-26T01:44:41","slug":"how-to-glide-wax-skis-at-home","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/rangetoreel.com\/how-to-glide-wax-skis-at-home\/","title":{"rendered":"How To Glide Wax Skis at Home"},"content":{"rendered":"

Be honest! When’s the last time you waxed your skis? Nobody likes adding another maintenance task to their list of chores, but waxing is a crucial part of owning a pair of skis. Most skiers are comfortable with kick wax, but they seem to get a little intimidated with glide wax. You don’t have to get intimidated with a little bit of practice glide waxing can be a relaxing chore.<\/p>\n

Everything You Need to Know To Glide Wax Skis at Home<\/h2>\n

Equipment Needed to Glide Wax Skis<\/h3>\n

\"\"<\/a>You really don’t need all that much equipment to get into glide waxing. Your biggest expense will probably be your waxing table. If you’re new to waxing I would highly advise you to take a class at your local ski store. The only problem is that most ski stores are ridiculously overpriced on equipment.\u00a0 It’s hard to say how much you’ll actually need to buy because you’ll probably find that you already have a lot of the tools.<\/p>\n

Regardless of what you already have in your garage your best bet is probably going to be buying a complete ski and wax tuning kit.\u00a0 The two most popular kits are going to be the Demon Complete Tun and Wax Kit<\/a> and the Racewax Complete Ski and Snowboard Kit.<\/a>\u00a0 Personally I would choose the racewax kit because it has the file guide which makes things a little bit easier, but it’s also more expensive.(another kit also includes a vice<\/a>) They have everything you need to start waxing and tuning up your skis.\u00a0 The only other you’ll need is a bench and possibly vise.\u00a0 \u00a0My all in price was a few hundred bucks most of the cost was the bench.<\/p>\n

What You Need:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Wax Bench:\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong>You can use just about any type of workbench or table, but keep in mind waxing is a dirty process.You’re going to have to be extremely careful unless you want to leave behind a ton of wax. Personally I would recommend just sucking it up and getting a Swix Economy Waxing Table<\/a>.\u00a0 At first I tried use my garage workbench, but I got wax everywhere and it was a serious pain in the butt to clean.\u00a0They aren’t entirely necessary but you might want to buy set of ski vices as well<\/a> to make things easier. If you don’t have the vice your skis are going to slip and slide while you’re scraping them.<\/p>\n

Wax Iron:<\/strong> Whether or not you need a real waxing iron is a matter of much debate in the ski community. A lot of the old-school skiers claim that you can use any old $5 iron that you find at Goodwill. Personally I think you’re better off getting a real wax iron like this Swix Economy Waxing Iron. Yes you can use a cheap iron, but you risk damaging your skis.<\/p>\n

Scraper: <\/strong>The scraper is used to brush off all the excess wax before final cleaning.\u00a0 You’ll probably also want a scraper sharpener to sharpen your plexiglass scraper<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Structure Brush:<\/strong>\u00a0 Brushing has two functions; the brushes some of the wax out of the base and adds the structure that you need after the waxing. Most of the time you’re going to need three different brushes. Use the metal and nylon brush to remove the wax and the horsehair brush to give it structure.\u00a0 You can buy the brushes separately, but I would recommend getting this Racewax Brush Set on Amazon<\/a>.\u00a0 You might just save a little cash and you know your getting the right gear.<\/p>\n

Corks and Polishing Blocks:<\/strong> Use the cork and polishing blocks to bring the final\u00a0look out of your skis.\u00a0 The cork will generate heat through friction and help get the wax into the base.\u00a0 Polishing block are the finishing touch to any well waxed ski.<\/p>\n

Don’t Be Afraid to Try Glide Waxing.<\/h3>\n

Take comfort in the fact that everybody’s afraid to start glide waxing. It really isn’t all that expensive to pay a shop to professionally wax your skis, but those little payments eventually add up. Don’t worry waxing is really easy to learn and you’ll get really good results in no time.These are the most common reasons most people don’t learn how to wax their own skis.<\/p>\n

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  1. Take On a New Chore:<\/strong>\u00a0 Nobody wants to take on new work and waxing sounds like it would be really time-consuming. In all honesty it does take a little bit of time, but it’s actually really fun and relaxing. Just turn on a little bit of music and before you know it your skis look brand-new again. You’ll be so excited that you make it a point to get out on your skis as soon as possible.<\/li>\n
  2. It Costs To Much:\u00a0<\/strong> Startup costs really aren’t all that bad especially if your local ski area has a wax room. Unfortunately if you don’t have access to a wax room you’ll need to buy a waxing bench, ski form, waxing iron<\/a>, a variety of waxes and a few other specialty tools. It really isn’t all that much when it comes down to it.<\/li>\n
  3. Fear of the hot iron:<\/strong> the first time you press a hot iron into your ski chills run down your spine. Everybody worries that they’re going to ruin their skis, but very few people do. Just make sure you buy a waxing iron that has a temperature gauge and set it according to the box. If you don’t have a temperature gauge set it on low and slowly increase the temp and stop before your wax starts to smoke. Most ski stores host learned the wax demos to give you a few tips.<\/li>\n
  4. Fear of Using The Scraper:<\/strong> After your wax sets and you let it cool you’re going to have to scrape it off with a sharp edged scraper. Resist your temptation to leave wax on the ski. You’re going to want to get the base down is shiny and smooth as possible. You’re going to have to be quite firm with the scraper but try not to gouge out the base.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    How To Choose Glide Wax For Cross Country Skis<\/h3>\n

    If you check out any major ski wax company you can find a dizzying amount of glide waxes on the market. Not only are there a ton of different manufacturers, you can also choose between sprays, gels, powders,blocks and even liquids. After trying most of these products with varying levels of success I’ve come to the conclusion that you should stick to the basics. Just a plain old block of glide wax is going to be your best bet.<\/p>\n

    Honestly there is no one best glide wax, personally I’ve been using Swix LF8<\/a> which is a good all around wax. The wax is optimized to work best between 25 and 39 degrees Fahrenheit. I really like how Swix numbers their waxes to specify hardness. The higher the number on the box the higher the temperature it’s meant for.\u00a0 Unless you’re a profession skier you probably would never tell the difference between two similar waxes.<\/p>\n

    What Do The Different Ski Wax Temperatures Mean?<\/h4>\n

    All ski waxes have their own set of designated temperatures. This is the recommended temperature that you should use the wax in. Wax meant for warmer outside temperatures is going to be softer and easier to apply. Likewise cold temperature wax is going to be a little bit harder and more difficult to apply. Personally I think the Low Fluoro Swix Wax<\/a> is the best glide wax for the average skier.\u00a0 It doesn’t cost a fortune and one block should last you all year.\u00a0 If you’re looking into becoming a professional skier you might want to try some different waxes but for most people one wax should be fine.<\/p>\n

    What are Fluorocarbons?<\/h4>\n

    Looking at different waxes you probably seem the term fluorocarbon a bunch of times. Most of the time a company will sell multiple grades of wax depending on how many fluorocarbons are in the wax. As the fluorocarbons increase the price of the wax will as well. As you increase the fluoros your skis are going to glide faster. It’s like the difference between sliding on a hardwood floor and one that’s been waxed.<\/p>\n

    Most people are going to want to use a glide wax that has either “no fluoros” or “lowfluoros”.\u00a0 Low fluoro wax will get you moving a little bit faster, but I don’t think the price difference is worth it for most people.\u00a0 The only time you should use a high fluoro wax is if you’re getting into competitive races.\u00a0 Manufacturers also sell powders that are supposedly pure fluorocarbons that go over the wax and you need specialized equipment to apply.<\/p>\n

    Seven Steps to Apply Skiing Glide Wax<\/h3>\n

    The following seven steps should set you in the right direction.\u00a0 Continue reading below for more detailed instructions.<\/p>\n

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    1. Turn on your iron and wait for it to heat up. Make sure you look at your waxes box to find the correct temperature range for your iron. Setting your iron too low won’t melt the wax and too high will burn it ruining your finish. Most waxing irons come with the temperature dial to easily adjust the temperature to where you need it.<\/li>\n
    2. Before you can wax your skis you need to make sure that their clean. In less you took your skis through some really funky terrain it shouldn’t be that difficult to clean them. Just clean the ski by brushing it a few times using the metal brush and wipe off all the excess dust using the shop cloth.<\/li>\n
    3. Once the ski is clean melt your wax onto the ski by applying it to the iron and melting it over top of the ski. The video below should give you a good idea of how to do this. The best way to do this is to melt the wax to the base and melt it over a long bead lengthwise. A little a little bit of wax really goes a long way, I normally walk the wax back and forth one time over the length of my ski.<\/li>\n
    4. Once you’ve melted the wax onto the ski you’re going to need to iron it in. Simply work the iron across the ski in a sweeping motion going back and forth and evenly blending the wax. If you don’t have enough wax to get all the way across the ski simply melt down a little more. This isn’t chemistry class,it’s actually pretty simple. After a minute or so working the iron you’re all done with it.\u00a0 Quickly wipe it down with a shop rag before the wax dries on the iron.<\/li>\n
    5. Scrape off all the excess wax from the groove using your special groove scraper or regular scraper.\u00a0 Hard waxes can be scraped off while they’re still warm and soft waxes should be allowed to cool 10-15 minutes.\u00a0 Scrape length wise down your ski getting off all the excess wax.\u00a0 Scrape from the tip of the ski down to the tail to guarantee even strokes.\u00a0 Too little scraping means you’ll have to brush endlessly and to much will effect the base layer.\u00a0 Again a little scraping will go a long way.<\/li>\n
    6. Once most of the wax has been scraped off you’re going to need to bring out your brushes.\u00a0 Again brush the skis from tip to tail first using the metal brush.\u00a0 Brush with the metal brush until the base structure appears and then switch to the hard nylon brush to further set the base.\u00a0 There’s no finite number of brush strokes to get it right.\u00a0 Expect at least 10 strokes, but it’ll probably be closer to 20 before it looks right.<\/li>\n
    7. Finish cleaning up your skis using a horse hair brush.With the horse hair brush you should quickly start to see the finished product.\u00a0 After you feel comfortable with the finish polish the base with a cloth and move on to your second ski.\u00a0 If you have any other questions comment below and check out the video I linked to.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n