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gen. maintenance tips

311K views 475 replies 141 participants last post by  Etienne 
G
#1 ·
boarder or anyone else-

i think a good sticky would be a general maintenance thread of how to keep up your board. there's a lot of noobs on here (including myself) that could benefit from having that info all in one spot. stuff like how & how often to wax your board, how often to get the edges done, what that entails, how to store your board in the off season, etc.

just a thought. i know it'd be a lot of info to type up, but it would be beneficial to many new people that are otherwise lost on the matter.
 
#330 ·
I will admit I did not read the whole thread so I hope this is has not been answered yet.

When companies mention the temperature on waxes, is that the air temp or snow temp? If it is snow temp, how do you tell what that would be?

Where to buy scotch brite pads in Canada?

For base repair, do I just need to buy some ptex, drip it in the gouge, and then scrape off the excess?
 
#337 ·
yea the only real reason to try to remove stuff from your base is if it gets really dirty. sintered bases will just soak and soak wax and get faster over time. the factory job is barely going to penetrate (its just a roll-on most likely). you can still follow steps for deep soaking if you wish.
 
#338 ·
i'm sure it's been discussed...but i just opened this thread and it's 36 pages in...."how often should i wax my board"? is there a generic rule of thumb or just whenever you feel your board is sticking to the snow?
 
#339 ·
Wax job

Hello lads,

I recently purchased my new snowboard and decided I wanted to wax it myself. Checked all the how-to's, watched snowwolfs guides on it, etc. But I'm having doubts whether I did it right, so I hope you can help me out. Since I only board on trips, I haven't been able to test how it rides yet.

My two main worries are that 1) after waxing (before scraping) the surface looks much more 'sloppy' than you'll see in all the vids and 2) my scrapings are powder and not the kind of shavings you see in the vids.

I used an all temperature wax (magic potion cake wax) and followed the normal routine: clean, drip the wax, iron it in, let it cool (30 min.), scrape, buff. Iron wasn't too hot (no smoke at least), but the surroundings were quite cold (near zero degrees celsius, 32 degrees fahrenheit)

Have you guys/girls got any indication if I did anything wrong and if so, what that could be? Maybe the outside temperature, properties of the wax or anything else. Thnx for the effort!

Left: after waxing, Right: after scraping. No picture of the scraping powder unfortunately.

Snowboard
Chair Furniture Table Skateboard Wood
 
#345 ·
So how about this:

At end of season I do a pretty thick wax job to keep my base from drying out.

Then I leave it unscraped.

Scraping is a pain, any reason at the start of the new season not to just go ride it and let the machine groomed granular scrape off the excess instead of doing it myself?

First day out the snow is usually pretty crappy anyways.

Thoughts?
 
#354 ·
I am aware of a number of techniques that people use (rub-on followed by blow torch/heat gun, ironing with a paper towel/rag after letting the board cool, etc.), but I am not buying it - there will always still be some excess wax and it should be removed. Now, if you are out in corn and man-made snow some of the stuff might come off while riding, but I doubt our fluffy Japan pow will have the same effect...
 
#356 ·
Its not really a matter of debate, but preference. Like I said this is from old skiers who have been doing it for decades. If the pow is fresh, buff and channel(with a brush) your wax. If its not, then it doesn't matter, the snow will fix it for you. Of course if you leave alot on it will take more than one run, and you may go slow lol. I tend to leave excesss wax on in the fall and spring because of all the manmade and warmth, the snow just chews through wax jobs.
 
#358 ·
Can someone quickly explain what waxing does:

- I know it adds friction which in turn allows for greater speeds.

Why add wax, then scrape wax off?

I assume wax still stays on the board, but where exactly do you want the wax to be and where do you want to get rid of it?
 
#360 ·
Alright, I am looking at a friend's board who appears to have ridden it for probably 3 years without ever touching his edges. How he has survived is beyond me, but that's another story. The side edge doesn't look like it'll be bad, but his base edge...whoooo boy. Some pretty good nicks and burrs in there, but nothing that looks like it would require serious repair.

So, should I just attack the thing with a ceramic stone to try and get the edges polished up and the nicks removed before hitting it with the base and side file guides? I'm pretty sure if I just try and sharpen it up without doing something to his base edge it will remain pretty gnarly.
 
#361 ·
I just finished reading through the entire thread, all 38 pages and every word. I learned what would've taken seasons in 30 minutes. Thanks for all of the helpful information guys!

Now I have just one question. I know Snowolf has mentioned the bevel angle and such but im still very confused about it. I ride a K2 WWW, so its more of a freestyle park board. What angle base bevel and edge bevel is recommended? And should i just take it to a local shop and ask them to bevel it out or just do it on my own?
 
#364 · (Edited)
2 videos on waxing I have saved on my computer

Snowboard Waxing-Part 1 - YouTube

Toko Serviceman Willi Wiltz Presents Ski Waxing for Racing - YouTube

which basically learned how to wax.

Last year I used Racewax FluoroMax all-temp wax (and warm temp hydrocarbon for base cleaning)

To apply it:
Hot Wax Ironing Technique (Alpine/Snowboard) - YouTube (see about 0:30)




This year, since I can get Swix & Toko stuff at work.... I'll be ordering some Toko NF Yellow & Black and "top wax"....To be determined.

and... I wax after every day I ride and inspect my edges.

Another good video for P-tex candle repairs
SVST P-tex ski repair - YouTube

My Swix T75XF, sucks for the snowboard.. (great on skis)... I want to get a beefier iron some day
 
#365 ·
I started waxing my boards this year and have a question. I have some cuts in the board going vertical from rails and when I waxed it, they're still prominent. Do I need to wax it enough to cover all marks?

and if I need to rewax it, how should I go about taking off old wax? I've heard different suggestions but not from reliable riders.


Thanks
 
#371 · (Edited)
I'd say they are more grooves than cuts. I didn't know if those should be prominent still or not after waxing.
If they are deep grooves, waxing will not fix it.

YOu'll probably have to ptex it.

If it's shallow, and you have tons of them... maybe a stone grind.

it's hard to tell without detailed pictures (I suggest starting another thread if you're going to do it)

THe basics of hot waxing is a lot easier than it looks or sounds.

Yes, I have seen a bad wax job, more like a bad scraping job, where it slowed down a friend's board (sometimes you cannot trust your own family members to do a decent wax job)....
 
#368 ·
1. Drip molten wax on board
2. Spread it around
3. Scrape it off
4. Go ride

Anything more than this is just overthinking the matter IMO. All this buffing and corking and polishing with your nutsack or whatever is just a waste of damn time unless you're racing. All the effects of all that work are gone after the first run or two, if they even last that long.
 
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