trailertrash Posted October 22, 2007 Report Share Posted October 22, 2007 How much do you feel the right wax affects your fun on any given day? I am talking about the average rider on the average day. Not including racers or warm spring days. I know how and why to wax, I am asking if it affects your average day of riding. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tex1230 Posted October 22, 2007 Report Share Posted October 22, 2007 most of the time I wax with whatever color chunk is the biggest... most of the wax i buy is all-temp anyway. I'm sure if I wanted to go a little faster I'd worry about the correct wax for the conditions...but when I'm carrying 3 pairs of skis and 2-3 boards around, I just don't have time to decide which one gets which wax. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike T Posted October 22, 2007 Report Share Posted October 22, 2007 Cat tracks I answered "More than somewhat" since I notice the difference on the flats, and when you're trying to keep up with www.oldsnowboards.com, you can't get stuck on a cat track Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neil Gendzwill Posted October 22, 2007 Report Share Posted October 22, 2007 Most days it's not that big a deal, but if it's really cold, fresh snow or really wet like in the spring the wrong wax makes a big difference. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NMU Alpine Boarder Posted October 22, 2007 Report Share Posted October 22, 2007 I went with "More Than Somewhat".... Being from the Midwest, it's critical that I get up to carving speed ASAP, IMO... It allows me to be efficient... It's no fun if you need to waste the top 1/4 of a run straightlinging to get enough speed... Also, I have some situations at my home hill that require me to have a few hundred yards of run-out if I want to get to another part of the hill and I have to change lifts... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pebu Posted October 22, 2007 Report Share Posted October 22, 2007 I agree with Neil. It doesn't seem to make that big of a difference to me on the average day, but on real cold days I need to change wax. In general I like to ride with something a little better than an all-seasons wax, but it changes with the weather. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bschurman Posted October 22, 2007 Report Share Posted October 22, 2007 Depends on the conditions but on a really cold day it's tough to get going and wax helps a ton there. Also, wax helps a ton on really warm days. But more importantly it keeps the bases from drying out and cracking. For the most part I just use all purpose all-temp wax. Also a waxed board is easier to turn since it's easier to get going in the direction you want it to. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hans Posted October 22, 2007 Report Share Posted October 22, 2007 Wax makes a whole bit difference to me. Especially on the flats in Austria where you have many small flat tracks between two mountains. It makes the difference between walking or gliding. So on the cold and new snow or old snow, I always uses Ray's way of rubbing in the wax every day after a day of snowboarding or skiing (my wife and kids does). Mostly the blue wax (cold, under 4 degrees Celsius). On warm wet days, I mostly don't wax, your board will glide on water like waterskis. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John E Posted October 22, 2007 Report Share Posted October 22, 2007 There's a place near where I work that sells ski supplies: http://www.skikare.com/ They sell a 1 lb. block of their universal wax for $11.52. I've been using it for a while. This seems like a much better price than the wax sold in ski shops. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Prokopiw Posted October 22, 2007 Report Share Posted October 22, 2007 I use all around wax for almost all condition except extreme cold or warm.When I want a better glide I'll use rub-on on top of that.Like a few here I actually really like tuning my boards.I get into it physically and mentally.It gets me...in tune with my board. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil Posted October 22, 2007 Report Share Posted October 22, 2007 Wax's main purpose for me is to protect my base. I need my boards to last as long as possible. I wax at least every other day. I am not really that caught up in performance - nor do I (care to) notice a big difference. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thor VonRippington Posted October 22, 2007 Report Share Posted October 22, 2007 Simple answer: It's a hobby I enjoy that adds fun to my riding day. Long answer: I am a freak about having the perfect wax every day I ride. It's a subject I have researched relentlessly and enjoy the entire process. I will spend hours at the tuning bench experimenting with additives and reading weather and temperature charts. The results are just plain fun... I love it when skiers in the lift line show up late and ask what kind of lighting is on my ride. CJ still thinks it has something to do with my toe and heel lifts:lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobdea Posted October 22, 2007 Report Share Posted October 22, 2007 Simple answer: It's a hobby I enjoy that adds fun to my riding day. Long answer: I am a freak about having the perfect wax every day I ride. It's a subject I have researched relentlessly and enjoy the entire process. I will spend hours at the tuning bench experimenting with additives and reading weather and temperature charts. The results are just plain fun... I love it when skiers in the lift line show up late and ask what kind of lighting is on my ride. CJ still thinks it has something to do with my toe and heel lifts:lol: LOL, sounds like me Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NMU Alpine Boarder Posted October 22, 2007 Report Share Posted October 22, 2007 Simple answer: It's a hobby I enjoy that adds fun to my riding day. Long answer: I am a freak about having the perfect wax every day I ride. It's a subject I have researched relentlessly and enjoy the entire process. I will spend hours at the tuning bench experimenting with additives and reading weather and temperature charts. The results are just plain fun... I love it when skiers in the lift line show up late and ask what kind of lighting is on my ride. CJ still thinks it has something to do with my toe and heel lifts:lol: I'm a part of that club as well... Sad part is that I understand wax better than some of the kids on NMU's Ski Team that have been racing longer than I have been snowboarding Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pebu Posted October 22, 2007 Report Share Posted October 22, 2007 I'm a student of the wax, but I don't have the money to be buying up flouros and other additives to play around with that. I have enough fun with the hertel wax we ride. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MUD Posted October 22, 2007 Report Share Posted October 22, 2007 I am of the protect the base crowd more than not. But in MN with the man made snow you really do notice a fresh wax. Other than it just being fresh with a good structure, universal wax is fine for me. I am of the "school of wax" when it comes to cross country skiing, but lately the snow has been to scarce for that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
willywhit Posted October 22, 2007 Report Share Posted October 22, 2007 when it comes to wax, I usually just go for "The Brazilian". maybe it's more mental than functional but I enjoy spending time prepping my board for riding the next day. Just cleaning the base with some citrus, rubbing on basic wax, buffing it in, a quick pass with the iron and a good scrape makes for a nice smooth slippery bottom, just like the painful " Brazilian". Same with hitting your edges with a diamond stone to smooth out any burrs and get an edge that's gonna really bite.Toss her in the bag, good to go Man, I'm jonesin' to get back on the snow ! :rolleyes: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kjl Posted October 22, 2007 Report Share Posted October 22, 2007 On an average day, it doesn't matter to me at all, except for longevity of the board. Here in Tahoe, though, the last few months of the season are all "warm spring days", so for those days, it matters quite a bit. I still haven't found a wax that even mostly removes that super-brake suction effect on wet snow. Even putting on that horrible Zardoz stuff only keeps it sliding for a run or two, so I don't even bother anymore. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlueB Posted October 22, 2007 Report Share Posted October 22, 2007 Just enoug to notice the difference between waxed and dried out base. To that extent that I gave up on fancy waxes - just use pure parafine (white candle), stuff that comprises 98% of factory waxes... For all the rest structure plays bigger rolle, especially on wet snow. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
P06781 Posted October 23, 2007 Report Share Posted October 23, 2007 I always wax with a good fluoro all temp wax first in the season then use wipe off swix f4 that work awesome for 99% of pnw days which are usaully on the warmer side. I do think good structure and brushing is almost important as the wax. I have been caught off guard in BC with a tanker that had warm wax on in very cold conditions. After having that happen once I will never let it happen again ! JIm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil Posted October 23, 2007 Report Share Posted October 23, 2007 I still haven't found a wax that even mostly removes that super-brake suction effect on wet snow. You can use soap for this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gecko Posted October 23, 2007 Report Share Posted October 23, 2007 I usually wax every other day...1 ball Jay...it smells like Rootbeer...sinice I spend way more time on Man Made than mother nature, I think I feel a good wax job Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jack M Posted October 23, 2007 Report Share Posted October 23, 2007 I only notice wax when it is absolutely the wrong wax, or when it is Mr. Zardo's Notwax, which needs to be outlawed. Most of the time, I go fast enough as it is. I suppose if I rode at Sunday River, or some such mountain where traversing comprised half of my day, I would care more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abakker Posted October 23, 2007 Report Share Posted October 23, 2007 i am slowly learning more about wax, and i use every time i wax to see if i can improve my knowledge of it, experimenting and seeing if i can tell a difference the next day. to me, it is all part of the maintenance of sports gear that i do for everything i do. just like i examine my climbing gear, and clean my bike chain. good gear is just another part of good fun. that said, i still can't drop $50 on wax. also, i just am not brave enough to need to go faster than stock wax the standard wax. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bricky Posted October 23, 2007 Report Share Posted October 23, 2007 ZARDOZ ROCKS! I would never go out on a Spring day without it in my pocket! Apply it every run or every other run. It saved an April vacation trip to Breckenridge a few years ago, and lots of other days. I am working on how to buy it in bulk from a shop. Tuning shops can buy it in large quantities for much less if they use it for tuning. Bricky Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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