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Tuning Tips
Not sure which wax to use? Try the Wax Wizard in the ski and snowboard
wax selection guide.
Considerations for New Skis
Before you sharpen edges or wax...
- Clean the base of the ski .
- New skis will be dirty from the manufacturing process and have a layer of factory wax.
- NOTE: Never use base cleaners on your base. Always clean by the hot-wax-scrape method. It is good for your base and repeated waxing keeps the bases running fast.
- Scrape the factory wax off with a plexiglass scraper.
- Use the hot-wax-scrape method to completely clean the ski.
- Choose an inexpensive soft (warm-temperature) wax. The red (warm) hydrocarbon wax sold here is excellent for this purpose.
- Set your skis in a vise and hold the brakes back with a brake retainer.
- DrD recommends a Ski-Man vise; they are rugged and will last a lifetime.
- Iron on a coat of wax and scrape it off while it is still liquid. You may see dirt or grime in the hot wax.
- Repeat waxing/scraping until the wax is clean.
- If you use someone else's cheap quality wax for this purpose, try to select a better quality wax for the final wax/scrape so the last thing on your base is a quality
warm or cold hydrocarbon wax.
If the ski conditions are cold, start with a warm wax to clean, but switch to a cold at the end.
- Allow to cool at room temperature.
- Follow up with a steel or brass brush; leave as is if you are done for the day.
- Check for gaps
- Place the skis together, tails down, on a firm surface and close them at the midpoint (where the middle of your boot would be).
- Note any gaps.
- Have a ski technician work out 1.5 mm or larger gaps with a bending bar.
- Smaller gaps can be ignored as they will be removed during preparation.
- As mentioned previously, match the camber, or bend in the center that gives the flex, to the skier's size and aggressiveness.
- Check for flatness
- Hold a true bar to the ski at 8-10 points along its length (see picture below).
- You are looking for a base that is consistent along its length, neither high nor low compared to the edges.
- Base material should be free of waves.
- Add structure to your base.
- For a new ski being stone ground by a technician, consult with him/her to decide if light passes may be sufficient, as you may want to retain the factory grind.
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