# Waxing in sauna



## Cu455 (Mar 5, 2013)

I didn't feel like putting in the time to give my board a hot wax. To save a little I put Mr. Zogs rub on wax and put by snowboard in the sauna, I am unsure of the temperature if I had to guess maybe 130 degrees. Went to check on my snowboard and the base of the board was almost perfect. I rubbed more wax on the board and ended up putting to much on so now I have to do some scraping. 
When I took the snowboard out it was very warm almost to hot to hold but not quite at that point yet. 

Do you guys thing this is an effective method for a easy hot wax? Any reason why the sauna will negatively effect my board? Does it matter I used a heating method with rub on wax? 

Thanks in advance for your feedback.


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## seriouscat (Jan 23, 2012)

Nude waxing? O_O


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## poutanen (Dec 22, 2011)

This has GOT to be a troll post!?! Methinks JetFalcon started a new name! :dunno:

You should NOT be waxing your board in the sauna, for many reasons...


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## wrathfuldeity (Oct 5, 2007)

:WTF: cu...pics of said sauna waxing :icon_scratch:


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## seriouscat (Jan 23, 2012)

What if it's girl in the nude doing the waxing? Think of the possibilities.


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## wrathfuldeity (Oct 5, 2007)

seriouscat said:


> What if it's girl in the nude doing the waxing? Think of the possibilities.


well if she's cute...I need a waxing


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## bseracka (Nov 14, 2011)

New meaning to the term hot box :yahoo:


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## Casual (Feb 9, 2011)

Haha... oh man haha.

First of all the sauna is no where near the kind of heat an iron creates...

Second, I'm sure your board does look great after a rub on wax sauna or no sauna... but it will be gone after one run becuase thats all rub on wax is good for.

Third... um... 

haha!


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## extra0 (Jan 16, 2010)

I didn't even know Mr. Zogs made snowboard wax (they do).

Anyway, I'm hoping, for your sake, the board you did this to is an old beater...because you probably just effed it up


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## poutanen (Dec 22, 2011)

extra0 said:


> Anyway, I'm hoping, for your sake, the board you did this to is an old beater...because you probably just effed it up


Actually if it was 130 degrees F(most mild saunas are around 140 or so) that would only be 55 degrees Celsius. Can't remember which thread I was reading, but it mentioned needing 60 degrees to start softening the resin if you were planning to "de-camber" an old board.

Chances are he didn't hurt much, just didn't accomplish much either. Best bet would be to scrape that crap off, use some base cleaner, then give it a proper hot wax with an iron. Or maybe leave it to the professionals!!! :blink:

My biggest complaint is that a sauna is for bathing. The only things that should be brought in are shampoos and soaps, and maybe a little eucalyptus oil or birch saplings! I would air that sauna out real well before using it again.


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## danzo (Nov 19, 2012)

Despite what others are saying, I don't think it's a bad idea; not as good as a hot wax but better than a cold wax I would imagine. 

Hot waxing with an iron would be a more concentrated heat source to open up the pores. I would imagine the amount of time a board has to sit in sauna would be pretty long, but I guess if you're tight on time, you can add board waxing to your sauna session lol.


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## Casual (Feb 9, 2011)

But how will the board absorb solid wax? The wax needs be melted to absorb into the pores. The iron serves a dual purpose, heat the p-tex/open the pores as well as melting the wax to allow it to absorb. Hense the reason a cold rub on wax only lasts one run, it does not absorb because it is a solid.


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## poutanen (Dec 22, 2011)

danzo said:


> Despite what others are saying, I don't think it's a bad idea; not as good as a hot wax but better than a cold wax I would imagine.
> 
> Hot waxing with an iron would be a more concentrated heat source to open up the pores. I would imagine the amount of time a board has to sit in sauna would be pretty long, but I guess if you're tight on time, you can add board waxing to your sauna session lol.


If this chart is correct, the temperature you'd need to even melt the wax would vastly exceed what almost any sauna could do. I overbuilt my sauna, and the hottest I've seen it was 210 degrees.

Just to prove that it's retarded, I'm going to shave a little wax into a dish, and take it in the sauna with me next time I'm having one. It won't melt!

The other reason it's retarded is, it would take a lot longer to wait for the sauna to heat up, than an iron, and there would be no way to drip wax onto the board in the first place in the sauna...

THIS WHOLE FRICKIN IDEA IS JUST RETARDED!!! :blowup:


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## P3 Mammoth (Dec 3, 2011)

Not really a bad idea. The best way to get wax to absorb deep into your base is and always has been a "hot box" which is usually set at around 121 degrees farenheit. Too much heat will ruin your board but if you can keep the temperature at 130 degrees or less no problem.

This is the MOST effective way to prepare and wax your board. As far as longevity, no wax job lasts as long. The pores in the base stay "open" for a few hours as opposed to the five minutes you are waxing with an iron. The best technique is to iron wax the board, leaving A LOT of extra wax on the base. While the board is still hot from the iron place the board in the hot box and let that stuff "soak in." After a few hours most if not all of the wax will be absorbed into the base. The next step is to simply put a light, condition specific, wax on top and scrape.


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## Cindi (Nov 27, 2012)

Preeeety sure thats not good for your deck.

I agree on this being a troll post


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## Bones (Feb 24, 2008)

This is/was a pretty common nordic and alpine ski wax technique. Just google ski wax hot box and you'll get a ton of pages for using or building one.


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## snowklinger (Aug 30, 2011)

I'd actually be interested in Poutanen trying this. The OP's idea is dumb but after a hotwax put in a 130 degreen sauna for a couple hours. Maybe too much NRG$$, but then again, ur the one with the sauna....


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## Casual (Feb 9, 2011)

Bones said:


> This is/was a pretty common nordic and alpine ski wax technique. Just google ski wax hot box and you'll get a ton of pages for using or building one.


Ya... *after a hot wax*, not a cold rub on.


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## poutanen (Dec 22, 2011)

Bones said:


> This is/was a pretty common nordic and alpine ski wax technique. Just google ski wax hot box and you'll get a ton of pages for using or building one.


When googling hot box is says that a special wax with a much lower melting temp is used. They roll the stuff on, then bake it in a very carefully controlled oven on hot cold cycles. Supposedly gets more wax in the pores, I'm not sure I believe it!



snowklinger said:


> I'd actually be interested in Poutanen trying this. The OP's idea is dumb but after a hotwax put in a 130 degreen sauna for a couple hours. Maybe too much NRG$$, but then again, ur the one with the sauna....


It's actually cheap to run, about $0.80 an hour on full blast (takes an hour to get to about 150). That said, I'm NOT going to sit in a box with a board laced with something that can give off fumes! I'm already fucked up enough!!!



Casual said:


> Ya... *after a hot wax*, not a cold rub on.


Yeah, and even then the hot wax we usually use melts in the 200-300 degree range. I'm not convinced there's any benefit to hot boxing (wax that is!), there's just not enough info on the theory that makes any sense to me!


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## Casual (Feb 9, 2011)

^ that and also this...

Who the fuck cares... I mean is there somebody out there thats seriously not getting enough performace out of a hot wax and scrape that they need to spend the extra time and money to hot box the board?

I wax and scrape my board in less than 5 minutes...


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## duh (Sep 7, 2011)

Casual said:


> ^ that and also this...
> 
> Who the fuck cares... I mean is there somebody out there thats seriously not getting enough performace out of a hot wax and scrape that they need to spend the extra time and money to hot box the board?
> 
> I wax and scrape my board in less than 5 minutes...


Yes, there are actually people out there that notice the difference between a hot box treatment and an iron wax. Mostly at the professional level, ever wonder why Shaun and Kelly's boards are faster than everybody else's? Hot boxing boards has been standard practice for professional skiers and snowboarders for years. Every Olympic medal, most X-Games halfpipe and boardercross medals and many other podiums are dominated by boards that have seen a hot box.

Is it something that the average snowboard needs, nope. Is it bad for your board, nope. Will it be better in the long run for your board, maybe- depends on the base quality. 

I will say that every board I have hot boxed holds wax longer than any of my boards that haven't been boxed. I usually use Base Prep or warm wax when hot boxing. Then apply whatever wax the day calls for after that.


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## Cu455 (Mar 5, 2013)

I took my board out today and notice a huge difference in the performance of the board. The sauna technique did do a better job of filling the scraches on my board, lasted longer and worked a lot better.

If some one has an old board they should give it a try and we can get another opinion. If an iron is not going to destroy a board with direct heat hotter then a sauna I don't think 10 mins in a sauna will do anything.



poutanen said:


> Just to prove that it's retarded, I'm going to shave a little wax into a dish, and take it in the sauna with me next time I'm having one. It won't melt!
> 
> The other reason it's retarded is, it would take a lot longer to wait for the sauna to heat up, than an iron, and there would be no way to drip wax onto the board in the first place in the sauna...
> 
> THIS WHOLE FRICKIN IDEA IS JUST RETARDED!!! :blowup:


Go ahead and bring a plate of rub wax on the sauna and let me know. I am a lifeguard and have a sauna where I work so there is need to wait for a sauna to heat up or pay the electric bill.


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## Cu455 (Mar 5, 2013)

Even if the temp is not high enough to drip the wax it was high enough to give the wax enough viscosity to work itself in to the base.


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## Leo (Nov 24, 2009)

Casual said:


> Second, I'm sure your board does look great after a rub on wax sauna or no sauna... but it will be gone after one run becuase thats all rub on wax is good for.


Disagree

I use the rub-on wax method when I'm too lazy to hot wax and it lasts a good part of the day and I ride crap conditions.

The problem is, most people don't put in the work required to make rub-on wax effective. It's extra effort, but still less than hot waxing. The most important step in the rub-on method is CORKING. And you have to put elbow grease into it to create a good amount of friction heat. Structure like normal with a scotchbrite and you're good to go.

I use Bluebird wax for both methods. Love the stuff. Lasts a long time after hot waxing. Lasts pretty good as a rub-on. 

Oh, and I always use the rub-on method for touch-ups between hot-waxes. Works well.


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## hktrdr (Apr 3, 2012)

danzo said:


> Hot waxing with an iron would be a more concentrated heat source *to open up the pores*. I would imagine the amount of time a board has to sit in sauna would be pretty long, but I guess if you're tight on time, you can add board waxing to your sauna session lol.





Casual said:


> But how will the board absorb solid wax? The wax needs be melted *to absorb into the pores*. The iron serves a dual purpose, *heat the p-tex/open the pores *as well as melting the wax to allow it to absorb. Hense the reason a cold rub on wax only lasts one run, it does not absorb because it is a solid.





P3 Mammoth said:


> This is the MOST effective way to prepare and wax your board. As far as longevity, no wax job lasts as long. *The pores in the base stay "open" *for a few hours as opposed to the five minutes you are waxing with an iron. The best technique is to iron wax the board, leaving A LOT of extra wax on the base. While the board is still hot from the iron place the board in the hot box and let that stuff "soak in." *After a few hours most if not all of the wax will be absorbed into the base*. The next step is to simply put a light, condition specific, wax on top and scrape.


Bullshit, bullshit and more bullshit - snowboard bases *do not have pores* and *do not 'absorb' wax* in this way. When will people stop posting this garbage?


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## liner (Jan 8, 2013)

Leo said:


> Disagree
> 
> I use the rub-on wax method when I'm too lazy to hot wax and it lasts a good part of the day and I ride crap conditions.
> 
> ...


Are you really saying applying elbow grease with run on is easier than a hit wax? 
are people really that thick headed to think waxing a board, with an iron, is that hard? 

You don't have to use elbow grease, the iron melts the wax and helps it absorb. 

Oh say you missed a spot, rather than rub your deoterant stick all over your board. Melt some wax over it, wax on wax off, maybe push it on the sides a bit. 


If you truly really think rub on wax is significantly less work than a traditional iron you've got more problems than not keeping up on the slopes


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## Leo (Nov 24, 2009)

liner said:


> Are you really saying applying elbow grease with run on is easier than a hit wax?
> are people really that thick headed to think waxing a board, with an iron, is that hard?
> 
> You don't have to use elbow grease, the iron melts the wax and helps it absorb.
> ...


I rub on the wax, cork it, and structure a bit and I'm done. Takes a few minutes. I don't drip the wax, melt it, wait for it to dry, scrape it, polish base, structure it, then clean up the mess.

This is an hour process though I get a 15-30 min break while base cools off after ironing.

You have to be thick headed to think its as easy or nearly as easy of a process than rub on and corking.

No elbow grease? What's scraping home boy? That is elbow grease. Corking is much easier than scraping and you don't have shavings to clean up.

Nice try on the condescending comment though. 


Sent from Verticalsports.com Free App


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## Leo (Nov 24, 2009)

What's with all the douchey attitudes around here lately? Can't have a discussion without someone making a dumbass assertion like that someone is "thick-headed" for not agreeing with their opinions.


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## EvilWilberforce (May 31, 2012)

Casual said:


> ^ that and also this...
> 
> 
> I wax and scrape my board in less than 5 minutes...



5 mins? Does that include the time taken to drink a beer? I'm pretty sure it's officially considered part of the waxing process...


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## Leo (Nov 24, 2009)

EvilWilberforce said:


> 5 mins? Does that include the time taken to drink a beer? I'm pretty sure it's officially considered part of the waxing process...


I drink mine while waiting for the base and wax to cool off before scraping. :thumbsup:


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## Casual (Feb 9, 2011)

EvilWilberforce said:


> 5 mins? Does that include the time taken to drink a beer? I'm pretty sure it's officially considered part of the waxing process...


Haha ya while that base is cooling. I mean really what does it take to drip wax and iron out, maybe 5 min tops including heating my iron, wait 20 min and have a beer and then another 5 to scrape and run a brush over it... so 5 was a little low but this is not a big process. I waxed and scraped two boards last night in 45 min including cleanup and 30 min to cool them off so 15-20 min working time total for two boards.

Edit:


Leo said:


> I drink mine while waiting for the base and wax to cool off before scraping. :thumbsup:


This.


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## poutanen (Dec 22, 2011)

Casual said:


> Haha ya while that base is cooling. I mean really what does it take to drip wax and iron out, maybe 5 min tops including heating my iron, wait 20 min and have a beer and then another 5 to scrape and run a brush over it... so 5 was a little low but this is not a big process. I waxed and scraped two boards last night in 45 min including cleanup and 30 min to cool them off so 15-20 min working time total for two boards.


Yeah, I taped myself waxing both boards the other day and scraping. (because somebody on here said it took something like an hour to wax and scrape/texture a board.

Took me 8:00 to wax from the time I started dripping it on, and 5:00 to scrape, texture and brush it. I'll probably post up the vids soon so you guys can laugh at me! lol


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## Casual (Feb 9, 2011)

poutanen said:


> Yeah, I taped myself waxing both boards the other day and scraping. (because somebody on here said it took something like an hour to wax and scrape/texture a board.
> 
> Took me 8:00 to wax from the time I started dripping it on, and 5:00 to scrape, texture and brush it. I'll probably post up the vids soon so you guys can laugh at me! lol


And then you have time for a suana after before bed  hahaha

/thread.


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## Sick-Pow (May 5, 2008)

Some people actually build mini saunas for their skis/boards, so after they melt the wax on, they can sit longer in the heat......seriously.


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## Banjo (Jan 29, 2013)

poutanen said:


> Took me 8:00 to wax from the time I started dripping it on, and 5:00 to scrape, texture and brush it. I'll probably post up the vids soon so you guys can laugh at me! lol


Yup, it is not a huge ordeal. poutanen how long do you wait before scraping? hour? overnight? days? WEEKS? YEARS?!?!?! alright ill calm down...i was always told overnight is best, but the guy who taught me was a racer and super OCD


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## Leo (Nov 24, 2009)

poutanen said:


> Yeah, I taped myself waxing both boards the other day and scraping. (because somebody on here said it took something like an hour to wax and scrape/texture a board.
> 
> Took me 8:00 to wax from the time I started dripping it on, and 5:00 to scrape, texture and brush it. I'll probably post up the vids soon so you guys can laugh at me! lol


Takes me an hour, but I am including the waiting period for it to cool off. It probably doesn't really matter much, but I wait until it's completely cool.

Sometimes I'll just scotch brite after and call it done.


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## triumph.man (Feb 3, 2012)

Leo said:


> What's with all the douchey attitudes around here lately? Can't have a discussion without someone making a dumbass assertion like that someone is "thick-headed" for not agreeing with their opinions.


I concur! 10 char


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## poutanen (Dec 22, 2011)

Banjo said:


> Yup, it is not a huge ordeal. poutanen how long do you wait before scraping? hour? overnight? days? WEEKS? YEARS?!?!?! alright ill calm down...i was always told overnight is best, but the guy who taught me was a racer and super OCD


I don't think I've ever timed it. I sometimes forget and then do it the next day, but usually crack a(nother) beer, and read some forum stuff, look at porn for a few mins, etc. then head out and scrape. I'd say minimum 20 mins but usually about an hour before scraping.

Honestly I think once the board is room temp again it's not going to make a difference waiting any longer.

I'm pretty OCD and even I don't care to wait longer!



Leo said:


> Takes me an hour, but I am including the waiting period for it to cool off. It probably doesn't really matter much, but I wait until it's completely cool.


Yeah, including iron warmup, wax, cool down, scrape/texture it's probably close to an hour. But you could do two boards in 1:10, and three in 1:20 etc. So when people tell me it takes an hour to wax a board I say they're full of shit, or really slow!


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## freshy (Nov 18, 2009)

Leo said:


> Takes me an hour, but I am including the waiting period for it to cool off. It probably doesn't really matter much, but I wait until it's completely cool.
> 
> Sometimes I'll just scotch brite after and call it done.


I try to wait as long as possible, at least a few hours but usually overnight. After the last day of the season I cake on the wax and wait 6 months to scrape it, makes the board hella fast for the first day of the new season.
As for the hot box, whatever floats your boat man. Seems like a lot of extra effort for a small potential advantage.


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## wrathfuldeity (Oct 5, 2007)

At the end of season I do a hot scrape to clean, otherwise no scrape crayon and done 10 minutes


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## snowklinger (Aug 30, 2011)

Bluebird wax no waiting period scrape warm, you can take ur beer/bowl break after u get most of the shit scraped.


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## Cr0_Reps_Smit (Jun 27, 2009)

it cant be too bad of an idea if they make these things.

Ski and Snowboard Waxing Hot Box & Sleeve


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## dasvn (Apr 23, 2020)

Are you really saying applying elbow grease with run on is easier than a hit wax?
are people really that thick headed to think waxing a board, with an iron, is that hard?
You don't have to use elbow grease, the iron melts the wax and helps it absorb.
Oh say you missed a spot, rather than rub your deoterant stick all over your board. Melt some wax over it, wax on wax off, maybe push it on the sides a bit.
If you truly really think rub on wax is significantly less work than a traditional iron you've got more problems than not keeping up on the slopes


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## NT.Thunder (Jan 4, 2020)

Ohhh, a 7 year in the waiting roasting......noice!


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## ctoma (Aug 9, 2011)

^ It was almost worth the wait... but, alas, it wasn't.


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## Rip154 (Sep 23, 2017)

dasvn said:


> Are you really saying applying elbow grease with run on is easier than a hit wax?
> are people really that thick headed to think waxing a board, with an iron, is that hard?
> You don't have to use elbow grease, the iron melts the wax and helps it absorb.
> Oh say you missed a spot, rather than rub your deoterant stick all over your board. Melt some wax over it, wax on wax off, maybe push it on the sides a bit.
> If you truly really think rub on wax is significantly less work than a traditional iron you've got more problems than not keeping up on the slopes


whats the snow like in 'nam?


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## Cu455 (Mar 5, 2013)

I don’t have access to a sauna anymore. But if I did I would still be waxing in it.


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## Kijima (Mar 3, 2019)

If the wax melted, and spent a long time melted, you did better than all the naysayers will ever do. They dont understand the concept. 
Irons suck. They only heat a small area for a short time and force you to use waaaay too much wax which then needs to be scraped off, its a wasteful process to say the least. Wax companies have a lot to gain when we waste huge amounts of wax so dont expect them to train us in better methods. 
I have great results rubbing the wax on cold and then using a heat gun to melt it, following along with kitchen paper to really rub it in. 
Pre warm your board any way you can. 
If i had a sauna I would store my boards in there over night to let the wax stay melted for the maximum amount of time. 
A hot box is in my list of things to make .


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## Kijima (Mar 3, 2019)

And get this.
I buy base material from Isosport in Austria and also Crown plastics in USA but they produce the material in China and they BOTH recommend never exceeding the temperature the material was produced at which is slightly less than 100c.
Im not sure what that is in freedom units, you guys know how do that funny math lol.
An iron has a very real potential to heat the base past its sintering temperature which is basically reforming the material.


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## Manicmouse (Apr 7, 2014)

Clicking on a thread called "Waxing in sauna" did not produce the desired result


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## NT.Thunder (Jan 4, 2020)

Manicmouse said:


> Clicking on a thread called "Waxing in sauna" did not produce the desired result


I thought it was another spam thread actually.


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## Kijima (Mar 3, 2019)

It's an oldie but a goodie


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## Kijima (Mar 3, 2019)

Its interesting to read back through and see all those people who were aggressive back in the day got banned. 
I used to be here under a different name many years ago and those guys were always being dicks, it was part of the reason I left. 
Well done whoever hit them with the ban stick lol


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## WigMar (Mar 17, 2019)

Kijima said:


> Im not sure what that is in freedom units, you guys know how do that funny math lol.


Freedom makes you better at math! 212F. 

What happens when you exceed the maximum temperature, are you turning the sintered base into extruded? Oops.


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## Kijima (Mar 3, 2019)

WigMar said:


> Freedom makes you better at math! 212F.
> 
> What happens when you exceed the maximum temperature, are you turning the sintered base into extruded? Oops.


Polystyrene is a good example, you know how you can see all the balls that were pressed together? What would happen if you melted the top layer of that?


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