# Waxing for spring conditions?



## Lamps (Sep 3, 2011)

What condition is your base in? If you get a deep structure ground in that helps a lot.


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## onthefence (Dec 16, 2010)

Lamps said:


> What condition is your base in? If you get a deep structure ground in that helps a lot.


My base is flat, with a few small scratches. I'm not sure what you mean :huh:


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## Lamps (Sep 3, 2011)

You can get a shop to grind grooves into your base, this is called structuring. The grooves channel water along the boards length. It helps a lot.


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## tanscrazydaisy (Mar 11, 2013)

onthefence said:


> I really want a wax that will keep my board from getting "stuck" in spring slush and will last at least a full day of riding. My all-temp wax just isn't cutting it, and after a few runs I am not able to pick up enough speed to hit kickers.
> 
> I've heard sooo many different things from various resort shop employees. One said I need flourinated wax, one said graphite wax, and the other said no wax at all. Some forum members have said to use some other sort of additive to my wax. So whats the word?
> 
> I just bought some of this stuff online and am waiting for it... is this the best I can do? Plz recommend something so I can order it online soon, I'm going to Mammoth in a week!


No.

The rub-on wax isn't going to last. Read:
http://www.snowboardingforum.com/bo...] Guides to Waxing, Tuning and Board Repair. 
which leads to:


> Waxing a snowboard: How you legitimately get wax into a board... and what's a bunch of BS:
> 
> So, the next thing to understand is WHY you hotwax a snowboard. The reason is simple actually. A base, is a porous material. It becomes exceptionally porous when heated, because the molecules expand. At this point, the liquid heated wax is free to flow inbetween the expanded molecules of the base, and thereby the base ABSORBS the wax. When the base cools it settles, and retains the wax inside of it.
> 
> ...


SOme more info on Structure, as Lamps pointed out:
http://www.racewax.com/category/tuning-tips.ski-base-structure
Which wax then?

I like Fluorinated waxes on warm snow... late in the season, the snow would probably be dirty, so graphite or molybdenum (which I heard is better & faster than graphite) would also be a good additive to consider.

ONE BALL JAY HYDRO WAX- COOL 150g 

then drip on a warm temp wax, and do a proper hot wax.


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## Psi-Man (Aug 31, 2009)

For Spring, just get one of the various warm weather waxes, typically red in color. They are super easy to scrape as well and will help quite a bit in spring conditions. There are a bunch of guides here in this subforum that will help with waxing, structuring, etc. as well. Have fun in Mammoth.


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## CassMT (Mar 14, 2013)

...and have a couple Zardoz in your pocket


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## andrewdod (Mar 24, 2013)

that stuff will work good if you get stuck up on the hill, but like others have said you wanna get a good warm weather hot wax on there.


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## CassMT (Mar 14, 2013)

Yeh, nice thick coat of red, ironed smooth...I sometimes don't even scrape, the ruff snow or corn will do that for ya in the first 100 yards anyway


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## Irahi (May 19, 2011)

Spring waxing is kind of a bitch if you ride for any length of time. In my experience, most all warm temp waxes will last about 2-3 hours in corn snow, and then you're stripped down to a dry ass base for the rest of the day.

I've been using Hertel's race wax for spring riding, and while it doesn't feel quite as good as a temp specific wax, it actually lasts more than a single day's worth in riding. Whatever Hertel does to their wax makes it crazy, crazy durable, you can tell immediately when you start waxing that it's much harder than standard hydro waxes.


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## jdang307 (Feb 6, 2011)

onthefence said:


> I really want a wax that will keep my board from getting "stuck" in spring slush and will last at least a full day of riding. My all-temp wax just isn't cutting it, and after a few runs I am not able to pick up enough speed to hit kickers.
> 
> I've heard sooo many different things from various resort shop employees. One said I need flourinated wax, one said graphite wax, and the other said no wax at all. Some forum members have said to use some other sort of additive to my wax. So whats the word?
> 
> I just bought some of this stuff online and am waiting for it... is this the best I can do? Plz recommend something so I can order it online soon, I'm going to Mammoth in a week!


I just bought a Zardoz Notwax puck and some One Ball Jay black magic summer slush wax. 

My buddy is going to Mammoth on Friday, and I'm going to do his board up (I may go Monday). It's 60F and slushy. I was there two weeks ago. Chair 9/Eagle Lodge gets real wet. It's like an old slurpee over there at the bottom.

Going to rub the Zardoz on, and then apply the wax and get it all mixed in good. I might rub another layer on top but we'll see. Stuff isn't too cheap :laugh:


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## onthefence (Dec 16, 2010)

Irahi said:


> Spring waxing is kind of a bitch if you ride for any length of time. In my experience, most all warm temp waxes will last about 2-3 hours in corn snow, and then you're stripped down to a dry ass base for the rest of the day.
> 
> I've been using Hertel's race wax for spring riding, and while it doesn't feel quite as good as a temp specific wax, it actually lasts more than a single day's worth in riding.


A reviewer on that site said that he still has problems with that wax rubbing off. What conditions are you riding in, and how many hours/day? The stuff seems pretty expensive for its weight.



Thx for all the suggestions everyone, I'm looking into each of them right now 

How does this sound? May be a bit overkill, but I'm really looking for an all-day solution that won't be gone by halfway through a 6-8 hour day. Though I have a feeling that this will still be gone after like 4 hours...

- Clean my base
- Rub on some graphite additive
- Put some Zardoz Not-wax ontop of the graphite additive
- Drip on some warm temp wax
- Iron it all in
- Scrape 
- Rub some more Zardoz on top


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## rambob (Mar 5, 2011)

Take you board to a shop that knows the conditions for your mountain for spring. Ask them to put a texture for spring conditions. And then get it waxed for warm snow. The right texture is as important as wax in slush and warm snow conditions. And last: Learn how to tune your own board. (Rub on waxes dont really count as tuning!).


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## Irahi (May 19, 2011)

onthefence said:


> A reviewer on that site said that he still has problems with that wax rubbing off. What conditions are you riding in, and how many hours/day? The stuff seems pretty expensive for its weight.


It can rub off early if you don't heat it up appropriately, it doesn't stay in liquid form at 120 degrees like most all temps do, I usually iron at about 140 to heat it up enough.

I ride open to close five days a week (resorts here are 9-4), and ride in rain, sun baked slush, refrozen corn, hail, or whatever else happens during the day. For reference, I've used swix CH8, F4, and universal, as well as a couple Toko variants, and oneballjay graphite in the spring, and none of it has ever lasted more than half a day.


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## Lamps (Sep 3, 2011)

onthefence said:


> A reviewer on that site said that he still has problems with that wax rubbing off. What conditions are you riding in, and how many hours/day? The stuff seems pretty expensive for its weight.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


The most important step is missing - you need a base grind to add structure.


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## 24WERD (May 9, 2012)

Deep structure base

Hertel spring formula

45 degree each way to pull water out from under board.


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## onthefence (Dec 16, 2010)

I am kind of hesitant to get my base structured. It seems irreversible and I also read that there are conditions in which I would NOT want those grooves in my base. Can anybody elaborate on this?

Also, how will a structured base perform on boxes and rails?


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## Lamps (Sep 3, 2011)

I suspect no difference on boxes and rails, not sure what conditions you would be better off without structure.


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## tanscrazydaisy (Mar 11, 2013)

onthefence said:


> I am kind of hesitant to get my base structured. It seems irreversible and I also read that there are conditions in which I would NOT want those grooves in my base. Can anybody elaborate on this?
> 
> Also, how will a structured base perform on boxes and rails?


Your base already has some sort of structure ground from the factory. Grinding in another structure for different snow conditions... probably won't make a difference on boxes and rails. 

Getting up to speed for each park feature, that's important, especially if you cannot get up to speed.

Changing structure means grinding bases, which since the base thin, you only have a few opportunities for grinding.


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## 24WERD (May 9, 2012)

you don't have to base grind the base for spring just use a brass brush before you wax.


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## Lamps (Sep 3, 2011)

tanscrazydaisy said:


> Your base already has some sort of structure ground from the factory. Grinding in another structure for different snow conditions... probably won't make a difference on boxes and rails.
> 
> Getting up to speed for each park feature, that's important, especially if you cannot get up to speed.
> 
> Changing structure means grinding bases, which since the base thin, you only have a few opportunities for grinding.


Factory structure is typically pretty superficial like factory wax tends to be.


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## tanscrazydaisy (Mar 11, 2013)

Lamps said:


> Factory structure is typically pretty superficial like factory wax tends to be.


I might have to take my old Forum Seeker, and turn that into spring board....

some skiiers have multiple sets for different conditions


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## onthefence (Dec 16, 2010)

I am reading that I want a certain structure pattern for slush, but a different pattern for other conditions? What kind of pattern do you guys have, and how does if affect riding in slush vs pow midseason snow?


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