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Alternative ways to wax skis (possible lost iron)

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KravtZ
Posts: 6637 - Karma: 2,629
So i may have lost my waxing iron since i moved since last winter. Im working this weekend and have no time to get to the store to pick a new one up. Anyone know of any alternative to a traditional ski waxing iron. Could I use a normal clothing iron if i turn the heat donw? Would that ruin the iron since my mom uses it for clothes to. Does anyone else have any other method they use to wax skis?
Dec 22 2012 8:43PM
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bquick222
Posts: 124 - Karma: 363
1. Go to Walmart (they stay open 24 hours) after work
2. Buy iron there for $7
3. Wax skis
4. Slay mountain
5.????
6.profit

and to answer your question about using your moms iron, she could probably use it on clothes after waxing skis as long as you take a damp rag and wipe it off while its hot eliminating the wax. Not 100% sure but I bet it would work.
Dec 22 2012 8:53PM
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steeze-free_lee
Posts: 295 - Karma: 28
from experience, a clothes iron will work 100%.

make sure there's no water in the iron and spend some time experimenting with the heat settings; just like with a waxing iron you'll wanna keep the temperature as low as possible so you don't fuck up your bases. just make sure you wipe the iron off with either a clean rag or some damp paper towels before it cools off and you're good to go.

i was too cheap to buy a new iron and couldn't find one at the salvation army so i used my ultra-douche housemate's clothes iron on my skis for months, he never noticed and my skis rode great.
Dec 22 2012 9:15PM
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KravtZ
Posts: 6637 - Karma: 2,629
for whateve reason if there is water in the iron what will it do to the bases of the skis?
Dec 22 2012 9:34PM
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Saga.
Posts: 3812 - Karma: 45,331
have used a hot plate to warm up a machete then use the hot machete to melt the wax, back and forth. it was a process but worked.

also have tried shaving small pieces of wax onto the base then letting it sit out on black top in the hot sun to melt (only works in the summer).

both of these methods werent that effective but better than nothing.
Dec 22 2012 9:40PM
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ironic
Posts: 735 - Karma: 104
Click for larger image

All ready to wax.
Dec 22 2012 9:43PM
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steeze-free_lee
Posts: 295 - Karma: 28
honestly probably nothing, especially if you're using fluoro wax seeing as it's a water repellant, but i've always cleared out the water chamber beforehand.

i'd say just play it safe & pour/pump it out before you start applying wax, it's just the heat you're looking for anyways.
Dec 22 2012 9:44PM
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californiagrown
Posts: 9794 - Karma: 2,014
for the love of god DO NOT USE YOUR MOTHERS CLOTHING IRON!!!!

it will get wax on it, and no matter how much you try and clean it off, you wont get it clean and your mom will ruin her clothes.

two options-

1: Basically offer to replace the iron if you get wax on it, cover it in multiple layers of foil, and go to town

2: dont wax. its not the end of the world if you go without waxing for a day or two.
Dec 22 2012 9:45PM
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steeze-free_lee
Posts: 295 - Karma: 28
i've never had this problem before, but using a couple layers of foil is actually an excellent idea if you're worried.
Dec 22 2012 9:51PM
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NEIL-YOUNG
Posts: 317 - Karma: 423
hot metal spatuala on hot plate    works surprisingly well

Dec 22 2012 11:20PM
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ILLinoisance
Posts: 3527 - Karma: 5,398
a heat gun actually works really well. color the wax on the bases like you're using a crayon, melt it (not using too high of a setting, though), and scrape (or don't scrape depending on what you prefer).
Dec 23 2012 2:46AM
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Zimmy
Posts: 1258 - Karma: -1,327
Any way to tell your fucking up the bases when ironing? I know the wax shouldn't get to smoke point, but was not aware the base has a temp limit too to worry about.

Also, would you know if you can ruin the camber/rocker/tip angle of a ski with too high a temp?
Dec 23 2012 3:50AM
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-Otto-
Posts: 456 - Karma: 40
Just take a pan and put it on the fire, works perfectly fine.
Dec 23 2012 5:26AM
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brizz
Posts: 1051 - Karma: 74
have used a butane torch to melt wax
Dec 23 2012 3:19PM
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AlexMartini
Posts: 2989 - Karma: 1,905
yup
Dec 23 2012 3:30PM
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steeze-free_lee
Posts: 295 - Karma: 28
color change is the best indicator, it would be pretty hard to notice while you're ironing unless you were to do something really stupid like leave the iron still.

burns are a lot easier to see on dark bases, but look for white/grey "dry" patches on them from time to time after riding. it's a little difficult to explain, but if you've ever checked out some bases at a ski swap or on a super beat pair you've definitely seen it, especially on older pairs.

if i recall correctly, base material can be damaged by temps over ~80ish C. most waxes don't flow at that low a temp, so if you crank the iron up higher just make sure you keep the it moving and have a decent layer of wax between your it and your bases.

as to iron temp ruining camber, i wouldn't worry about it. i'm sure there are some techs out there who would disagree and i've heard that if you hot scrape a ski over and over again without letting it cool you can damage camber, but in reality i'd worry a lot more about damaging the bases than the camber.
Dec 23 2012 4:01PM
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CalebT
Posts: 1186 - Karma: 765
Actually, you want the iron to be as hot as possible before the wax starts to smoke. The reason is so you get the most of the wax as the bases absorb wax the best the hotter it is. But when it starts to smoke the bases can and most likely will get damaged. Especially over time.
Dec 23 2012 6:34PM
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Bonzalo
Posts: 2593 - Karma: 1,812
Just wax the skis as you would do a surf board, its not going to be as good but it will do the job.
Dec 23 2012 6:37PM
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steeze-free_lee
Posts: 295 - Karma: 28
i agree to an extent; smoke definitely is a sign of too hot, both for the wax and your bases. but like i said above a lot of waxes (mainly fluoro) flow best at temps that are high enough to damage bases (especially over time).

in general you're right, the main reason why i suggested using as low a heat setting as possible is because the OP was thinking of using a clothes iron which is a lot less precise than an actual waxing iron.

the fact of the matter is that if you wax enough, even properly, over time the bases are going to be effected. hell, even friction from snow over a long enough period of time can "burn" your bases.

Dec 23 2012 7:25PM
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CalebT
Posts: 1186 - Karma: 765
yeah i suppose that you would want to take it easier on a regular iron, but once you get used to it and know the right temperature then you should go a bit less than smoke temperature. if they're park skis you don't need to worry about them that much anyways because of obvious reasons. park skis are not going to last you the amount of time it would take for your bases to get damaged from hot waxing.
Dec 23 2012 7:29PM
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KravtZ
Posts: 6637 - Karma: 2,629
Alright thanks for the tips Im pretty seasoned at waxing and have been doing it for a few years now so i know what to look for in terms of burning. Just never used the clothes iron before since i lost my waxer whnen i moved
Dec 23 2012 8:00PM
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KravtZ
Posts: 6637 - Karma: 2,629
sorry for the multiple posts....

so anyways when i lost my waxer i also lost my scrapers and somehow only have my wax left. Any good alternatives to scrapers out there? Don't want to use anything metal.
Dec 23 2012 8:39PM
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ESB
Posts: 9274 - Karma: 10,648
A clothes iron is just fine. Just don't let your mom iron any clothes with it afterwards, because she's not going to be stoked. You can pick up a cheap used iron at your local thrift shop.

As mentioned above, once the wax starts to smoke, your iron is too hot and could damage your bases. Otherwise you're good to go.

As far as scraping goes, I honestly don't even do it anymore and I don't think the majority of freeskiers need to. When you don't scrape, your skis will ride slowly for the first run or two, but once that wax gets heated up you'll be smooth sailing and your wax job will last much longer. Scraping means you're hauling balls right out of the start gate, but your wax job might not last longer than half the day. I think scraping is important for someone who's running a World Cup race where you need to be fast immediately, but for us normal people, you can leave that extra on there and ride it longer. That's my two cents.
Dec 23 2012 8:52PM
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steeze-free_lee
Posts: 295 - Karma: 28
credit cards or anything similar work well in a pinch, just don't use one you plan on using in the future haha.

i've probably used my safeway club card to scrape over a dozen times at this point.
Dec 23 2012 8:55PM
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Bonzalo
Posts: 2593 - Karma: 1,812
Truth right there, as an ex racer I can confirm this, no need to scrap if you are not racing.
Dec 23 2012 8:58PM
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