Member of the Month

hi_vis360
November, 2024

Online

Welcome to the Newschoolers forums! You may read the forums as a guest, however you must be a registered member to post. Register to become a member today!

Why are my ski bases white?

profile picture
Ncaron1018
Posts: 14 - Karma: 52
I bought new skis and rode on the factory tune for a few days, the bases turned white and really slow , brought them to a ski shop to get belt sanded and waxed. Got them back and skied for 5 more days they became more white and slow than ever before , what do I need to fix this problem? Please help!
Jan 3 2016 4:36PM
19 2
profile picture
pj21
Posts: 400 - Karma: 4,635
This happens with (correct my if I'm wrong) Extruded Ski bases. These bases are tougher yet do not absorb and retain wax as well as a sintered ski base. I am led to believe that the 'whitening' of your base is the base drying out. The simple fix to this is to scrape, brush and wax your skis.
Jan 3 2016 4:46PM
5 0
profile picture
Beast.coast
Posts: 71 - Karma: 291
Just wax them more frequently. You'll definitely save money if you do it yourself at home instead of sending them into the shop every time.
Jan 3 2016 5:03PM
7 0
profile picture
pj21
Posts: 400 - Karma: 4,635
This happens with (correct my if I'm wrong) Extruded Ski bases. These bases are tougher yet do not absorb and retain wax as well as a sintered ski base. I am led to believe that the 'whitening' of your base is the base drying out. The simple fix to this is to scrape, brush and wax your skis.
Jan 3 2016 5:03PM
0 2
profile picture
pj21
Posts: 400 - Karma: 4,635
ElbowkushThis happens with (correct my if I'm wrong) Extruded Ski bases. These bases are tougher yet do not absorb and retain wax as well as a sintered ski base. I am led to believe that the 'whitening' of your base is the base drying out. The simple fix to this is to scrape, brush and wax your skis.


I apologise for the double post
Jan 3 2016 5:08PM
0 0
profile picture
Deepskier
Posts: 3267 - Karma: 4,832
Whiter and harder means slower and dehydrated just wax them more and give them some time to soak up the wax into the bases pores if you don't have a waxing kit get one I recommend dakine and once you wax them they will be normal color and speed
Jan 3 2016 5:12PM
0 0
profile picture
LynxNation
Posts: 780 - Karma: 5,853
Do your waxing at home, it's going to save you money and last longer. Belt waxes aren't meant to last for ever, they're quick (benefit) but rub off quickly.
Jan 3 2016 5:33PM
0 0
profile picture
Gavin_Newcomer
Posts: 102 - Karma: 265
Go to the local shop grab a huge brick of universal wax and then get an old iron from somewhere and lay on a decent size amount of wax on both skis and let them sit for a day then scrap the wax off it should be better
Jan 3 2016 5:52PM
1 0
profile picture
KravtZ
Posts: 6637 - Karma: 2,629
Wax them son at your house. Buy an iron and soem good ski wax.

The general shop wax job is garbage and comes off so quickly compared to a quality hot iron. It is run through some machine which is designed more for quantity than quality.

Wax your skis at home and then re-do it like 3 times. By the sound of it your bases are very very dried out. They need to absorb the wax not just apply a layer on the top probably what the shop does t omake it look nice.
Jan 4 2016 11:49AM
0 0
profile picture
zachshuster
Posts: 109 - Karma: 495
yes for sure wax wax wax your skis. It helps so much after one session for me my bases get so white cause they get like bone dry so i have to wax after every session. And its so much cheaper to wax at home.
Jan 4 2016 2:41PM
0 0
profile picture
The.Fish
Posts: 2269 - Karma: 4,992
What I am trying to do to fix this currently is heating the base up with a hair dryer so the pores of the base open up. I do my normal hot wax and make sure to put a little more along the edges. Then I put the skis in front of a fireplace so the wax really soaks into the base. I havent skied on them yet since I just did it 30 minutes ago. It happened right after I got a stone grind too.
Jan 4 2016 4:31PM
0 0
profile picture
Park.
Posts: 2480 - Karma: 4,582
The.FishWhat I am trying to do to fix this currently is heating the base up with a hair dryer so the pores of the base open up. I do my normal hot wax and make sure to put a little more along the edges. Then I put the skis in front of a fireplace so the wax really soaks into the base. I havent skied on them yet since I just did it 30 minutes ago. It happened right after I got a stone grind too.


I did this too with some Ace of spades (they have metal sheets in them) and the skis started warping and started getting rocker. I talked to my tech about it and he said when skis get overly heated, the epoxy holding them together deteriorates and separates, leaading to delams. Do not put them in front of a fire for very long if at all.
Jan 5 2016 7:26PM
0 0
profile picture
BoardSideDown
Posts: 547 - Karma: 254
Ncaron1018I bought new skis and rode on the factory tune for a few days, the bases turned white and really slow , brought them to a ski shop to get belt sanded and waxed. Got them back and skied for 5 more days they became more white and slow than ever before , what do I need to fix this problem? Please help!


As others have said, most likely your bases are extruded and dried out. However, just waxing you skis may not work fully. It depends on the extent of how dried out your bases are. If the bases are just starting to turn white and crusty, a good wax job will do the trick, but if your bases are almost fully white and seems extra dry, then you probably want to get a base grind before you wax your skis.

A base grind will sand off the dried layer of the base, this will give your bases a brand new rejuvenated look, and your bases will be able to absorb wax once again.

*Completely dried out bases will barely hold any wax.*

Post a picture if you are unsure on how bad they are, and I'm sure myself or someone else can let you know if you need a base grind.
Jan 5 2016 7:39PM
0 0
profile picture
skidemon22
Posts: 4426 - Karma: 1,950
ElbowkushThis happens with (correct my if I'm wrong) Extruded Ski bases. These bases are tougher yet do not absorb and retain wax as well as a sintered ski base. I am led to believe that the 'whitening' of your base is the base drying out. The simple fix to this is to scrape, brush and wax your skis.


you have that backwards.... wax, scrape and brush...

and its not so much that extruded plastics are 'tougher' but you are right in that they do not hold wax or a structure (from a grinding stone) as well as a sintered base.

simple answer: wax your skis as much as you can!!!!
Jan 6 2016 10:49PM
0 0
profile picture
Ncaron1018
Posts: 14 - Karma: 52
Thanks Guys helped a lot ! They were really really extruded and dried out do I got a stone grind and rewax and that seemed to fix it !
Jan 17 2016 6:58PM
0 0
All times are Eastern (-5)