Surfing Waves

I did a little digging around on here and on other sites to see what waxes and wax combos people used in 12 C to 14 C waters. After reading and taking note I decided to go for a quick humps 'red' basecoat with a 'purple' top coat. When i went to the shop yo grab my waxes the woman behind the counter said 'you wont want purple now, you should be using green'. I figured i knew what i was doing and bought the purple still. Was I wrong to do so?

Also I spoke with another shop worker who said all this colours and basecoat talk is a load of crap. And all he uses is Far King Cold wax.

I'm not sure what i should be using now. Wax is cheap enough so its no big deal trying differant things, i just dont want to have to scrape and re wax my board a thousand times before I get a decent ride.

Im looking to confirm what im using is fine or not and if not some suggestions for what i should be using. I surf on the south Coast UK (between Bournemouth & Brighton and various spots in Cornwall/Devon, temps are currently between 12 & 14 C.

Thanks.

AS Professor Miyagi in Karate Kid would say. Far king wax on, other wax off. Does the woman surf? read the label for recommended water temps.
Unless they surf don't trust a shop assistant, it's not that they are untrustworthy but they probably just don't know

The purple is apparently ideal for temp range of 10 to 14 C. Im not sure what temps the green is ideal for. Its the only one I cannot find exact temps for.

Maybe with the water temps being at the high end of the temp range for that wax it may just melt slowly under my feet. I had hoped it would give me a nice sticky traction.

Ill just buy a green one aswell and try it out. Theres nothing wrong with a bit of bonding time with my board when Im out of the water.

Back in the old days, when I used to surf the chilly waters of the UK...

...I used to use green most of the time and purple in winter. If you use purple in the summer, its not the water thats the problem but the air temp. It melts really easily and you'll end up getting a 'polished' wax surface on there. Best to use the green.

drowningbitbybit wrote:Back in the old days, when I used to surf the chilly waters of the UK...

...I used to use green most of the time and purple in winter. If you use purple in the summer, its not the water thats the problem but the air temp. It melts really easily and you'll end up getting a 'polished' wax surface on there. Best to use the green.

Did you use a basecoat if so is red ok?

The thing about surf wax is the more people you ask the more different answers you will get on how to wax your board correctly. Everybody has their own ideas of what works well. I like a good base coat so my wax does not matt down (flatten out) as easy. I do not think brand is as important as temp. I like to use a tropical, or warm water wax for my base coat. and a cold water wax for my top coat. If you use to soft of a wax in the warmer weather the wax will melt easy and matt down and become a mess. So use a warmer temp wax in the warmer months example: cool instead of cold. One other trick I like is to warm up my base wax before applying it to my board so it will go on easy and I will have a good base. Good Luck!

tony g wrote:The thing about surf wax is the more people you ask the more different answers you will get on how to wax your board correctly. Everybody has their own ideas of what works well. I like a good base coat so my wax does not matt down (flatten out) as easy. I do not think brand is as important as temp. I like to use a tropical, or warm water wax for my base coat. and a cold water wax for my top coat. If you use to soft of a wax in the warmer weather the wax will melt easy and matt down and become a mess. So use a warmer temp wax in the warmer months example: cool instead of cold. One other trick I like is to warm up my base wax before applying it to my board so it will go on easy and I will have a good base. Good Luck!

How do you warm your wax? I thought about dropping it in some warm water for a bit maybe?

You could put it in the sun for a few minutes to warm it up. Dipping the bar of wax in hot water will also work. I have also used the microwave, but be careful, and do so at your own risk. It does not take to long to have a wax mess in the microwave.