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Base Coat Question

PostPosted: Fri Jan 06, 2012 9:30 pm
by Farnam
Hey all, new to this forum as well as the sport, just trying to make sure im off to the right start. Hopefully I can give back as much as I recieve as I foresee myself asking a bunch of questions here :mrgreen:

Anywho, I've been getting out about every day for the past 2 weeks, and had a quick wax question. It seems that my top coat of wax wears pretty quickly, as I've tried to follow most techniques that I've read online. I know some people may think waxing is at times unnecessarily treated as a complicated science, but I guessing this is a result of an inefficient base coat. My question, is there a way to reapply the base...say for example on top of what I have now...or would my best bet be to clean off the board and start all over again. For the most part I can stick well on my board, but it seems the rails and some of the middle are worn (I'm riding a 9' so it makes sense that I may have missed some spots)


Thanks for the help!

Re: Base Coat Question

PostPosted: Sat Jan 07, 2012 3:52 am
by IB_Surfer
I don't have that problem, but one of my buds swears that wax does not stay on his board. He waxes before going out then waxes while in the lineup. It drives me crazy.

One thing for me is that some waxes I've used I hated, they came off too easy or they where too hard or soft. Have you tried using different brands?

Re: Base Coat Question

PostPosted: Sat Jan 07, 2012 10:27 am
by jaffa1949
Back in my Hippy days when I used to make perfumed candles and board wax to pay my way through University I got to play with all sorts of wax and additives, never worried about base coats and fancy stuff would gather old left over wax and scrape my board throw in old candle buts and then skim the scum right off, the only thing that made wax impossible then was to much petroleum parafin or sterene ( not styrene), or there was too much oil based perfume which made it slippery. I went into other business a long time ago.
Has wax advanced ? yes, what do I advise simple use what works and avoid the other brands,in extreme climate bands this is more critical, and when you find a good brand stick to it ( pun intended) scrape it off occasionally and if you can be bothered melt it down and reuse. Warning fire hazard use a double boiler outside somewhere away from the kitchen save you being killed by wife or Mum.
As to brand quality and stuff like that, is it hype or science :?: :?: :?: :?:
Where is the old honey wax these days. There is even a guy selling vintage wax brands on ebay :lol: Retro to the max.
At one stage before wax we wore sandshoes for traction :shock: Great at a spot near Cronulla called Sandshoes because they also protected against sea urchin spines.
Now that I've waxed lyrical :lol: :lol:

Re: Base Coat Question

PostPosted: Sun Jan 08, 2012 11:39 pm
by tony g
I try to keep the wax process simple. You can't easily put base wax over your top wax, so it is best to strip your board first. Apply a base wax first followed by a top coat suited for your water temp. The base wax is harder and will not mat down as quickly and therefore will give you a longer lasting wax job. I have also used warm water and tropical wax in place of a base coat and had great results. Try to get sufficient base wax on your board to the point of forming bumps or wax beads, then apply the top coat. Good luck!

Re: Base Coat Question

PostPosted: Mon Jan 16, 2012 1:25 am
by nievanivens
Wow..glad i came across this one.