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When it comes time to pack away your skis after winter, don't just toss them in your garage to deal with when the snow returns. Taking some time to prepare them will help prolong their life and improve their performance.
We asked our in-house expert ski technician, Tom, for some easy pointers you can try out at home to keep your snowsports equipment in top condition.
"Taking care of your gear is essential for your gear to take care of you. Some basic, regular maintenance goes a long way to ensuring your skis or board perform as they were designed to and last as long as you expect them to." - Tom, Ski workshop technician
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This prevents rust from forming on the edges and protects the base.
You will need:
All-temp wax
Edge tool
Gummy stone
Base cleaner
Time: 20 minutes
Steps:
Run the edge tool from tip to tail to sharpen edges and ensure burrs are removed, and use the gummy stone to polish. Edges should feel smooth. This helps prevent scratches to your iron when covering the edge rails with wax.
Clean the base down with base cleaner and a cloth.
Put your iron on low heat (ensuring the wax does not smoke when it touches the iron's heat plate).
Press the wax against the iron base about three inches away from the ski base and place drops of wax every two or three inches apart over a third of the base.
Push the iron along the surface of the base (it is essential to always keep the iron moving along the base to prevent burning the ski), making sure to spread the wax over the base edges.
Repeat this for the next two-thirds of the base and then let it rest for five minutes.
These stop water from rotting the wood core of your ski, which will slow you down and affect all-around performance
You need:
Epoxy Resin
Time: 20 minutes (plus three hours drying time for express glue, 24 for normal)
Steps:
A common problem resulting in loss of ski performance is water seeping into the wood core through little cracks and chips on the sidewall and top sheet. The water rots the wood, causing it to lose its stiffness (speed) and flex (pop).
To prevent this, let your skis dry out in your house for a few days to remove any water left in them. Visit your local DIY shop for some Epoxy-resin (Araldite or any brand will do).
Mix up the two pastes on a piece of scrap card and apply this to any cracks or chips on your ski. Don't worry about being liberal with the glue, but try to avoid getting it on your edges.
Let the glue set, and now your skis are fully waterproof again. If you do get any glue on the edges and it has dried, get a sharp knife or metal scraper and gently scrape the glue from the edges.
For any large chips or if the base is coming away from the bottom of the edge (delamination), bring your skis into one of our stores, and our friendly Ski Technicians can fix it up using professional equipment and techniques for longer-lasting repairs.
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