Basic Home Wax and Equipment List

Home Wax Kit - meant for everyday use and training. There are many options, but below you will find the waxes most commonly used in EMXC Jrs. Having these in your kit will make it easy for athletes to match the coach's wax call. You may also use older, non-fluoro waxes that you may have at home, especially for training wax.

Glide For skate and classic skis. Need 4 Temperature Ranges:
1. Green Range, aka Very Cold (Toko X-Cold Powder, Star Polar NF8, Rode R20, Swix PS5)
2. Blue/Violet Range, aka Cold (Toko Blue, Star Cold NF6, Rode R30, Swix PS6)
3. Violet/Red Range, aka near freezing (e.g. Toko Red, Star Med NF4, Rode R40, Swix PS8)
4. Yellow Range, aka Warm to V-Warm (e.g. Toko Yellow, Star Warm NF2, Rode R50, Swix PS10)
Kick

It is expected that you will apply to a classic practice with clean ski that has base binder applied. If you would like to apply your own wax prior to the session, you may do that, otherwise, coaches will provide wax for the session. You should, however, purchase the following for personal use outside of practice.

Base Binder:
Need base binder for kick and klister to bind the wax to the ski and pad the kick in colder conditions.

- Kick Wax Binder: Vauhti GS Base (stick), Vauhti GS Liquid
- Klister Binder: Rex Liquid Base Klister, Vauhti Liquid Base Klister, any "blue" range klister (for abrasive / icy conditions)


Hard Wax
Need 4-5 hard waxes that will cover the temperature spectrum. Many options across brands. By temperature range:
Green: Rode Blue Multigrade, Toko XCold, Swix VP30
Blue: Rode Blue Super, Toko Blue, Swix VP40
Blue/Violet: Rode Violet Multigrade, Toko Red, Swix VP45
Violet/Red: Rode Viola, Toko Red, Swix VP50
Red/Yellow: Rode Rot, Toko Yellow, Swix VP55 / VP60

Klister
Need 3-4 klisters that will cover the spectrum of conditions and temperatures. Many options across brands. By conditions:
Cold & Icy: Rode Blue, Toko Blue, Rex Blue, Swix KX30
Icy & Abrasive: Rode Violet, Rex Purple, Swix KX35
Coarse / Granular: Rode Rossa, Swix KX45
Wet / Wet Traces: Rode Multigrade, Swix K22 Universal, other universal klisters

Benches



There are many options. The large Toko bench is an EMXC favorite due to stability (though expensive).

Forms and extenders are extra.

If you have a work bench at home, you can clamp vises or a ski profile to it - not portable.

Groove ScraperThere are many options available.
Plexi ScraperThere are many options, thick and thin. Important to keep them sharp. (see below)
Ski Wax IronYou will need one for home. There are several price points, with the more expensive being digital.
For most home paraffin wax applications, you do not need digital iron. But, it is critical to have an iron that can set temperature (with a dial) according to the particular wax. The biggest danger is ruining the ski base with too hot an iron (so don’t use an old clothes iron).
Standard irons - Toko, Swix, Star, Holmenkol
Brushes

There are hundreds of options. You will typically need 2-3 brushes; one to take off excess paraffin wax from the surface and structure after scraping, and one to polish. Red Creek brushes from Caldwell Sport are excellent, though expensive.

Brushes for wax removal from the base/surface and structure of the base. Note that brushes with any metal component should always be used in the same direction (helpful to draw an arrow on your brush with a sharpie) and always tip-to-tail (i.e., never “scrub”!)

  • Horsehair - very good brush to take off most excess paraffin wax from ski base after scraping. You can scrub (brush back and forth) with a horsehair brush, and it is usually the first brush to use after scraping. The Red Creek horsehair is good, but so are Toko, Swix, and Holmenkol.
  • Copper (Toko) - good all-around brush to take off paraffin after scraping
  • Hard Steel/Nylon (Red Creek Oval) - excellent big brush at getting off excess wax. We used this on race days and found it cleaned off a lot of excess wax from skis that were already prepped at home.
  • Fine Steel/Brass/Copper - for fine cleaning of the structure. Final brush before polishing.
Polish/Finishing Brushes

Note: we have found that the common Toko base brush nylon is not very useful, as it is less effective than horsehair or metal brushes at clearing the surface/structure, and not soft enough for polishing.

Summary of Brush Options:

  • 1 horsehair, 1 copper or steel, 1 nylon polisher -or-
  • 1 steel/nylon combo, 1 nylon polisher
CorksBuy several new corks per season (synthetic or natural)
SandpaperNeeded to prep the kick zone (P180) and (P150) for icy days
Cleaners
  • Avoid GooGone - leaves residue on base
  • Kick cleaner - will need something to get the kick wax/klister off
    • Putty knife to scrape off kick/klister
    • Toko HC3 - expensive, but very good for kick/klister/sidewall cleaning
  • Glide cleaner cleaner - Good fluoro-free options from Rex and Swix
  • Fiberlene - special cloth that leaves little residue and removes base debris, filling, and dust before adding wax layer. Buy in rolls; relatively cheap (can also use coffee filters).
Blue Painters TapeCan purchase at the hardware store. Used to mark kick zones and label skis.
Good Ventilation/MasksEven though we are fluoro-free, it is best not to have too many fumes lingering around your wax bench. Dust masks (N95 not needed) are also a good idea when scraping and brushing to keep fine particulate matter out of the nose, throat, and lungs.
Scraper/Sharpener

A scraper or sharpener is good to have on hand. Or, you can use a file or sandpaper to sharpen scrapers. (Lay sandpaper flat on table and, bracing the scraper with a block of wood, rub the scraper edge on sandpaper). Better to have a sharp scraper and scrape fewer times, rather than a dull scraper that requires multiple passes. This will help with both reducing ski blemishes, and maintaining sanity. A sharp scraper means less brushing!

Coarse Diamond FileUsed for roller ski tips. You can find these in hardware stores, or online.


Make your wax room fluoro-free! Remember to...

  • Dispose of any polishing brushes that have been used for HF or pure flouro waxes.
  • Vacuum all other brushes.
  • Clean scrapers and groove tools with solvents.
  • Rotate new corks into your wax kit.

Where to buy your wax kit supplies and equipment...

Locally

  • Bikeway Source in Bedford. Support Chris Li (Wax and ski guru, EMXC parent, Wayland coach) and his shop!
  • Weston Ski Track “shop” - small pop-up store during season
  • Local hardware stores

On-Line