Alternatives to waxing..

[jam bo]

Just picked up a new board and thinking about alternatives to waxing.

Quite often leave the board in the car while I'm at work and fed up with melted wax.

Are any of the spray on or stick on wax alternatives actually any good?

It's a 7'4" magic carpet by the way.

[mal-nourished]

superglue works well or 6in nails... theres been a few silicone spray products over the years none have taken off so must tell you something...

[danny1]

shaving

[ATTMFKH]

Electrolosis

[Philshoz]

It's a 7'4" magic carpet by the way.

Just add oofle dust............magic ride.

[briggfoot]

Full length traction pad?

[prjwebb]

XM Clear Grip? Sunny Garcia used it for a while I think?!

[kayu]

Cork decks work well..... .......or wax yer feet.

[Philshoz]

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/DING-ALL-Surfboard-Wax-Hula-Deck-Roll-On-Traction-Grip-/110917510738?pt=UK_Surfing&hash=item19d332e652

[Chris F]

Stick velcro to board, wetsuit and boots.

[MrMik]

Cork decks work well..... .......or wax yer feet.

Can you retro-fit a cork deck to a poly-board?

Here is an el-cheapo method to get a full deck grip: Dumpster-diving at a deck-grip factory
The dumpster will be full of cutoffs left over from when the machine stamps out the tailpads. Cut it into circles and design whatever you like from multiple colours.

Griphook Deck.jpeg (110.71 KiB) Viewed 5145 times

It takes some time, but saves you a packet!

[kayu]

Cork decks work well..... .......or wax yer feet.

Can you retro-fit a cork deck to a poly-board?

....can't see why not MrMik...although cork is probly heavier than deckgrip......

[mal-nourished]

had a friend cover his longboard in that rubberised carpet underlay stuff unfortunately the glue he used was shite but the actuall feel was ok worth a thought..

[kayu]

Artificial synthetic grass would feel quite nice underfoot...

[MrMik]

Cork decks work well..... .......or wax yer feet.

Can you retro-fit a cork deck to a poly-board?

....can't see why not MrMik...although cork is probly heavier than deckgrip......

I wonder if cork would cause less chafing / abrasions on knees and tummy (compared to deck grip) - any experience with that? That's the only downside I've found for deck grip vs wax - absolutely have to wear a rashy or leave several days between surf sessions.

How would one best glue the cork to the board - contact glue I guess?

[kayu]

The Amorim cork being used widely now by some board builders comes in 2mm. The result are very favourable regarding both traction and chafing........applying it as a deck grip , I think =cut out your shape ,trace it on the deck and tape it off neatly. You could use contact cement and press the two together with a good result......toxic stuff that contact cement , but thats how a rubber deck grip is applied ?..........ideally ,vac it on with the right glue or resin ( poly or epoxy).......

[Philshoz]

Cork decks work well..... .......or wax yer feet.

Can you retro-fit a cork deck to a poly-board?

Here is an el-cheapo method to get a full deck grip: Dumpster-diving at a deck-grip factory
The dumpster will be full of cutoffs left over from when the machine stamps out the tailpads. Cut it into circles and design whatever you like from multiple colours.

Griphook Deck.jpeg

It takes some time, but saves you a packet!

But looks awful, in my opinion, sorry.......

When you say saves a packet, how much are you likely to spend on wax per annum?..........20€

[MrMik]

But looks awful, in my opinion, sorry.......

When you say saves a packet, how much are you likely to spend on wax per annum?..........20€

Yeah, not the best I've ever come up with, but no-one has tried to steal the board, either!

I meant saving money compared to the price for a full deck grip. I use wax very rarely, only before I have time to put a full deck grip on a board.

It only makes sense with high quality, durable surfboards. If you ride a potato chip that will be broken in a few months, then wax makes more sense.

[swiggy]

20 quid a year on wax? I haven't bought wax for a long time. Somebody always has some

[ATTMFKH]

I've got all the wax scraped off boards over the years in a bucket - melted some into a big block a couple of years back, cut out the sand at the bottom of the block but the wax was a bit hard anyone know what to add to it , other than heat , to make it softer......

[Philshoz]

I've got all the wax scraped off boards over the years in a bucket - melted some into a big block a couple of years back, cut out the sand at the bottom of the block but the wax was a bit hard anyone know what to add to it , other than heat , to make it softer......

Equal quantities of Edam cheese rind..................guaranteed...

[MrMik]

I've got all the wax scraped off boards over the years in a bucket - melted some into a big block a couple of years back, cut out the sand at the bottom of the block but the wax was a bit hard anyone know what to add to it , other than heat , to make it softer......

Coconut oil might work. It can be used to make surfboard wax together with beeswax.

[Chris F]

Spuff in it.

[ATTMFKH]

^define spuff you wardo

[Chris F]

You know exactly what I mean.

[well-chilled-out]

Interesting one this, as have tried to re-invent the wheel on numerous occasions but have always come back to wax..Why ? Well, I believe it's down to " I love the smell, the texture & it makes me feel at one with my board...I love stripping old wax off & applying new...My board always responds to this love, it always feels better, surfs better..It's probably my insanity but my board has soul..If I look after it, it rewards me ,if I treat it like dirt, it'll do the same to me..There's no finer wax scent than coconut & on those hot summer days, it seems to be stronger.Just paddling out on a great day with that scent wafting is magical...Deck grips etc don't have that magic--may wax be around forever..Like the design of a surfboard, it hasn't changed much since invented & why should it..Use WAX, it's your board's SOUL !

[Philshoz]

Interesting one this, as have tried to re-invent the wheel on numerous occasions but have always come back to wax..Why ? Well, I believe it's down to " I love the smell, the texture & it makes me feel at one with my board...I love stripping old wax off & applying new...My board always responds to this love, it always feels better, surfs better..It's probably my insanity but my board has soul..If I look after it, it rewards me ,if I treat it like dirt, it'll do the same to me..There's no finer wax scent than coconut & on those hot summer days, it seems to be stronger.Just paddling out on a great day with that scent wafting is magical...Deck grips etc don't have that magic--may wax be around forever..Like the design of a surfboard, it hasn't changed much since invented & why should it..Use WAX, it's your board's SOUL !

I'm with you there, I like nothing more than a total clean up of a board. Bit of a polish, basecoat and a nice new pimply top coat.

If it hadn't started raining this morning I would have selected a board to tidy up..............

[Chris F]

I love the smell, the texture & it makes me feel at one with my board...I love stripping old wax off & applying new..

Are you Waxmember?

[Poo Stance]

Has someone already suggested these puppies?

http://www.eazi-stops.com/doorstops.htm

Maybe set them into the resin as it cures so they are a bit more permafixed and don't fall off and add more plastic to the sea.

Would there be a way to scuff up the resin as it cures so you could make humps out of it?

Or maybe a thin rubber sock similar to thiswith good grip on the inside and out to stop slippage?

[MrMik]

Cork decks work well..... .......or wax yer feet.

Can you retro-fit a cork deck to a poly-board?

....can't see why not MrMik...although cork is probly heavier than deckgrip......

What type of cork would you recommend, and where can I get it?

I have run some preliminary experiments with cork tiles from Bunnings and cork place-mats (for glasses/pots) and a cork pin-board from the Reject shop.

The cork pin-board is probably too thin, it's really just 1mm cork with a lot of cardboard behind it.

The place-mats and the floor tiles are of similar thickness, about 6mm (guessing) and I think I'd like something a bit thinner.

The cork place-mats are softer than the floor tiles and soak up 170% of their own weight in fresh water. I think that rules them out.

The floor tiles soak up 30% of their own weight in fresh water (overnight) and seem to dry quite rapidly.

I want to apply the cork to the rear half of a thick longboard with heavy glass job, so I'm not worried about a bit of extra weight compared to deck grip.

Any suggestions?