Trying to decide when to tune your skis?
Don't know whether to do it yourself or in a shop?
....Don't know the technical stuff behind the maintenance?
.........We can give you the info you need to make an educated decision.
What things are included in a tune?
Base Grind: The shop will grind the base using a base grinding machine. They do this to level the surface of the ski and remove debris, minor scratches, and old wax from the base material.
- When doing this at home, you can use sandpaper or a belt sander.
Sharpened Edges: The shop will sharpen your ski edges using a ski edge sharpener machine or a metal file depending on their capabilities. They do this to create a sharper edge so you are able to maneuver turns on ice and snow more easily as they get dull over time and use.
- When doing this at home you can use a steel file and an edge sharpening stone.
Machine Waxing: The shop will wax your skis using a machine that has two rollers. One roller is heated and applied with wax and the second roller has a nylon brush to remove excess and buff it out.
- This cannot be done at home.
Hot Wax: The shop will melt wax on your skis and iron it in the base material to remove the excess using a plastic scraper. The wax will absorb into the base material which will protect the ski and enhance the performance and speed. This type of waxing will last longer and enhance performance better than paste waxes, stick waxes, and machine waxes. Before you wax, they will use a base cleaner that dissolves and removes old wax from ski.
- When doing this at home you can use wax, an old iron, and a scraper. Alternatives to that include a paste wax or a stick wax. When using a base cleaner make sure all excess is wiped clean before applying wax.
Storage Wax: The shop will apply a thick layer of wax as you would during a hot wax, however they will wait until your ready to slopes again to remove the wax. This is used when skis are in storage over the summer months to close the pores, protect, seal and rehydrate the base material. Then when you are ready to hit the slopes again you would bring it back to the shop to scrape off the excess.
- This can be done the same at home.
Binding Inspection: The shop will inspect the skis by double checking their dins, making sure that the boot is releasing from the ski properly, and also ensuring that nothing is cracked, broken, loose, or missing. The shop will use a screwdriver to adjust the din if needed based on the skiing ability of the skier.
- Setting the din of a ski should never be done at home and for safety it should always be done by a professional.
PTex: Ptex materials is melted on the ski and smoothed in with an iron and the excess is then removed with a metal scraper. This is used to fix scrapes, gouges, and other imperfections to the base material.
- This can be done the same at home.
Epoxy: The shop will use epoxy to fix skis that have chips on the top sheet or try to fix delamination of this ski. If skis are severely damaged, they may be past repairs.
Cutting the Line: Shops will typically charge a fee to let people become top priority and cut the line for those who need a tune right away.
Tunes with Structures: A structure is a pattern that embedded in certain skis (particularly race skis) and will require a different tune process that involves using a machine that will grind the structure into the base material. This will usually require additionally fees.
- This cannot be done at home.
Ski Mounts: There are two types of ski mounts. First there are system mounts where the bindings slide onto the mount and you open the catch and adjust to the size of the boot. The second type is a hard mount where the bindings are permanently mounted to the ski. During this process a ski shop professional will take a jig provided from the manufacturer that matches the binding. This jig then guides where holes are to be drilled in the ski, excess fiber glass and wood is removed, glue is applied to the holes, and the binding is then screwed into the drilled holes along with other assembly. This is only for those who shoe size does not vary because this mount can only be performed 1-2 times without compromising the ski structure.
Do it Yourself: This is only for informed skiers only. I would not recommend doing this unless you know what you have experience with it. If your skis have not been tuned in a while it is best to get a professional wax job. A basic at home kit will usually come with wax, a metal file, a plastic scraper, a wire brush, an edge stone, a buffing pad, and ptex. You can purchase paste waxes, base cleaners, or other supplies and tools separately. Watch a Demo!
Frequency of Tunes: How often you get your skis tuned will depend on how often you ski. If you ski 1-5 times per year you can get away with only tuning your skis once. If you ski more often you should tune your skis 2-3 times per year.
Servicing cross country skis and snowboards will have different procedures and techniques.
What things are included in a tune?
 |
| Base Grinder |
- When doing this at home, you can use sandpaper or a belt sander.
Sharpened Edges: The shop will sharpen your ski edges using a ski edge sharpener machine or a metal file depending on their capabilities. They do this to create a sharper edge so you are able to maneuver turns on ice and snow more easily as they get dull over time and use.
- When doing this at home you can use a steel file and an edge sharpening stone.
 |
| Edge Sharpener |
- This cannot be done at home.
Hot Wax: The shop will melt wax on your skis and iron it in the base material to remove the excess using a plastic scraper. The wax will absorb into the base material which will protect the ski and enhance the performance and speed. This type of waxing will last longer and enhance performance better than paste waxes, stick waxes, and machine waxes. Before you wax, they will use a base cleaner that dissolves and removes old wax from ski.
- When doing this at home you can use wax, an old iron, and a scraper. Alternatives to that include a paste wax or a stick wax. When using a base cleaner make sure all excess is wiped clean before applying wax.
 |
| Machine Wax |
Storage Wax: The shop will apply a thick layer of wax as you would during a hot wax, however they will wait until your ready to slopes again to remove the wax. This is used when skis are in storage over the summer months to close the pores, protect, seal and rehydrate the base material. Then when you are ready to hit the slopes again you would bring it back to the shop to scrape off the excess.
- This can be done the same at home.
Binding Inspection: The shop will inspect the skis by double checking their dins, making sure that the boot is releasing from the ski properly, and also ensuring that nothing is cracked, broken, loose, or missing. The shop will use a screwdriver to adjust the din if needed based on the skiing ability of the skier.
- Setting the din of a ski should never be done at home and for safety it should always be done by a professional.
PTex: Ptex materials is melted on the ski and smoothed in with an iron and the excess is then removed with a metal scraper. This is used to fix scrapes, gouges, and other imperfections to the base material.
- This can be done the same at home.
Epoxy: The shop will use epoxy to fix skis that have chips on the top sheet or try to fix delamination of this ski. If skis are severely damaged, they may be past repairs.
Cutting the Line: Shops will typically charge a fee to let people become top priority and cut the line for those who need a tune right away.
Tunes with Structures: A structure is a pattern that embedded in certain skis (particularly race skis) and will require a different tune process that involves using a machine that will grind the structure into the base material. This will usually require additionally fees.
- This cannot be done at home.
Ski Mounts: There are two types of ski mounts. First there are system mounts where the bindings slide onto the mount and you open the catch and adjust to the size of the boot. The second type is a hard mount where the bindings are permanently mounted to the ski. During this process a ski shop professional will take a jig provided from the manufacturer that matches the binding. This jig then guides where holes are to be drilled in the ski, excess fiber glass and wood is removed, glue is applied to the holes, and the binding is then screwed into the drilled holes along with other assembly. This is only for those who shoe size does not vary because this mount can only be performed 1-2 times without compromising the ski structure.
Do it Yourself: This is only for informed skiers only. I would not recommend doing this unless you know what you have experience with it. If your skis have not been tuned in a while it is best to get a professional wax job. A basic at home kit will usually come with wax, a metal file, a plastic scraper, a wire brush, an edge stone, a buffing pad, and ptex. You can purchase paste waxes, base cleaners, or other supplies and tools separately. Watch a Demo!
Frequency of Tunes: How often you get your skis tuned will depend on how often you ski. If you ski 1-5 times per year you can get away with only tuning your skis once. If you ski more often you should tune your skis 2-3 times per year.
Servicing cross country skis and snowboards will have different procedures and techniques.
If I missed any of your favorite products or techniques, feel free to comment below.
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