How does the wax stick to the ski base? - Part. III.

We know that there are main principles how waxes are connected to the ski base. Some waxes penetrate into the inside molecular structure of the ski base which is accessible for waxes only if wax is in the liquid state and ski base is more flexible due to heat. Some waxes stay on the surface and “fill” only surface imperfections and roughness where waxes are partly retained in the “open” surface structure mechanically partly connected with weak chemical bonds.

Attention: surface imperfections and roughness cannot be confused with grinded or imprinted additional structure created by stone-grinding machines or manual structuring equipment. Surface imperfections are related to flat ski base here.

If wax molecules in liquid state enter once the inside molecular structure, fill the “closed” cavities inside the molecular structure of the ski base and change back from liquid to solid state, they cannot be removed again by either chemical agents or mechanical cleaning.

What does it mean?

This means that skis which have been waxed cannot be set back to “zero” status any more even if they have been used and cleaned chemically and mechanically.

What does it mean?

This means that any wax application is reacting / is mixed / is influenced by the wax molecules which remained “locked” inside the “closed” cavities inside the molecular structure of the ski base and which become liquid again as new wax layer is ironed.

What does it mean?

This means that after the very top layer of liquids / speeders / accelerators is worn off - which normally happens within a few hundred meters or a maximum of a few kilometers (depending on the snow type), your ski will glide on a mixture of old and newly applied waxes.

Even if you see a grey or white base surface, the cavities inside the molecular structure of the ski base are filled with old wax molecules which are locked in the closed cavities.

 

What are the main weaknesses of waxes? Part no. I - wax bonding to ski base

Ski waxes are for sure the most popular and most common agents to optimize gliding features for particular snow and weather conditions.

For each snow condition and for any temperature range there will be many different waxing options to be used.

What are - however - the main weaknesses of waxes especially in competition ski service?

The main weakness of ski waxes is the way how they connect with ski base.

Even if this statement sounds very theoretically, the consequences are practical and enormous.

Ski base consists of PE molecular chains enriched with different additives in NANO level. PE molecular chains create on the ski base surface a fiber-like structure with many small cavities and free spaces. If we consider that the normal length of NANO-fibers on the ski base surface is amounting to ca. 150 to 350 nanometers, the size of cavities can be estimated in the range of a few tens of nanometers. This is enough free space to accommodate wax molecules, especially if they are highly-mobile due to liquid state by ironing.

Fiber-like structure on the ski base surface and wax molecules accommodated in the free cavities inside the fiber-like structure create a new gliding surface on the top of the ski base which is a mixture of the fiber-like structure and wax molecules.

Already this new gliding surface is more a mosaic consisting of different PE-stones, wax-stones and additive-stones. Imagine what will happen if a second / third / forth etc. wax layer is ironed on the mosaic-like gliding surface... The diversity and variability of the gliding mosaic will be increased dramatically.

After wax application - especially if more wax layers are applied - a unique and original surface is created on the top of ski base. This gliding mosaic-like surface is so unique that it cannot be repeated twice. Most probably on each ski of one ski pair a different mosaic-like gliding surface is created. This is very probably the reason why competition ski service is more magic and spells than science! Results can be hardly repeated!