Waxing a surfboard seems easy enough.
You take your board, a block of wax and proceed to apply said wax to the top side of your surfboard. Simple, no?
Not really.
Like all aspects of surfing, there are countless nuances and preferences that influence how one might wax their surfboard.
Some of these are straightforward. Others are more elaborate. If you want to know how to wax a surfboard so that you never slip though, our team of surf coach legends has your back (and feet).
Get the best traction possible and surf with confidence.
Follow the tips below and learn how to wax a surfboard for perfect grip.
Steps on how to wax a surfboard
Surf wax first became popular in the early 20th century when an LA shredder by the name of Alfred “Al” Gallant Jr used liquid floor wax on the deck of his board. He soon found that this improved his balance and enabled him to surf better.
Since then, surf wax has become an essential part of every surfer's toolkit. Well, at least for surfers who ride fibreglass or epoxy boards anyway.
How exactly do you use surfboard wax though?
Choosing your surf wax
From the moment "AI" first waxed his board, everything changed.
There now exists a surf wax industry with entire brands dedicated to producing and distributing surf wax. Needless to say, there are lots of different surf wax brands on the market.
Which one is best? Why do they range from soft wax to hard wax? What the bloody hell is Sex Wax? Is it wrong that I can't stop smelling it?
We get asked these questions regularly. Fortunately, choosing surfboard wax is easier than you think.
For starters, there's a complicit understanding that Brazilian-made Fu Wax is an extra sticky wax. However, Sex Wax (get your mind out of the gutter), Mrs. Palmers and Sticky Bumps are all commonly found in Australian surf shops. Our personal fav down at Go Surf HQ however is Vyagra Surf Wax. Why do we love it so much you ask? Well, VYAGRA Surf wax is a West Oz, Perth based small business ran by two legends Josh and Mel…locally hand made and hand poured. Support ya local crew!
Another thing to consider when choosing wax is that surf wax comes in different levels of hardness. The reason for this is that like any type of wax, surfboard wax melts when it's heated.
This means that the warmer the water, the harder the wax needs to be. For example:
*Extra hard wax - tropical water (26°C or higher)
Hard surf wax- warm water (21°C to 28°C)
Mid/medium wax - cool water (18°C to 22°C)
Soft surf wax - cold water (14°C to 19°C)
Extra soft wax - extreme cold water (14°C and below)
*Note that extra hard surf wax is also used as a base coat, but more on that shortly.
Preparing your surfboard
Once you've got the right surf wax, it's time to prepare your surfboard.
You want a smooth, clean surface in order to apply a thin coat of fresh wax that will keep you stuck to your surfboard. A greasy or sludgy surfboard deck is not acceptable.
Any new wax that's applied to a dirty surfboard won't be as effective. You'll be wasting your wax, your time and your arm muscles.
Take it from us when we say you should put in the effort to clean old wax or excess wax from your surfboard.
A fresh coat of wax over an ancient or discoloured layer of wax will look positively rank. Besides, removing wax from your surfboard is easy.
Just grab a plastic wax comb or wax remover, leave your surfboard in direct sunlight (but not for too long) then scrape off the melted wax. Simple!
You should be left with a glossy surfboard that has zero softer wax anywhere on the deck.
Applying the surfboard wax
After picking wax and cleaning your surfboard, you're about to thirds of the way to being finished. But if you want to tell your friends that you know how to wax a surfboard like a pro, you need to apply it like one.
Applying wax to your surfboard is easy but how you wax your surfboard is where the debate really heats up. While there are only a few real methods for how to wax a surfboard, there are lots of subtle variations on these methods.
One thing everyone can agree on though is that you need a thin layer base coat.
What's a base coat, you ask?
We mentioned it earlier (also known as tropical wax). A base coat is extra hard surf wax that lays the foundation for an epic fresh wax job.
For the perfect wax job, you want an excellent base coat followed by another thin layer of softer surf wax. You can then try to achieve those coveted wax bumps by using the following technique below:
Use the edge of the base coat wax to crosshatch the deck of the surfboard from rail to rail. Make sure that it covers the area where your front foot will go and where you'll lay
Start doing small, gentle circles over the crosshatch pattern in one direction (be careful not to smear)
Switch direction and continue doing gentle circles over the waxed area of the board
Once you begin seeing beads or wax bumps form on your surfboard, you know you're on the right track
Keep waxing your board until the bumps have risen slightly off the deck. The higher the bumps, the more traction you'll have
That's pretty much it!
Just remember that you should place special emphasis on the areas around your front foot and chest. If you're on a longboard and intend on noseriding, you might also wax all the way to the top of your board to make walking around less sketchy.
As we said at the start of this article, everyone has an opinion on how to wax their surfboard. The technique we've just now offered is simply one way to do it.
Experiment. Test out different styles. Take a look at how the pros wax their surfboards. Before long, you'll find a technique that suits your style. Only then will you be ready to shred all the waves that Perth has to offer.
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