How do you surface downhill ski bases?

Answer 1

What you are referring to is the ski "structure." your best bet is to take your skis to a professional shop and have the bases stone ground. You can do it yourself - at your own peril - by doing the following. First, check that your skis are flat across the base. Use a straight edge, check for high spots. Use a scraper to smooth down any uneven areas, or use a file. But make sure this is just a small amount, and be careful not to go completely through the base plastic. Next, take some sandpaper...150 grit. Wrap it around a wood block, and make long straight sweeping passes from tip to tail. Straight, smooth, one direction, straight passes. Do not rub back and forth. You are trying to create tiny grooves in the base. 4-6 passes should do it. Repeat the process with 220 grit sandpaper. 6-8 passes should do it. Rub off the resulting hairs of plastic (you can't see them, but they'll be there) with a plastic scrubby, like you would wash dishes with. Scrungee is one brand, ScotchBrite is another. Now you're ready to sharpen and wax, and you'll be set for the cold part of winter. As the snow warms and gets wet in spring, you can redo the structure with a rougher grit (bigger grooves) more info: http://www.skiernet.com/ski-structure.html