CH Wax

Your CH wax buying guide

You wish to keep your cross-country skis in shape, classic or skating, but don't really know which wax you should go for? Here's a few tips for you then. And if you wish to learn more about the different glide wax, the Simon Fourcade Nørdic experts have prepared a small tutorial for you, you will find it in our "Tutorials" section.

What is the CH wax?

With its fluorine-free formule, the CH wax is used for ski maintenance. Whatever the conditions, the snow will attack the sole. Cold conditions make the snow more abrasive and whiten your sole while hotter snows, usually dirtier, will clog your sole with filth and lose of their gliding quality along the way. In response to these agressions, your ski sole will oxide, get dirtier and dry. And so, it is crucial to protect it with a good maintenance if you wish to keep it gliding. In addition, the CH wax's hydrocarbon composition gives a neutral treatment to the sole. Fluor may enhance the glide considerably but it will also burn your sole if applied too frequently.

When should I use the CH wax?

Casual skiers will be able to use it for all of their sessions. Competitors and demanding skiers will use it during training. Generally speaking, the maintenance should be done after each session. Wax your nordic skis after the day's session and scrape them just before you go out again. The non-scratched paraffin will protect your sole during storage preventing its oxidation. All these steps are detailed in our how to use glide wax tutorial available in the "Tutorials" section.

You may also have noticed that there are various colors of paraffin. Each color corresponds to a different snow temperature. The colder the wax is, the harder it is. This aspect is defined by the wax composition, an hard wax will prevent the abrasion of the sole and vice versa.

How to apply the CH wax?

If you are a beginner, feel free to check our tutorials in the "Tutorials" sections during your first waxing. It's no big deal but it might be wise to get used to the different steps beforehand to be as effective as possible. The glide wax is applied warm, that's why you need a waxing iron to match the temperature of your wax. You will also need a scraper to get rid of the grooves and remove the wax layer. Finally, use some brushes to get rid of the last dirt residues and you are ready to go.

The application of paraffin wax should be reserved to the part made for gliding on your cross-country skis. The entire sole for skating skis and the front and rear of the wax chamber on classics.

The Simon Fourcade Nørdic tip:

When your sole starts to whiten after a session on abrasive snow, do not hesitate to apply a layer of hot wax to "feed" the sole and then wax your ski using CH wax suited to the day's conditions. Oppositely, when the snow is transformed and dirty, do the waxing as soon as you get back to clean up the sole and get rid of all the dirt accumulated during the session and use a very-cold wax. Scrape it right it after the ironing, then you will be able to use a paraffin suited for your next session's conditions.

As summer approaches, do not forget to protect your sole during storage. Apply a layer of CH without scraping it. This way you will avoid the risk of oxidation and your sole won't be collecting dirt.