Waxing your board can seem intimidating and time consuming. This quick step-by-step tutorial will help you touch up your edges and wax your board for optimal results on the hill—plus you’ll save some cash for the apres hour.

You’ll need (most can be found at your local snowboard shop or online):
Iron (preferably one made for waxing snowboards, but any old one will do)
Snowboard wax (for easy, low maintenance, get an all-temperature wax)
Diamond stone
File guide
Scraper
Brush
Brillo pad
Two chairs
A power outlet
Newspaper

To get started, set up two chairs about two feet apart, near a power outlet. Cover the floor below this space to catch the mess. Place your board, bindings down, on the backs of the chairs and plug in your iron.

It’s best to do any tuning touch-ups on your edges before you wax. Take your diamond stone and use your thumb and pointer finger to guide the stone flat against your base edge. Use a quick up-and-down motion to smooth out any burrs (rough spots) you may have on your base edge. When you’ve finished, move onto your side edge. This one is a little bit trickier; just make sure you have the stone flat against the edge, not at an angle, and use the same technique as above.

It’s important to have a clean base before you wax, so use your Brillo pad to remove any dirt or edge filings.

By now your iron should be hot. To start waxing, hold the iron in one hand, slightly angled and pointing toward the base. With your other hand, gently touch the wax to the hot iron. The wax should melt quickly.

There are all kinds of patterns you can make when dripping wax onto your board. I like to start around my edges and then make a figure eight in the center. This regulates the amount of wax you put on your base. You want to get enough on there to cover the base, but don’t go crazy—the more wax you use, the more you’ll have to scrape.

Once you have the wax on there, sink it into the base by gently ironing in small, circular motions. Be patient and keep the iron moving—remember, it’s hot, and if you leave it in one spot too long it could harm your base.
Now for the waiting game: Let your board sit for a little bit and allow the wax to cool. If you’re getting ready to go up on the hill, now’s the time to get dressed, have some breakfast, and then come back to your board to scrape and brush.

Scraping is the messiest step. Wax shavings are going to get everywhere, so if you can, go outside. If you’re going to stay where you are, remove your board from the two chairs and just lean it against one. It’s easiest to scrape in an upward motion. Apply pressure to the scraper with your two thumbs and start removing the wax layer. Make sure you get all sections of your board, the edges, and the center.

Now place your board back up in its original position. The final stage is to buff it out. Brush your board from nose to tail; you’ll know you’re doing it right if you see small particles of wax coming off your board.

Finally, take your Brillo pad and, again going from nose to tail, buff it out. By now your board should look nice and shiny. You’re ready for the hill!