Getting started

Having the right wax can make or break a session. Conditions could be perfect, but if you are not using the right wax…well things won’t go well: you will be slipping and sliding, falling off your board, and may increase your chances of injury.

Wax should be chosen based on 2 main variables: the board you are using it on (soft top vs. hard top) and the water temperature. Water temperature dictates how hard or soft the wax is going to be: the colder the water, the softer the wax (and vise versa).

Most wax is going to be for traditional fiberglass surfboards, but there are now waxes curated specifically for soft tops. We will start by looking at soft top wax.

Soft Top Wax

Soft top wax is a type of wax that simply binds better to the foam used in the construction of soft top surfboards. If traditional wax is used on soft tops, it is more prone to smearing. However, if you cannot find any soft top specific wax where you are shopping, go for cool or cold traditional wax. Soft tops use only a topcoat, unlike fiberglass boards, and you do not need a lot: a little goes a long way.

soft top waxes on the market :

Sticky Bumps

• Cool/Cold (69° F and below)
• Warm/Tropical (69° F and above)

Catch Surf

• Softboard Formula (one temp)
• Wave Bandit x Ben Gravy

Fiberglass/Hard Top Wax

All other wax is going to be for fiberglass surfboards. There are tons of waxes on the market, all of which certain surfers swear by. Although these waxes may smell different, come in different colors, have varying levels of stickiness, and come in different packaging, there are 2 differences that essentially all of them have in common: basecoat vs. top coat and temperature.

Not all surfers choose to use basecoat, but there is certainly no harm (in my opinion) of using it. Basecoat is put on your board first and gives the top coat something better to stick onto: think of it is primer. Basecoat will become more important when using cool-cold water wax, as the colder water wax will be softer and more susceptible to smearing.

Fiberglass/Hard Top Waxes on the market:

Sticky Bumps (Original Formula)

• Basecoat
• Tropical (75° F and above)
• Warm (64°-74° F)
• Cool (58°-68° F)
• Cold (60° F and below)

Sex Wax (Quick Humps)

• 6X Extra Hard (Tropic/Basecoat, 78° F and above)
• 5X Hard (Warm to Mild Tropic, 70°-84° F)
• 4X Firm (Mid Cool to Warm, 64°-78° F)
• 3X Soft (Cool to Mid Warm, 58°-74° F)
• 2X Extra Soft (Cold to Cool, 48°-68° F)
• 1X Extreme Soft (Really Cold, 58° F and below)

FU

• Basecoat
• Tropical (79°-90° F)
• Warm (69°-75° F)
• Summer Cool (63°-70° F)
• Cool (53°-63° F)
• Cold (55° F and below)

Other Waxes

• Mrs. Palmer’s
• Sister Betsy’s
• Bubble Gum Surf Wax