I’ve been around since before leashes and used to melt parrafin on my board with a torch, but here’s a question: For Sex Wax, 10,15 years or more didnt’ they used to just signify Cool,Warm and Tropical Wax by Label Color and no specific print indicating the water temp??? I remember Cool Colors …Cool Wax Warm Colors …Warm Wax I was in a Surf Shop the other day, and I asked for Tropical Wax and they handed me a Blue Label,…in small print it said ‘Tropical’ but didnt it used to be there was no small print???
hmm. i have no idea as to the colors of sex wax. i use sticky bumps more often. sex wax goesnt work well for me… doesnt stick as well, melts easier, and doesnt make neat little bumps.
I started at Sex Wax in 1988, I quit in 2002. Tropic has been blue to indicate the blue waters of the tropics I reckon. Zog changed to Quick Humps to 6 formulae around the time I quit. Original Sex Wax is still the same. Green=Cold Orange=Cool Red=Warm Tropic=Blue. Quick Humps has 3 types of base wax and three types of top coat. It is a bit confusing but easy enough to figure out if you just spend a little time. If you want the hardest base coat and are going to surf really warm water then Blue or 6x is for you. The harder the base coat the smaller the humps and the longer your wax will stay on, it is also the hardest to put on. If you are having a problem getting the humps to come up then you need a harder base coat. Quick Humps 1x is the softest wax and is made to be sticky for surfing in a contest heat and doesn’t last super long. It is also super grippy for very cold weather and water and is the easiest to apply. If you want to get the Quick Humps to apply more easily for a base coat then put it in the microwave for 3 minutes and it will apply much more easily. Basically Quick Humps and Sticky Bumps are the same, I prefer Quick Humps because I helped test it, produce it and sell it. There is no other wax like Original Sex Wax on the market and if you like the way it works it is the best. In Hawaii Sex Wax warm is the most popular. I hope this has helped with your question. Neumatics don’t need wax!! Just a good grip.
Ex Sex is right. (The Dude oughta know if anyone does. ) Didn’t know you were into Neumatics, DL…are they worth the money? -GM (another OF from Carp.)
ex sex wax- bring back the original! man i’d buy cases of that stuff just so i could sit under the shade of a cool tree and sniff my way back to childhood. PLEASE?
Gary, The Swaylocks archives currently show many references to “surfmats”. For testimonies and info, try this thread for starters… “Surfmats”, Wednesday, 7 May 2003, at 6:40 p.m. — Also from Tony Lum in Hawaii, in a recent Surfermag.com thread: “I ordered a Neumatic from Dale about a year ago. Although I had no prior mat-surfing experience, I assumed that I had a pretty good idea of what to expect from a surfmat. I was anticipating bodyboard-like performance with a little more floatation. I was completely wrong… the surfmat sucked! My first few sessions consisted of flailing, missed waves and struggling just to stay on top the moving bag of air. Although I initially had my mat at near maximum inflation, it still felt too soft and flexible to be any good for wave riding. A skeptic would have rolled the mat up and written the whole thing off as a scam, but the ashes of my curiosity were still smoldering. Dale, and a few others, seemed genuinely jazzed about inflatable surfing. I decided to stick with it. As time went on I got used to the flexible, almost organic, feel of the surfmat. All of the confusing (cryptic) things that Dale was telling from the beginning were starting to make sense. I figured out how to drop into waves without having the mat fold in half like a book. I learned that wrestling with the mat’s rails and nose won’t make it turn any harder. Oddly enough, the less effort I exerted, the better the mat performed! I also began riding the mat at lower inflation levels. It seemed to go against all logic, but the “dish rag” theory worked! The first time that I felt the surfmat shift into its higher gears was a complete accident. I was instantly hooked! Although it is intensely challenging, I feel like I learn something new about the Neumatic every day. It?s a very rewarding and unique experience. To anyone interested in surfmats, I highly recommend that you contact Dale. He is a great person and an even better friend. I`m proud to say that I have become a full-blown surfmat junkie. Just when you thought surfing couldn?t be more fun, it is!” (ajl808@yahoo.com) —
What does a mat have to do with wax? Two things: First, I learned in a psychology class that smell is the sense that is most likely to trigger a memory, not sight, sound, feel or taste (or in the case of that kid in the movie Sixth Sense, ghosts). Smell always does it for me, but it wasn’t Sex Wax that was the biggest seller where I grew up (Encinitas), it was Wax Research. They had a rectangular bar (duh), and I think it was purple. The thing I remember the most was the perfect eight foot wave on the front. It looked just like a wave in Leucadia (pre 1982-83 storms that stole the sand). Second, someone mentioned a while back that there are the “big Three” wax manufacturers. I know of Sex Wax and Wax Research, but who else is a major player. Is it Puntangs? Famous? Maybe it’s that wax they use on women’s legs (and in some cases, mustaches). Anyone know?
Mrs. Palmers (and her five daughters).
I heard of Mrs. Palmers once or twice, but I don’t think I have ever seen it. Is it regional? I live in SD county, and rarely surf north of Santa Barbara.
I have seen it at a few places around North Carliona but I don’t know where else it might be.
Gary- its DW not DL. I moved to Santa Cruz in 2002. What are you up to? The original is still there. It comes in Coconut, Strawberry, Pineapple, and Grape. The orange and lemon were discontinued cus they were always left over in a case when we went around to deliver more. Most surf shops only carry the coconut and quick humps. The convenience stores and small markets are the ones that carry the colors. Mats and wax, well I am experienced in wax and want to be experienced in matting for fun. So I reckon I’m to blame putting both of them together. How about this? Today I was riding my 11’1" Skip Frye Eagle, I encouraged my friend to drop in on the other side of the section and just as he was looking to turn, a pelican who had been flying the draft toward us, almost hit him. I was 10 feet or so behind him and it looked like the pelican was going to hit Boots but managed to put air brakes on, sideslip whilst Boots cut back, carve around him and miss me by about 4 feet. We were so stoked that we had to high five each other. Now you have wax, mats, pelicans, Skip Fryes, and Boots in the same thread. Any challengers? What can you bring to the table?
just mayhem-pure mayhem-Greetings from Mayhemsville
D.W. - hi from skip & sally.
Yeah smells do take you back. Two of the most memorable fragrances of my youth are the smell of beacon floating out to the line up with the off shore winds and the smell of purple wax reasearch. The beacon I can do without, the wax I can’t find. Anyone know where I can get the wax? Not the coconut, orange or lemmon. I want the origional.
DW! Sorry for the confusion btwn you and DL. I’m still in Carp’, working out of a new office at VTA harbor and using my skiff to get to less crowded breaks when I can. Coincidentally I heard about the Neumatic for the first time the same day I saw your post, so of course I was interested. Greenough’s ability to rip on under-inflated mats has always interested me, and since I’ve been too busy (and old) to stay in shape for serious (stand-up) surfing, I’m interested in mats. (If you have any mat stories to talk, let me know. - To part with $295 for a mat, I’m gonna have to be really stoked.)
There is a learning curve but I caught two waves on my first go-out that stoked me to the potential. I reccomend that you try it and if you don’t like it I have a friend who wants to buy a used one. Hi Skip and Sally. Hi to the mayor of mayhemville, its kelp city over on the eastside. Tavarua is calling me though. Sex Wax still makes a grape wax as far as I know, they were when I left anyhow. Not one comment on the pelican. Maybe if the pelican was riding a Cooperfish it would have been more noteworthy? I mean come on I was riding my Frye and Skip is totally into pelicans so it was totally in keeping with the whole experience. Gentle people blow up your mats and start surfing!!
Gary, Although Im not not DL or DW, I am the guy who builds Neumatic surf mats. For more mat stories, please contact me: <script type="text/javascript">eval(unescape('%64%6f%63%75%6d%65%6e%74%2e%77%72%69%74%65%28%27%3c%61%20%68%72%65%66%3d%22%6d%61%69%6c%74%6f%3a%64%61%6c%65%73%6f%6c%6f%6d%6f%6e%73%6f%6e%40%68%6f%74%6d%61%69%6c%2e%63%6f%6d%22%3e%64%61%6c%65%73%6f%6c%6f%6d%6f%6e%73%6f%6e%40%68%6f%74%6d%61%69%6c%2e%63%6f%6d%3c%2f%61%3e%27%29%3b'))</script> The following insights are from Surfermag message board, June 24-25, 2003: "I think the biggest hurdle in mat-surfing is letting go of the mental baggage accumulated while riding other "solid" surfcraft. Ultra light surfmats are a completely different trip. When you learn to separate yourself from old habits associated with hard-board surfing, you begin to realize the great potential in inflatable mats. With surfmats, more so than surfboards, you have to trust the equipment. The mat will naturally seek out the wave's energy. All you're really doing is slightly manipulating a trapped bubble of air. Some of the best moments in mat-surfing come when the surfmat is driving and accelerating on its own! ... keep in mind that the modern Neumatic surfmat is a completely different animal. Especially when its only being ridden at about 60 to 80 percent inflation. Have you read the "Inflatable Dreams" article from The Surfer's Journal, late Spring 2000? Here's a quote from George Greenough regarding the surfmat learning curve, "The funny thing about mats is that they're the easiest thing to surf on a basic, beginner level, but they're the hardest thing to surf on an advanced level. It takes 10 years of experience before you can drive them anywhere near their potential. I've been riding mats day-in and day-out for over 40 years, and I'm still learning things. I've never been bored riding a mat, ever. They're just too challenging and too much fun..." --- "I ordered a Neumatic from Dale about a year ago. Although I had no prior mat-surfing experience, I assumed that I had a pretty good idea of what to expect from a surfmat. I was anticipating bodyboard-like performance with a little more floatation. I was completely wrong... the surfmat sucked! My first few sessions consisted of flailing, missed waves and struggling just to stay on top the moving bag of air. Although I initially had my mat at near maximum inflation, it still felt too soft and flexible to be any good for wave riding. A skeptic would have rolled the mat up and written the whole thing off as a scam, but the ashes of my curiosity were still smoldering. Dale, and a few others, seemed genuinely jazzed about inflatable surfing. I decided to stick with it. As time went on I got used to the flexible, almost organic, feel of the surfmat. All of the confusing (cryptic) things that Dale was telling from the beginning were starting to make sense. I figured out how to drop into waves without having the mat fold in half like a book. I learned that wrestling with the mat's rails and nose won't make it turn any harder. Oddly enough, the less effort I exerted, the better the mat performed! I also began riding the mat at lower inflation levels. It seemed to go against all logic, but the "dish rag" theory worked! The first time that I felt the surfmat shift into its higher gears was a complete accident. I was instantly hooked! Although it is intensely challenging, I feel like I learn something new about the Neumatic every day. Its a very rewarding and unique experience. To anyone interested in surfmats, I highly recommend that you contact Dale. He is a great person and an even better friend. Im proud to say that I have become a full-blown surfmat junkie. Just when you thought surfing couldnt be more fun, it is!" (ajl808@yahoo.com)
Palmers is great It is a good size and I always throw a couple of blocks in with a new board. I would love to get my hands on some survival wax. that stuf was magical i haven’t had wax rash since and miss it dearly.
Me thinks Palmer’s is an Aussie wax. Used a bar on my last Hawaii trip. Really sticky. Soft. Maybe too stickey? Don’t know if there’s a tropical mix or what not.