The point of the roto brushes is to speed up the process. One pass with a stiff stainless roto brush and you'll see the obvious difference. I chose the brushes I use because of their ability to improve my base texture and structure - it has nothing to do with waxing - so you kind of have to throw out the conventional advice out there on brushing. My goal is to polish my base to the point that it looks waxed while having an appropriate consistent structure to keep the skis fast. IMO structure plays a larger role in making a ski fast than the choice of wax. Using the wrong structure for the conditions cannot be overridden with a correct choice of wax. That's part of the reason I keep so many skis in my quiver - they are prepped individually for different snow conditions; from fine structures to coarse structures.
HA -- your approach makes sense, and I can see the physics behind it and how it relates to ski performance. One thing that isn't clear, is how you can change the structure without doing a base grind and starting fresh. Maybe I'm not understanding the restructuring correctly, but doesn't the rilling tool cut or press new grooves? Once the structure grooves are in the base, either at the factory or from a base grind, seems to me you can't just run a rilling tool over it and create a whole different pattern of grooves. The original structure is still there, and then you add more grooves.....after a couple of times doing that, don't you end up with a mish-mash of grooves with no pattern left?
That's part of the reason I keep so many skis in my quiver - they are prepped individually for different snow conditions; from fine structures to coarse structures.
Well, for those of us with a one or two ski quiver, I guess we're going have to work with what we've got. Unless I'm not understanding how a rilling tool works, that probably means keeping the structure we've got in good shape with proper brushing, and using good ole wax to reduce friction on the snow to get good glide.....
Thank you Svend, excellent information.
Clarified much of the tech talk re: * of bevel, base grinding, etc. as I follow these posts and learn.
Pondering, at my age, will likely not evolve into an pro skier or technician but should at least make an effort to understand good or bad equipment set up and how to fix or have fixed.
At a min., save some $$, help my skiing or understanding thereof ....and under the most exigent circumstances, serve as a handy alibi for sub par technique...should I be forced to stoop that low. 
Hey Byron -- ski tuning isn't difficult. Good tools really help get the job done quicker and with great results. Depending on how many skis you're taking care of, it doesn't even have to be time consuming. The two main things to keep on top of are: (1) keeping your edges sharp and free of burrs and nicks (quickly and easily done with a good file and diamond stone, and some good edge guides); and (2) keeping your bases in good shape by regular waxing and brushing (also easily done using our patented Scrapeless Wax technique....royalt
ies to be paid to Jim Ratliff, Treasurer and Keeper of Intellectual Property). None of us are pro skiers or technicians, but still take the time to keep on top of this stuff because it does matter. At best, poorly tuned skis are frustrating and annoying to ski on; at worst, they are dangerous and can lead to a bad accident.
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