SHAWN ROCHE BLOG

Repair

Make repairs at home

Here's how to repair structural damage to your surfboard.

STEP 1 — Clean the wound: Use a ruler or a right angle to draw yourself a cutting guide about one-quarter inch away from the damage, then use a Dremel cutting tool to cut along the line. Be sure to wear safety glasses and a respirator. Using a pick, peel away the fiberglass. You can substitute for the Dremel by putting a blade attachment or sanding barrel in a drill motor, using 60-grit sandpaper on a block or wielding a utility knife.

Wet foam will need time to dry. Set the board aside for a few days in a cool, sheltered area. Don't cover the exposed ding. Ikeda uses an air compressor to speed up the job but warns that if you do this, you need to be careful that the blast of air doesn't peal away more fiberglass from the foam.

When dry, scrape away the soft, damaged foam cells until you get to hard, undamaged foam. Ikeda uses his Dremel blade, but you can use sandpaper. Remember that the more foam you scrape away, the more you will have to replace.

Use 80- or 100-grit sandpaper to clean the edges of the exposed ding.

STEP 2 — Build a dam: With blue painter's tape, mask off the exposed ding, putting your tape about an inch away from the ding. Then use the tape to build a dam around the area. You want it high enough to contain the resin mixture. Be sure to secure it firmly to the board, because resin will find cracks in your dam and leak out.

STEP 3 — Pancake batter: In a paper cup, mix polyester sanding resin and Q-cell — a light, flourlike resin thickener — until your fill material is the consistency of pancake batter. Add color tinting, if desired. Next, add catalyst. How much catalyst you add depends on the amount of resin you are mixing. Follow the instructions on the resin can. Next, pour the mixture into the dam. Spread it out with a flat stick and be sure the mixture goes into every crack and depression around your ding. Make it about one-quarter inch thick.

As the mixture begins to harden, remove the dam and use a rasp to sculpt the mixture into the shape of your board. Ikeda recommends the mix be about 80 percent cured — firm enough to touch without sticking, but definitely not rock hard. If it's too soft, the rasp will pull the material out of the ding. Use a rasp long enough to provide consistent coverage of all the high areas you're shaping as you bring the board back to its original shape.

Next, block-sand with 60-grit sandpaper to refine the shape. You can feather the edges with 100-grit sandpaper.

STEP 4 — New skin: Mask off the area around the newly filled ding with blue painter's tape. Set the tape back a few inches, depending on the severity of the ding. You need enough space for two layers of 4-ounce fiberglass cloth. Make the first layer smaller than the top layer by a few inches. The idea is to create a gentle slope that is easier to conceal when sanded. Mix your resin and catalyst per instructions and pour onto the cloth. Use a squeegee to gently press the mixture into the cloth. Be sure to avoid leaving dry spots or air bubbles.

When the resin-cloth mixture is 80 percent cured, use a utility knife along the edge of your painter's tape to trim away excess material.

STEP 5 — Smooth and shiny: With an orbital sander and 80- or 100-grit sandpaper, smooth your repair. The two layers of cloth should allow you to feather the outside edges as you work closer to the center of the ding. At this point, you are ready for a thin coat of resin. Tape off the area, then mix resin with catalyst according to directions. Brush on a thin coat. Don't worry about the brush strokes as the resin will spread out, smoothing away any lines.

When cured, sand with progressively finer grits — 100, 400, 600, 800 and 1,200 — until satisfied with the finish you have created. At that point, you can use rubbing compound and car wax to bring out the shine, wax your board, and go surfing.

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