Surfing Waves

Hello!

First off, I've been lurking for a few weeks -- this board has been awesome at providing me with a wealth of information as a beginner (bigger is better!).

Anyway, looking for a couple opinions here... I just took delivery of a new Bic Magnum and after unboxing it I've noticed a couple dings. The first one in the photos is the one that concerns me more, it's a good sized ding on the rail. The other is a dimple on the topside of the board.

Should I have it replaced or am I going to ding it up much more after a few outings?

The photos: http://imgur.com/a/mQJqZ

Thanks in advance, and again, thanks for all the great information I've already gained here!

Did you check the board over before signing for it? If you didn't then you may have trouble claiming a refund so beware. But absolutely thats a brand new board you should ask for it to be replaced. Good luck.

KS

All I know about Bics is that to put a dent of that size into one requires quite an impact (the first photo). Whether it causes any structural issues I can't say.

BICs use a polyethylene shell around the PU foam, rather than fibreglass. This means the shell is a single piece and will stay together right up until the point of failure, rather than cracking bit by bit like fibreglass (I suspect a 'standard' board would have had a totally cracked rail by this stage, so you are better off than you could have been!). As an analogy, if you bend a piece of plastic back and forth, it wont crack straight away but will get weaker and weaker. Then it will suddenly come apart at the point of weakness. This is like how the Bic shell will act.

On the other hand, just like a plastic container, the Bic shell can dent without actually causing any structural problems. I gather Bics are often 'dented' by use of car roof straps, but still work fine - being a 'plastic' type construction, the dents can sometimes pop out (caveat - this is what I have read, no personal knowledge).

So the issue is not so much a dent per se (if the skin is not punctured, there is no 'leak' into the board), but whether there is a weakness caused by the dent - whether it will or will more likely result in a puncture or crack over time. My concern would be that the ding has caused a potential weakness both at the point of impact and the crease that extends along the top (and presumably bottom) of the board. Using the board and stepping on the crease etc can only further weaken it.

Bics are notoriously hard to ding because of their shell, hence being good for beginners. I doubt you will put similar dings like that in it yourself through normal use (unless rocks are involved)

If returning it is not too much hassle, I would do it. It will be frustrating to wait more time until you have a board if you bought it online; but if you picked it up from a store then take it right back. Why take the risk (and, if you want to sell the board in a year or 3, why should you take the risk of a lower price at resale time?)

(I am not sure of the legal situation, will depend on where you live and who you bought it from, whether it is a postal insurance job etc)