Used poly resin on my epoxy, what do I do now?

[fisharefishy]

I bought a used surfboard and I had no idea it was an epoxy. It was an 8'6" Aipa Sting with what seems like the thinnest glass job imaginable. I have been fixing every new ding it acquires with poly resin, and one horrifying afternoon I found out it was hollow in several places underneath the glass. So I cut it open and the board has three gaping holes, each one about 6 inches by 6 inches with no foam from top to bottom.

Now I am stuck, I don't want to take it to a professional because while I love this board, it just has waaaay to thin of a glass job to have a good repair done on it since by next week I'll be fixing something else. So I need to find a cheap way to fill in the holes without making my board weigh 50 pounds. I was thinking of using polyurethane pour foam however I don't know if it will melt eps.

I was also thinking about a spray foam made for ponds, it is water tight and floats, but it is most likely polyurethane based. http://www.ebay.com/itm/Tetra-Usa-ATS19099-Pond-Waterfall-Foam-Sealant-Black-/111390490935?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item19ef640137

Any ideas?

[oldmansurfer]

I would go to a shaper and if needed buy some discarded pieces of foam (the same type as your board). Cut the foam to approximate shape and glue into position making sure it sticks out past the surface of the board. Then sand it down to the level of the other foam and glass over it. It might be good to put a straight edge on the holes by sawing out the edges to get straight edges that you can carve a piece of foam to fit in there. I know it may seem like a horrible thing to take out more glass and foam but that is what I would do. Make sure you overlap the glass by a couple inches all around when you glass it. Other options include commercial patch kits that have powdered foam that you mix with the resin to make a fill. I think your best bet is to get some discarded eps foam. If the foam pieces are too narrow you can cut straight edges and glue it together first to make it thick enough then shape it to the hole.

[fisharefishy]

I'm going to try and get a hold of a couple local shapers tomorrow, my only worry though is that I have not heard of any of them making epoxy boards. Is there anywhere to buy scraps online? Also I hope I'm not asking too much, but can anyone recommend a cheap epoxy resin that will work?

Also thank you for the reply oldmansurfer!

[oldmansurfer]

I have yet to fix an epoxy board. Long ago I used to do some major repairs on my older surfboards so I have done huge dings before. I am so not familiar with epoxy resin but I am sure the same techniques can be used. Where I live they sell epoxy surfboard resin and fiberglass in the local hardware stores. You can probably google it and buy it online also. There didn't used to be any variation in materials back then so selecting what to use was simple but now you have to figure out what kind of foam and what king of resin. I think polyurethane foam can survive both types if resin so maybe you could use that if the shapers have that.... ask them to be sure. Also you make sure the glue you use doesn't dissolve the foam so maybe try it on the pieces you cut out.

[Davemanew]

Dude, no kidding, I just did the same exact thing. Here is what I'm going to do. Since I only paid 50$ For it, and the crack I have spans the entire width of the board. I don't want to pay someone more than it's even worth to fix it. So first thing, you have to get that polyester resin out. Sand out all the damaged styrofoam. And get it as flat as possible. I got some styrofoam from a cheap ice chest. I had cut it into a few pieces. Sand them and cut them to fit inside. You can use the epoxy resin as glue, to fit them in as tight as possible. Take your time to get them to fit as best you can. Structurally it makes all the difference. (I even kind of mashed it on the floor so there was less give. And the foam was harder. That is how it got this huge crack in the first place. As soon as it delaminates, it's just going to start to sink.) Again, sand them to shape. Once you built your styro patches back up to specs and it's as close as you can get it to what you had previously, before we both, unknowingly and very stupidly, laid polyester resin on top of styrofoam. Then you can resand and re prep, with 40 or 60 grit on the surface, and wipe with some acetone so its nice and clean. Just be careful not to get any acetone on the new styrofoam or you will be right back where you started. Lay your fabric and impregnate it with EPOXY RESIN! As if nothing ever happened. Sand it, wet sand it, maybe gloss it and call it. Hardest part is trying to match the weight. You don't want it weighing any more than it already does. But it shouldn't make a huge difference.

Honestly I'm new to all of this (obviously) so I dont even know if this is what a professional would do. It is what I'm going to do. There maybe some shaper out there reading this, pulling his hair out and screaming NOOOOOO! But best thing about fiber glass is you can always sand it and try again. Just note epoxy resin is harder to work with from what I am told. I guess it's tough to sand and get it to do what you want. I wouldn't know. Guess I'll find out.

[oldmansurfer]

I hear that foam from a Styrofoam cooler doesn't sand well. It's made out of individual little balls of foam that break away. When they use that type of foam in a board they make the board with a mold so no sanding is needed. However if you could get it close them you could fill in the bumps with resin sand it down and glass it.....I think.... I guess you'll find out.