Soft board repair-was it a shark?

[billie_morini]

"Inferior quality" concerns when talking about foam boards?! They are all useless barges! There is no reason for them to exist. Millions of surfers the world over learned to surf perfectly well using hard boards.

[Surf Hound]

You already threw $500 down the drain with zero resale value. Buy a cheap board or rent one - that would a much smarter investment. I dont understand your reasoning to drop $500 on a foamy for looks I guess?? Not sure anyone is saying "whoa check out that 9' foam board" but maybe I am wrong. I dont think learning on a foam board is easier than your standard poly or epoxy. If you figure the cost of a good used board to the times you will be surfing, the cost is minimal and if you dont surf enough, rent a board. Foamies suck, they are terrible for the enviroment and are truly disposable so no need to keep throwing time and money on something of sero value.

[OlegLupusov]

I am considering a hard one. Could you tell whether it is fine by the pics?

My 9 foot foamie survived almost one year. That's a record for me. I broke two wavestorms as well within one month of regular usage. I got it because 8 footer was too small for my body. And all new 9 foot boards are more or less the same price. The cheapest one is 400 with taxes, leash, fins, etc. Also the shopkeeper promised warranty/insurance that turned to be non-existant. It sounded like OK-deal. Furthermore, I got my ribs fractured and bloody nose even with soft boards. I thinks with hard boards risks are higher.


And I paid less than 500 as it had some tiny scratches. Probably, 380 or so. Got more than 20 percent discount on it. I had the money and was sick and tied of checking junk boards on craiglist.

[OlegLupusov]

Here are the pics

[OlegLupusov]

I am 6 foot and 200 pounds. Low fat level. May do 28 chin ups in military style.
Started surfing three years ago but on a regular basis only one year ago. Can do turns and down the line on a 9 foot foamie. The biggest waves I handled were 5 foot high.
Feel comfortable with up to 3-4

[jaffa1949]

That board is Ok you are large, get rid of the barge time you got hard!

[OlegLupusov]

I have not bought it yet! Needed some advice before making a decision. It's a bit more expensive that I want to spend. But cheaper stuff looks suspisious.

Do you know the manufacturer? Really struggling to google it.

[jaffa1949]

The board is fine, maker, can't tell from your pictures. Look at the rails for glass fractures and obvious dings look also for yellowing of the foam. The board is a step up from a foamy, if in fair condition will be a good step up from what you had!

[OlegLupusov]

The owner says that it is "active surfboards". Just can't google it. Is 300 fair price?

[OlegLupusov]

Should I remove the wax to inspect the board?

[jaffa1949]

Fair price question ( look at comparable boards and their prices) What would something similar cost new?
Wax off or wax on , use your instinct if you think something is being covered clean it.
Value of secondhand boards is in the eye of the buyer.

[OlegLupusov]

It turned out to have some dings. But they seem to have been properly repaired. So, bought it anyway.
However, did some down the lines on my old board today. It works totally fine. But definitely absorbs some water.

[OlegLupusov]

My new fiberglass board has got a ding! What's the best way to fix it? Is solarez ok? It is not a shark this time. But could it be anything other than a fin?

[waikikikichan]

That type of ding is not from a Fin slice. Hit from your knee or bounce of the concrete will do it. From the angle of the photo, you can see a concave area that doesn't seem to be a built in channel. That was probably a blunt hit that delamed/deformed the rail. With no foam behind the glass to support it, it cracked open.

[OlegLupusov]

Thanks!
Sand bottom. Could be a knee but don't remember hitting it.

Should I cut it to make it wider so that to fill it properly?
Not sure that solarez will get inside to the foam

[waikikikichan]

Impacting a sand bottom will cause a popped rail too. Trim away a little as you can with a razor blade or better yet a Dremel tool. At the corner edges of the ding,make sure to round them off, so it doesn't end in a point. It stops the crack from running. Fill in with Solarez ( make sure you know your board is PU ) as best as you can, then poke a tooth pick in and out to get it to crevices and to get out the air bubbles. ( do it in the shade or indoors away from UV )

[OlegLupusov]

Many thanks. A bit confused. Used the paper knife to round the crack. Not perfect gap. And the crack continues on both sides. Is it fine? Or should I make the whole along the whole crack?

[jaffa1949]

Try to do the whole crack , if you can flick it or click the crack then without repair it will let water in.
Often with long boards just getting to the beach can cause damage, doorways, long sets of stairs, turning corners turning around in your room can do it!
One of the good tools to use with solar resin is a popsicle stick clean of course and you can spoon the resin in under the crack. and work it fairly smooth before you expose it to the sun.

[waikikikichan]

crack.jpeg (44.26 KiB) Viewed 565 times

if you can't find a Dremel or a round file, Bend the sand paper backwards to form a round edge. Hopefully you have 200ish grit.

( the circles on the end should be only half circles, but you get the idea )

[OlegLupusov]

The solarez turned out to have some empty spots that surfaced after sanding. Do I need to do anything about them or is it fine to keep it as it is?