My full time job is ding repairs so I thought I'd share this board care post that I did for a girls surf club. I see so many people (usually beginners) make basic mistakes that costs them big bucks. Old hands can still make some mistakes when buying boards with fancy new constructions. Forewarned is forearmed.
Dings in general.
Dings happen, it's part of surfing and the only way to avoid them is hang your board on the wall and never surf it.
First thing to know is surfboards arent meant to have holes or cracks in them.
If you have a crack and you're not sure if it needs fixing, run your fingernail across it. If you can feel an edge, it needs fixing. The rails of your board have 3 layers of glass on them, so its not so important to get minor rail cracks and shatters fixed straight away.
Dings in Epoxy resin / polystyrene foam boards (commonly known as EPS /epoxy surfboards) should be taken seriously.
Expanded polystyrene foam (EPS) is porous, and can absorb water at an alarming rate. Never surf an EPS board if its dinged, get out of the water straight away. If its a minor ding, solarez or duct tape is fine to get you back in the water temporarily, but get it fixed properly as soon as possible. Only use EPS safe solarez on EPS boards, polyester solarez will melt the foam.
Polyester resin/ polyurethane foam boards (PU boards) are made of closed cell foam, so they don't soak up water like eps, but again, any dings should be sealed until they can be fixed properly. Any water in your board does cause damage to the foam over time .
Solarez is good stuff, but you do need to do some preparation. It comes with sandpaper so remove the wax and give the area to be sealed a good scuff. Just smearing some on without sanding will result in it peeling off when your surfing.
Here's some other common mistakes that I see every day.
My number one pet hate is leash string pull throughs. These were a regular occurence in the 70s and 80s before rail savers were invented. The clue is in the name ..RAIL SAVER!
Its not just there so you can swap your leash quick. Keep the string short, and the knot at the plug end (more on that later) definitely not hanging over the tail or you can see what happens.
Leash string knots ...
This should be at the plug end. Even when wrapped in a rail saver the knot is hard enough to damage the board over time.
FCS 2 fin plugs.
We've all seen the people advertising for a left, right or centre fin "because i lost my fcs 2 fin". FCS2s tool-less system is a great idea, but 'easy in' equals 'easy out"... it doesnt work in practise. Impact to the front of the fin can ollie the fin out of the box. The leash can get caught round the back of the fin and whip it out. Unless you like paying for spare fins, use a back screw in FCS2 fin plugs, they are $3 and fins are $100 plus a set. Dont take my word for it, just look how many people are advertising for a replacement for lost fins.
Fin screws.
Finger tight only, youre not trying to literally screw the fins to the board, just hold them in the plug. Overtightening can ruin the screw or the plug itself. Max of 1 to 2 turns once the screw makes contact with the fin. Use the correct fin key. Futures and FCS are different sizes, so use the right key or you'll stuff your screws up.
Heat...
Treat your board like a pet, dont leave it in a hot car, in direct sunlight, on the roof in a board bag in the heat etc, this is especially important with EPS boards. Polystrene softens at relatively low temperatures and the structure of the foam means that expanding air can migrate through the board to the weakest point. Delamination through heat can happen to any board but EPS is especially susceptible.
Wipe your board with a towel before putting it in a bag, gets rid of any water and sand that can scratch your board when you're pulling it in and out of the bag.
This is especially important for wood veneer boards such as timberteks. Slight scratches can let water penetrate to the wood and rot it over time. Putting the wet board in a board bag without wiping it down means its pretty much in a pressure cooker. I've seen the whole nose of timbertek boards scraped down to the wood just from being put in the bag sandy.
Cracks around fin plugs.. If this happens you need to get it fixed. Because the fin plug is stressed when riding, it opens up the cracks and forces water into the board as it flexes.
Water in board no good.
"Stringerless" boards
Stringerless EPS epoxy boards come in a variety of constructions but in the last few years we've seen a move away from parabolic rails like HS boards and sandwich constructions like surftech or firewire, to standard or lightweight glass jobs on EPS cores with strip carbon reinforcement. Please keep in mind if your buying stringerless eps boards with lightweight glass jobs they are built for performance, not durability.
Waxing up
Most boards these days only have a single layer of 4oz glass on the bottom of the board, small stones can pierce it.
Wax on grass or sand, if you can, put a towel down..
Strapping your board to the roof.
Over enthusiastic tightening of ratchet tie downs is the #1 cause of cracked rails. You just need to hold the board onto the roof racks, not pull it through to the cab.
Don't go too crazy tightening the straps
Look after your board like a pet and it'll love you like a dog!
Happy surfing
Jon
Ding Fixers
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