I know that archives are full of comments…but they are also contridictory.
So my neighbor borrrowed my longboard and got a prety good rail crack in the nose area. I know how to fix it, but not sure of the best way to dry it out.
Should the ding/crack be on top on bottom while drying?
Does clark foam wick water?
if it wicks I should put the ding crack up to dry so the water wick up to near the crack/ding surface and evaperate off.
If it flows through then I should put the crack down to dry so the water will flow to the lowest point and poor out.
What are the otherr best ways to dry it out?
I have a vac pump and it is prety warm here (so cal) (heat box would be easy), but Bert recommended against both these approaches. Would this be good for a clark blank? I can see why it would be bad for eps (what I think Bert mainly uses).
Howzit 4est, the important thing is to make sure the salt water is flushed out of the ding before you dry it out. You may have to prep the ding for fixing then flush it since a crack will absorb water but it will be hard to get the salt water out since it will wick in to the foam. dried salt water becomes dried salt and will turn brown and can delam the repair if the area heats up and melts the salt crystals after the repair. Bummer when you do a good repair and then watch it turn brown and delam.Aloha,Kokua
that makes so much sense(washing out the salt water) That would explain all the ding repairs Ive done over the years turning brown. I’ve got to the point were on my clear boards Ive been using different colors in the repairs because Id rather look at colors than brown spots! The simple things amaze me!
Depending on how you are going to fix it, you may want to open it up with sandpaper or a grinder then let it dry out for a few days. I am going to try the freshwater thing. I have been fixing dings forever and thats a new one to me. Sometimes I would get some yellowing even though I knew that the foam had been dry for days (or weeks).
When you say you have to flush out the salt water, what exactly are you doing? Are you just wetting the foam out even more, but with fresh water? How long does it take for water to actually begin to deteriorate and weaken the foam?
Howzit 4est, What I do is flush the ding and blow off excess water with my compressor 2or3 times then just set it aside to dry. Actually fresh water will dry faster than salt water. You can also rush the drying time by using a hair dryer or heat gun, the heat will draw the water to the surface if the foam. Years ago I was doing some ding work with a friend and he asked me to do the pinline and gloss on the repair, after that I was rubbing out the gloss and it totally delammed. So i ask my friend if he flushed it out( he knew he was supposed to) and he said he forgot. At that point I told him it was now his problem to fix or explain to the board owner. In the end the guy didn't care since it was waterproof and he could live with it. I tell my customers that when they shower off after a surf to rinse their board at the same time and check for any dings.Aloha,Kokua
I usually route out the area(or cut) to avoid long delays.Then fill w/ foaming resin or a chunk.Sometimes I fill the void w/ styro or polyethylene to balance the extra added wt.It freaks out the regular ding guys…YOU DO WHAT???Herb
all alone in the waiting room,just waiting in the waiting room…will you call me when it’s my turn?