i just want to know can you just tell the difference between a epoxy board and a regular board just by the appearance or is there any test that can be done to tell the difference? thanks
i just want to know can you just tell the difference between a epoxy board > and a regular board just by the appearance or is there any test that can > be done to tell the difference? thanks oh my brother, get sharp teeth on a saw & cut the infernal board into small pieces then carefully notice the taste & texture of its round white nodule cells, so spongy smooth & bland like rice puffs w/o sugar. you have sought & you have found: it is EPS. all praise be, another one bites the dust. all thanks be to foam clark & resin polyester.
The epoxy board will be the one in one piece, without all the dings. Most epoxy boards are laminated over EPS foam (styrofoam). Pat the board with the palm of your hand. A poly/poly board will say “thunk”. An epoxy/EPS board will say “whap”. Maybe rohjaweio hjfigh’s taste test is okay, if you can find some exposed glass. Epoxy tastes bad, kinda like quartzite… if you’ve ever tasted quartzite.
oh my brother, get sharp teeth on a saw>>> & cut the infernal board into small pieces>>> then carefully notice the taste & texture>>> of its round white nodule cells, so spongy>>> smooth & bland like rice puffs w/o sugar.>>> you have sought & you have found: it is EPS.>>> all praise be, another one bites the dust.>>> all thanks be to foam clark & resin polyester. Not all styro and epoxy boards are done with bead foam, this week I have been shaping Dow extruded EPS foam, looks like regular foam cell structure. What I see is thst it has a greater impact resistance, but the shear strength in MUCH less and it is very difficult to achieve what I consider a “good” finish on it.
The epoxy board will be the one in one piece, without all the dings.>>> Most epoxy boards are laminated over EPS foam (styrofoam). Pat the board > with the palm of your hand. A poly/poly board will say “thunk”. > An epoxy/EPS board will say “whap”.>>> Maybe rohjaweio hjfigh’s taste test is okay, if you can find some exposed > glass. Epoxy tastes bad, kinda like quartzite… if you’ve ever tasted > quartzite. Noodle, Do you shape mostly bead EPS? I prefer it over the extruded, it has more flexibility, is harder to get a good cosmetic finish on, can asorb water easier, but is less prone to snappage. EPS is for performance boards, not the pretty show room gems that most customers are used to seeing, I’m refering to hand shapes, not the molded, layered boards.
Noodle, Do you shape mostly bead EPS? I prefer it over the extruded, it > has more flexibility, is harder to get a good cosmetic finish on, can > asorb water easier, but is less prone to snappage. EPS is for performance > boards, not the pretty show room gems that most customers are used to > seeing, I’m refering to hand shapes, not the molded, layered boards. Hey Jim, How does this type of boards suit those of us in our 60"s that still love to drive through the pit but want a little glide too? Mahalo, Rich
i just want to know can you just tell the difference between a epoxy board > and a regular board just by the appearance or is there any test that can > be done to tell the difference? thanks My experience seems to be the same as Noodle’s: the report from a hand slap or leash hit on an EPS/epoxy is higher pitched than that from conventional construction boards.
Noodle, Do you shape mostly bead EPS? I prefer it over the extruded, it > has more flexibility, is harder to get a good cosmetic finish on, can > asorb water easier, but is less prone to snappage. EPS is for performance > boards, not the pretty show room gems that most customers are used to > seeing, I’m refering to hand shapes, not the molded, layered boards. Jim, I’ve only done a few styro boards, all beaded 2 lb EPS foam. I’ve gotten good advice and beaded foam from Fry Surfboards, a local shaper/supplier. Ive been tempted to try to shape extruded foam, but never got up the nerve. The house siding extruded foam properties range widely. Guessing which one to buy would be a crap shoot for me. And I’ve heard horor stories about extruded shaping foulups, giant delam bubbles, and finished boards snapping. I wrote a program for turning out hotwire beaded foam rocker templates. This minimizes my need to venture into moulding foam. The same program prints cross section and outline templates, so I’ve got a good starting place for shaping. I can’t get that perfect finish on the beaded foam, but I can come close enough. The course sandpaper block shreads out foam beads, making rough shaping by hand much easier. After the rough shape, the 80 and 100 grit papers need to be foam backed. Otherwise they will remove beads and grind them back into the blank, causing pits and streaks. I coat the shaped blank with spackle and distilled water. Then I sand with 150 grit screen. The finish is pretty good, and the spackle prevents capillary action during lamination.
Jim, 1st. Your video has been the most useful thing that I have encountered in learning to shape. 2nd. is the source for your Dow foam coming from the Schuler Groug in the Northwest US. If so are you involved in testing & product development. I have heard rumors of new Dow foam & laminating improvements that will help cut down on the foam shear associated with the Dow foam.I am from the Houston area where their are several board builders who use epoxy that would support any product development on this. P.S. Noodle are you familiar with Powerlite blanks & resigns by Craig Chafin? He is located in the Houston/Galveston area. If not give him a call he has some good blanks that Bob Martin of Martin Surfboards has designed the rockers for. His # is 281 850-0289.
P.S. Noodle are you familiar with Powerlite blanks & resigns by Craig > Chafin? He is located in the Houston/Galveston area. If not give him a > call he has some good blanks that Bob Martin of Martin Surfboards has > designed the rockers for. His # is 281 850-0289. Thanks, I’d only recently heard that Bob Martin was one of the prime movers in developing epoxy/EPS construction on the 3rd coast. I’ll give Mr Chafin a shout before my next effort.