Hey there, I recently picked up this Orbicular retro fish off craigslist (It was pretty cheap, but perhaps not cheap enough…ces’t la vie). I’ve pulled the deck pad off, and cleaned it up, and would appreciate any advice you all have on what I should do with it. I would like to get it surfable, but I am also a little…picky about aesthetics, if you will.
It has threaded inserts in the deck that im guessing were for footstraps, with pretty big/deep dents on each side. There isn’t any brown/discoloration under the glass around the inserts, so i’m guessing there wasn’t any water getting through.
The advice I request is-
Should I/can I get the inserts out? I imagine I could grind off the shitty glass (looks like cheap 3M resin from the hardware store) and remove the inserts, fill with sanding resin/Q-cell mixture? Bad idea?
The deck dents-Really bug me, they are pretty big (one being 9" long x 5" wide) and deep. Will these delam? Would it be horrible of me to use the same sanding/Q-cell mix to float/level the dents out, sand smooth and gloss coat over? Or would the proper way be to grind through the glass to the foam, fill it level with pour foam, and glass over the reapirs…?
Photos below, any advice is greatly appreciated, I thank you for your time in advance.
Maybe take a dremel w cutoff wheel and cut around it a bit… then try and cut around to remove that crap. Might want to improvise…why not forget q cell and glue in pieces of pu foam to mend the wounds…sand it down undersized,and then bury it in q cell…glass over it and hit da surf!
I took my small right angle grinder with an 80grit pad and zipped over the first 3 holes at break time. The first 2 round inserts came out easily once the surface was flush with the deck. I used a bolt threaded into the insert and gently rocked them out. The second square insert didn’t release once I had broken the surface, so I took your advice shapeaholic2011 and grabbed a demel with a small nub and carved out around the square. I was able to get it out by using the same bolt/rocking-pulling method after jogging the perimeter with the dremel. I think you’re spot on with using peices of foam to fill instead of Q-cell.
About the pressure dents/valleys? I feel like “leave them alone and go surf it” is what the concensus would be…they just bug the hell out of me. If I fill or level them over the existing glass, am I asking for more trouble than a possible delam?
Hi Jon! I’m sorry for late reply. I fell ill as the weather at night has been icy! I’m swell now
Cool you improvised! In Shaping, or whatever - it’s a good idea to adapt, or do it any way you can. There’s times I am tired I will call it quits, or regroup when I got my game on. Good on you! If you ever have a question, and if I know the answer - I’ll say so. Let us know how it comes out k.
Jon - let me tell you about my second surfboard I ever owned. I dinged the hell out of it on my second day out! It sucked. My ding repair man at O’Neill surf shop did a phenomenal job! He even color matched the q cell! And he glued in a block of pu foam! Then he put a gloss coat over it…I wish he sanded it down on edges better. Anyway, I later had around 36 pressure dings - which did not hurt a thing. Might have even made a mess of concaves!? Lol. No bull. The coolest thing is, my friend bought it.
Thanks for the feedback, much appreciated! Shaping a brand new fish, hmm?..this is about the furthest I’ve delved into a surfboard, but one day I’m going to make my own board! I’ve been lurking here and watching build threads, it looks like waaaaay too much fun, I gotta give it a try.
I got all the holes plugged with foam from a broken doner board, and then filled with q-cell. Sanded all smooth, and ready to go! I might do a little taping and rattle bombing to the yellow on the deck, or not, we’ll see. But for now, she is water tight and seaworthy I believe.
…now I just need some fins…I found some on amazon for really cheap that I ordered, as Futures twin fin sets start at almost $80? Too rich for my blood, I might not even be able to ride the thing When I get the fins in the mail, I’m thinking of cutting the bases and using them to make my own fins, like I did with my longboard (last attached picture).
Anyways, again thank you for the feedback and advice, it’s much appreciated!
So I painted a little at first break and lunch time (full time jobs are so…time consuming, heh). Pretty stoked, maybe the striping will make it faster, kinda like how I hear Volcom stickers operate…anyways, fun to look at.
I also included an outline of the shape I’m thinking I should do for the fins? As always, thoughts and ideas appreciated-
Hey rooster, thank you. What I gather from Wave Front’s web page is that Randy Schafer “designed” the board, while Clyde Beatty Jr. shaped it. Kinda interesting, I guess…
Hey jrandy, no I actually used Krylon rattle cans for the yellow patch cover up, clear over, then 1-shot sign painters enamel for the black outlines and tan stripes. I’ll drop a few lines on the bottom and post the pics from that. I’m very new to the world of surfboard repair, but have been pinstriping for about 9 years now, it’s a really fun and relaxing hobby. You know it’s funny, I almost went with red, but knew I just wouldn’t be able to handle the G-forces produced by such a fast color! Ha, thanks for the feedback!
Fins on the way, I’ll post pics of the progress as they go.
Nice Huck, I’m hoping to make some good memories of my own with it!
Got around to cutting and joining the fins yesterday at lunch, and let them set up completely overnight. I’ll try and get them roughly foiled in today, and post up more pics if I do. I was able to get the Futures bases to set up at just a slight cant towards the rail which I’m pretty happy with (you can see it in the 2ng picture).
I’m quite interested in that fin base setup. Is that a plastic fin cut to have a tab that would hold wood, or somehting along those lines? Homemade or purchased? Or something else?
Hey drzoidberg, that’s exactly what it is. I purchased a thruster set of fins off of amazon, made by a company called “Dorsal”. They seem to make cheap plastic fins for longboard, fcs and futures. The futures style thruster set was $14 shipped! So I took the two outer fins and just cut them to leave the dome tab you see, and then cut some plywood to match the curve, and epoxied them together. Then foiled, glassed, etc.
When I get the fins in the mail, I’m thinking of cutting the bases and using them to make my own fins, like I did with my longboard (last attached picture). 
