i make compsand surfboards. wood skins. 2 lb eps us
blanks superfused foam. been using gore tex vents for a few years
now. Anyway, i want to make the best most low maintence surfboards
possible. Now, surftech doesn’t use vents. Danny hess doesn’t use
vents. Jon wegener doesn’t use vents. Stretch surfboards doesn’t use
vents.
new eps is better than the old stuff as it’s made like a poly blank in a mold as opposed to cut from a big block.
In
my opinion, the same board with a vent is inferior to one that doesn’t
need one. Hess brings his boards to indo and all over the world, they
don’t delam.
He uses marko foam, just like stretch and wegener.
Jeff from US blanks said superfused doesn’t need to be vented if cared for properly.
I
know there are plent of threads where people go back and forth about the need for a vent. I just want to know if
anybody has used superfused us blanks eps foam and not vented, and has
had success? I Dont want to put all my time into a board and have it
delam. but like i said, i want to make the best board possible. and a
board without a vent is better, in my opinion. less parts, more simple.
can
anybody share their input? ** i dont want to hear about how all eps
should be vented, or that i should just put in a vent for insurance
purposes, just to play it safe. That’s not what this thread is about.** Hess doesn’t vent, surftech doesn’t
vent, and all of the guys using markofoam don’t vent their eps.
markofoam has told me there is no need for a vent using their foam. I Just can’t get any and i really like the guys at us blanks, so i want to use their foam
It's been stated here by experts that 2 lb EPS doesn't need to be vented. As with any board, not a good idea to leave in a car or direct sun on a hot day. Even a polyester/polyurethane board is at risk in conditions like that. Excess spackle and/or paint might interfere with fiberglass bond but you should be OK w/o vent using 2 lb density EPS from USB. It's good stuff and directly comparable to Marko in my opinion.
I don't know where you are located but Marko blanks are easily available through a material retailer like FoamEZ:
It has been theorized here that Surftech's manufacturing method of high density foam over the light density EPS helps prevent delams.
Not sure what Hess is doing. I thought his were hollow wood?
Wegener's are a mystery as well. There are two Wegener brothers - Tom and Jon. Jon Wegener's (Hermosa Beach, Ca) boards that I've seen have all been standard polyester/polyurethane material. Tom (Australia) is marketing the GSI imported versions of his models made in Asia - likely 2 lb density based on what I've seen.
The best way to proceed is to not use a vent and take reasonable care with the board getting hot. If nothing happens, tell Marko and US blanks they were right since they need this feedback same as you requesting other’s experiences not venting. Stretch does vent their SUP’s. Surftech / Tuflite can take more heat abuse due to the layer of D-cell over the eps, but this isn’t so with their wood veneer models. There are no hollow-core boards that I know of that are not vented.
When you finally have a pufferfish without a vent, I imagine you’ll wonder if it would have happened with a properly installed vent, the original and best designed by Pete Casicas. Been making epoxy-styro’s since '83, at Paradise, then Clyde Beatty, and Mungall, I reckon those are as good of credentials as anyone. Furthermore it was at my request and years of prodding to get Graphite Masters to carry Resin Research because of how good it was compared to the others. Vents are good, and sometimes I have to vent- or else who knows, I could blow up. And the stuff I just claimed sounds better, than it actually was.
No need in a 2lb US Blank since they are not chemically blown these days. No need to worry about expanding in an airplane, but you do need to worry about expanding if left in the car, direct sunlight etc… We only recommend using vents on 1.5lb density SUP race boards and I only think that the reason is because they are so expensive that it’s better to invest $20 than to have something go wrong.
I made myself a 6’10" out of a US blank a year ago. Sealed the blank with expoy before glassing (may have been overkill!). Then glassed with 2 4oz bottom an a 3 4oz top. I live in a hot area (Hawaii) and have had no problems. Yes, I have left it locked in my car!
This question keeps coming up…if you build any board with an inferior surface to surface bonding ( skin to core) ,or inadequate strength in the skin itself , it will be at risk…there’s plenty of builders around that build without the need for a vent , so , they have they’re process sorted…those who vent havn’t found the answers yet…I’m just finishing two skinned 9’ 4" 's , using US Blanks supplied by the customer…first time I’ve used these cores , and they definately won’t be vented…very tight EPS foam this stuff…defiately superior to block EPS , but cost’s a bit more.