im searching for a vent plug suitable for my hollow surfboard. all i can found is an 1" screw-in stainless steel draing plug. i think it’s too big to use it in a surfboard. any suggestions for a nice home-made vent plug?
I use a threaded insert / connector , designed for furniture making, you can get them a the local hardware shop. I then get a small bolt to fit and put a couple of O rings from the local dive shop on the bolt to ensure water tightness. The insert I use has small teeth on the outside so when its screwed into the board its stays in position. I screw it into the area of 1/2inch ply reinforcing at the nose of the board, where the internal rails meet. I then put a little drop of resin around the area between the deck and insert so no water can get in. I couldnt find anything specific for this job, so I had to improvise with what you can find.
If you don’t want to just buy one, (e.g. they make them for windsurfers) maybe you could make one out of a bicyle tire valve – the Presta valve would make more sense than the Schraeder valve, since it screws open and shut…??? you could even pressurize your surfboard with a tire pump if that made any sense – or fill it up with helium as an experiment (make it effectively weigh less?) (sorry, long day…)
Its amazing how much preasure builds up in the hollow board during a session. I unscrewed the valve after my first session and the air gushed out. At least its a sign its not leaking, well not yet anyway!
Hey Just go down to your friendly windsurf shop and order a Chinnook vent plug, about 1/4" diameter (I don’t know, don’t care). Comes with drilled vent, and a threaded plastic black screw, slotted. Almost every epoxy windsurf board uses them. Don’t forget the O ring. Costs about $4.
Check out any local boat accesories shops. They have all kinds of nice screws, plugs, etc. in brass and stainless steel. Good luck. regards, Håvard
I use something called a “Binding Post”… I get mine from a screw speciality store, up here it’s Tacoma Screw… It’s brass, threaded for an 8/32 screw… After the board is glassed, before hot coat, I drill a 1/4" hole, on the deck, about 1" from the nose…The binding post is set into the hole with a bit of epoxy under the binding post’s flange… I use an 8/32" brass screw with an o-ring for the “plug”… The vents are ALWAYS open unless they’re being surfed… http://www.hollowsurfboards.com
Fiberglass Supply has vent plugs. http://www.fiberglasssupply.com/Product_Catalog/SurfSailcom/surfsailcom.html Anthony http://www.viser.net/~anthwind/