I have a collection of boards new to old and its time to do some serious ding repair and re-glossing. Unfortunately, the local fiberglass supply nearby closed a few years go (I am on the East Coast). It has been a long time and I was wondering if someone could help me compile a list of materials (resins) and where to purchase. I will need materials to fix the dings as well as gloss coat. I have never done alot of gloss work so any help is appreciated.
I will let others help with the “how to” since the experience here is way beyond
my abilities. But I can help with the “where”. Your profile says east coast, if that
is the U.S. east coast you can get your materials at www.surfsource.net .
They have always been helpful and are very knowledgeable.
ToesOver,
Knowing where on the East Coast would help someone point you in the right direction.
If you consider buying resin to have it shipped to you, be prepared to spend as much for haz-mat fees as you would for a gallon of resin.
Try your nearest surf shop if you don’t need too much - remember a pint of resin can go a long ways on dings.
Use the search function above for “ding repairs” and you’ll see plenty of posts, some probably with pics. Just remember, when it says to “tape off area…”, only use 3M #233 tape.
Good luck
I am in North Carolina.
TO - While I tend to buy my resin locally, I get most of my supplies from Fiberglass Supply. I’ve found that their prices are reasonable and they don’t gouge you on shipping. You can get all the sandpaper you need at home depot, lowe’s or your local tool/woodworking store.
If you are new to ding repair, get the Ding Repair Scriptures - well worth it. It also lists all the supplies you will need.
Okay, in that case, try your friendly neighborhood board maker for supplies. He will prolly be happy to sell you some, especially if you bring your own containers. Handy hint- clean mayonnaise and baby food jars are the best.
as for a list of materials and some tips…let me immodestly suggest that ya look here . Kinda dated info*, but for older, polyester/polyurethane boards it’s still fine.
hope that’s of use
doc…*damn, I gotta rewrite that stuff someday…
So, even to regloss a ding on the bottom of a newer board that is glossed, it is ok to use lam resin and not gloss resin?
TO- I have found gloss resin to be difficult to work with on smaller dings. My experience is that unless you can put a thick enough coat on and have a nice bevelled (sp?) edge, the gloss resin starts to chip when you sand, even at higher grits. Maybe someone else has some tips on this?
For small repairs, I generally use sanding resin as a final coat and I take it to whatever grit paper I need to. I have paper that goes all the way to 1500, which is total overkill. Typically, to match a glossed board, I will work my way from 220 to 400 to 600 to 800. Polish it up and you’re good to go - can’t tell the difference between the repair and the rest of the board.
TO,
Don’t use lam resin. It has no wax in it and only gums up when sanded.
I always use gloss (sanding or gloss is what’s supplied in most ding repair kits) and tape off the repair area. After removing the tape - when resin is tacky - and the resin is dry, I use a razor to scrape the edge down - where it’s slightly raised from the tape, then sand with a vibrating sander - like a Porter Cable #303 1/4 sheet sander - with 120 or 150 grit, then 220 and/or 320 to fare out the repair, then rubbing compound with dry terry cloth by hand (can use a buffer for larger jobs), then polishing compound with fresh terry (not the one with rubbing comp. on it).
Hope that’s of help.
Pete
Thanks guys! I am just concerned about over doing it. I have it sanded just below the surface but if I cloth it and then gloss it will be above the ex. glass. How far below should I go and how much of the cloth patch do you suggest sanding through to make it flush? Just the edges?
Does anyone have pics of the processes descibed earlier?
Lam resin only dries tacky if exposed to oxygen. The wax is there to form an air barrier, but a piece of plastic sheeting works just as well. Especially on rails or some other place with curve.
I do all polyester ding repairs with lam resin. Prep/sand, fill if you have too, cut your cloth, mix a bit of lam resin (or use uv), tap it into the cloth with the ends of the bristles of a brush - that way the fibers of the cloth don’t pull apart at the edges the way they do if you squeegee it or ‘paint’ it in. Then slap a piece of plastic over it. Not too stiff or heavy, but not as thin as food-wrap either. Something like the weight of a split-apart zip lock bag. Start in the middle & work any bubbles out with your fingers. Tape one edge of the plastic down to the board, pull it taught, tape the opposite edge, then do the same thing with the sides. Then put the board in the sun. On a rail, where I can get a good pull on the plastic, when the plastic comes off, I’m done. No need to even sand, hotcoat, or gloss. You’ll be amazed…