Ding Repair

Hey Guys

Already managed to put a ding in my board. Not quite sure how I did it, I’ve had one pretty hard hit to the head (though I suspect that could be the cause of a divot on the base of the board) and one to the ankle bone so could be either of those! 

So my question is, is this the kind of thing that I can repair easily enough with a off the shelf repair kit or should I take it to a shop/shaper and have them patch it up?

In the meantime am I fine to keep riding it? Feeling into the hole it still feels like another layer of glass and not foam yet.

The ding is on the rail about a foot from the nose. It’s a bit hard to photograph but here’s my best efforts.

Thanks in advance!

You could get some epoxy resin and repair it yourself, but you’re probably best taking it to taking it to your local ding repairer. It looks small enough so shouldn’t cost much at all. Probably not much more than buying a repair kit haha.

In the meantime, seal the damaged area with some waterproof tape and you should be god to go.

Yo drc,

Dings can be easily fixed.. Im guessing your board isn’t an epoxy? If you wanna give it a go repairing yourself, you can get DIY fibreglass repair kits from your local surf shop, theres step by step instructions to get you through, otherwise if your uncertain of your ding repair skills take the board down to your local shaper or ding repair dude and he’ll do a sweet job im sure for a rad price.

As for riding it, i wouldn’t. Depending on the nature of the damage, boards are prone to getting water logged, which can basically ruin your ride, making it very heavy and ultimately hard to manoeuvre.

I found this site quite useful for ding repairs. Check it out http://www.saltwater-dreaming.com/surfboard-repairs.htm#axzz2eGZ47xPT

Keep ripping man!

rider26 - 08 September 2013 12:50 PM

In the meantime, seal the damaged area with some waterproof tape and you should be god to go.

This also works! Nice one Rider!!

Go to ya local Surf Shop and get some Solarez!!!!!

Make sure ya get the right one to suit ya board!!!!! (Take it with you if ya not 100% sure what it’s made from)

By the pic it looks like a Polyester Board, so DON’T use EPOXY if it is!!!!!

Solarez (Or any other brand of UV Cure Resins will do) are a 10 min DIY that the Board Shop use themselves!!!!!

Just make sure ya cut away a little of the glass and foam so the “Bog” can anchor to the board, try and get it as neat as possible (Use some electrical tape as a dam) then just sand it back with a bit of emery cloth!!!!!

Hey Guys

Thanks heaps for the advice and no the board isn’t epoxy. I was in town today grabbing some lunch so hit up the local surf shop. I was expecting to find fibreglass repair kits but they actually recommended a tube of stuff called “UV Rez Poly Resin” It comes with a scraper, sandpaper and cleaner.

Just read Mizu’s post and it sounds exactly like what I got! 

I have been in the water twice since discovering the ding a couple of days ago. Hopefully it hasn’t taken on any water.

I’m a little nervous about sandpapering my board but the directions seem simple enough. It does say to let it cure for 5mins in direct sunlight. Unfortunately it’s pretty cloudy here today so that might throw a spanner in the works.

Miz the instructions say to sand the area to allow the resin to bond. Did you say I need to sand all the way back to foam? The impact is deeper on top in one spot but still feels hard to touch so probably not back to foam. The rest of the area has sharp edges poking out and it sticks out a bit on the underside of the board from the impact. I was planning on sanding it back so it wasn’t sharp but stopping there. Is that wrong?

Mate, get a stanley knife and remove any flaps of fiberglass, then cut a tiny bit of the foam away from underneath the edge of the “hole” that’s now exposed!!!!! This will help to anchor the plug of resin!!!!!

* If you think it has taken on some water, do it right and after you’ve prepped the hole, let the board sit in a warm room for a day or two if ya in no hurry to get back into the drink!!!!!

Then fill the hole with the Resin, noting that ya can do it in a few goes bit by bit , if it’s in an awkward spot!!!!! Remember, it’s easier to add more than sand it off!!!!! * Elect tape to form a dam will also help!!!!!

Even on a cloudy day, the resin will still set!!!!! Just leave it a bit longer to keep ya own piece of mind that it has set fully!!!!!

Once ya happy with the filled area, sand it off, and use a little running hose water while ya do it!!!!!

Thanks mate, took to my board with the stanley knife in seach of foam and by the end of it it looked like I’d been attacked by a small shark.

There was still some glass with some hairline fractures to the side but as I went at each of them it just got further away so I stopped. Quickly gave it a sand and chucked some resin in the hole. Unfortunately by then the sun had all but gone so I’ve covered it up and will continue with it tomorrow.

I’ve potentially made a meal of it but hoping to be pleasently surprised. Worse case scenario I’ll swallow my pride and take it to a store.

Thanks again for your help!

Try and brush/clean/cut the grit out of the hole!!!!! And don’t sweat it, cause the resin cures very lightweight and while ya might notice the repair, it wont affect the boards performance at all!!!!!

Oh, and I wouldn’t sand the area before puttin the resin into the hole!!!!!

Yeah the grit came off the sand paper which kind of goes against your don’t sand advice you just gave me

I’d sanded the sharpish edges and then about a cm around the edge of the hole to take the gloss off. Unfortunately I can’t really turn back now as I’ve put the resin in already (not that it’s drying yet though)

Currently getting fumed out by the board which has been moved to the laundry. I’ll whack it in the sun tomorrow afternoon and see if it’s a success or not. If my bond isn’t good enough will the plug simply fall out?

Yeah my riding isn’t good enough to notice any performance differences (especially in the nose area if it was lower down I would probably have just got the shop to do it)

I’m essentially just hoping it’s patched up enough that it’s not noticeably worse and most all-importantantly so I can get back in the water!

Yeah mate, ya can always dig it out and start again!!!!!

Even down at the business end of the board, you’d have to do somethin really bad in order to feel an effect in performance!!!!!

And ya right, sealing the ding is the most important thing to do!!!!! Salt Water will destroy ya board in no time flat if it’s allowed to get into the foam!!!!!

MIzu ding repair 101!!

Wise words from the water bear! Yew!   

I have found that solarez will fix just about anything. I have ripped fin plugs out, got out of the water, let the board sit in the sun for 15 mins, then set the plug back in with solarez, given it another 15 in the sun, sanded it back and gone surfing again within thw hour with no issues.  It doesnt look super pretty, u can mix qcell in with thw solarez so it looks white but in all honesty the looks have never been that important when the surfs pumping and I want to get back out there.

Yeah, you can get Solarez with Qcell already mixed into it!!!!!

That’s the one that I used to use!!!!!

* The white tube shown here!!!!!

Well I was up nice and early this morning and put the board in the sun for a little while and it hardened up quickly. I added a bit more to it as there was a noticeable divot on the rail where I had dug it out.

It certainly doesn’t look pretty as the dark remnants of sandpaper in the photo above show through. But I’m hoping after a sand this afternoon it should be surfable again!

Photo from before I topped it up and before sanding.