I need some advice on repairing an old glass board. The fin box needs replacing as half of it is at the bottom of the ocean with a nice fin. Its been there for over a year. (did i mention i am the worlds best procrastinator).
Upon leaving the board it caused a bit of delamination, which i have routed back towards the rails untill it is still attached to the foam, approx 6" square which will need to be re glassed.
i have also routed out the rest of the fin box but got a bit carried away and one of the two stringers in the board is quite thin.
have also routed slots to take extra stringers either side of the new fin box (these go all the way through to the underside of the top/deck laminate and longer than the fin box.
So after all that, the question is, which will be better epoxy rein /glue or polyester resin (the latter being cheaper and originally used on board)
can the polyester be thickened similar to epoxy.
How long does it take for either to cure and be able to use the board.
thanks in advance for your thoughts and opinions.
ps the board is old but in good condition and goes well at my local in 30+knts
its the multicoloured one in my pics sitting on the stairs.
I'm not aware of thickeners for polyester resins (but they may well exist).
I would be inclined to repair it with polyester and enough layers of matting to bring it back to level. It is also good to taper any transition in a triangular shape so as not to create a potential weak point in the board.
Some west system and 410/411 powder mixed really thick would be good for seating the fin box and stringers in place. Use an old fin in the box taped to the rails to get it perpendicular to the underside until it sets hard. After that you could matt and glass over the top. You would have to check the compatability of the epoxy with the foam in the core.
West system type epoxies will dry in anything from an hour to 12hours (depending on thickness of mix and temperature). Polyester resin should be sandable in a few hours. I would leave it at least a few days (2-3) until it was sailed.
Clarence
