Hi all. Desperately need to remove this evil serrated deck grip from my Sunova Carver. No reply emailing Sunova, and don't have access to turps to use the Piros technique. Greatly appreciate advice re any other low tech options, otherwise it'll be the sander, and there aint much room for error with this Vapour construction.

First remove EVA mechanically as much as possible (I needed aprox. 3h). Warming a little bit(!) with a hair dryer might help.
To remove the remaining glue, use a solvent, called "Terpentin Ersatz". I am not sure, if the translation "turpentine substitute" or "white spirit" is correct? Some also use silicon remover.
You have to lay soaked paper towels for min. 60mins on the board. Wrapp over with plastic ("cling film"?) Then you can remove the glue easily...

oaseforum.de/showthread.php?t=186858

I do them all the time and yes Sunova is the hardest

firstly there is a hard glue edge that stops lifting and that means you have to use a blade to get the edge up. Solvents alone won't do it

then, they perforate the whole thing to prevent heat bubbles and so it wants to tear really bad.
those two cleverly reduce warranty for Sunova but make it a nightmare to replace

your best option by far is turpentine soak with plastic over the top. Why can't you get it? If you have hardware store for the other stuff I can't imagine why.

worth noting too though - you need to be totally sure it's intact- solvent ingress will melt the core. If it's not.. Then it's 100% blade work

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flowstate said..
Hi all. Desperately need to remove this evil serrated deck grip from my Sunova Carver. No reply emailing Sunova, and don't have access to turps to use the Piros technique. Greatly appreciate advice re any other low tech options, otherwise it'll be the sander, and there aint much room for error with this Vapour construction.

It is easy: heat + time. (once you remove the hard edge as Mark said)
I have written an HOWTO in English at:

forum.gong-galaxy.com/viewtopic.php?t=16438#p177696%20

PS: do not use solvents on the pad itself, it is a waste as it is waterproof. Solvents are for the glue underneath.

From experience (not specifically with Sunova) - a razor blade scraper handle is your friend. Much more efficient and comfortable than holding the razor blade. Also be VERY patient and careful with the first peel of the pad. Taking your time when pulling off larger sections (avoiding tears wherever possible) will save a ton of time later when you are cleaning up the bits and stuck pieces. Sounds like that might be harder with the perforated Sunova pad though.

I've used solvents with no problems, but I always wonder if they might damage the resin. From this thread I gather I can put that concern to rest?

Slow and steady as she goes with a scraper is what I've been told by anyone who has removed the Sunova pads. Line up a couple movies to watch or your sport of choice and then settle in. I would not be grabbing a sander to do this.

I never attempted removing the pad from my first two Sunovas but I now request all of mine without deck pads which is, of course, no charge.

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Velocicraptor said..
I've used solvents with no problems, but I always wonder if they might damage the resin. From this thread I gather I can put that concern to rest?

No issue with solvents. Epoxy resins are impervious to them.

You should however not use acetone. It may attack the various addons used in resins and create micro-cracks.
Plus it is extremely dangerous for the human body.

Our local ding repairer uses a multi-tool scraper to peel off deck pads. Seems to take them off clean without destroying the pad.

So why does everyone hate the deck grip? Why does such a well designed board have deck grip everyone hates?

I didn't dislike it at all. But once I wore it out I wanted something easier to remove.

I mean if the problem is that the EVA is too aggressive maybe just use the sander to knock it down a bit and smooth over the rough bits and make it less aggressive instead of trying to
strip it off

The issue is its thin so toenail cuts and paddle strikes damage it. it's not the ages old standard 5mm quality EVA

then as I said they prick it with a roller to allow air escape (nobody else does) so Sunova grip IS problematic in removal compared to most. It tears badly
a scraper is very difficult on a concave deck. It might go great on some boards but not this one. You will at some points dig into the one layer of glass and expose raw wood with then has to be addressed

you are best with careful knifing like filleting a fish to start an edge then tons of turps as the perforations will let it in

but what would I know

I would again stress that heat is the trick for removing pads, as it does not seem that people realize it in this thread (and generally on the web).
Ideally, 50C. Above 55C and the resin of boards begin to (slightly) soften.

And this is also why you should not leave your board in the sun or in a car in the sun: it will tend to un-glue pads.

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Mark _australia said..
then as I said they prick it with a roller to allow air escape (nobody else does)

Ah interesting I didn't know they did that. Oddly enough, I actually decided to move away from another brand because they seemed to struggle badly with bubbles under the deck pads, or I was just unlucky in the 4 boards I had from them. Do you see deck pad issues with specific brands pop up more frequently or is it kind of a crapshoot across the industry?

Obviously never see deck pad bubbles in Sunova anymore lol

Nothing brand specific but

(1) all cheap SUPS and some decent ones - but really its a massive area to lay grip down on, and in a busy production environment some will surely have an 'almost bubble' from the very start then heat makes it raise. Prick it n push who cares.

(2) dual layer pads in windsurf as they use a crap contact adhesive between the two layers and it turns to powder (literally) in our heat
If we can get the tail wedge on surfboards to stick to the top layer of EVA, why can't they nail this...?


Overall it annoys me they've all moved to very thin EVA for winging, removal can be so hard.
OK one brand specific - Army is a head-fk with 30 little pieces and it separates then curls up bad I've never saved one yet. But the rest of the board is bloody top-notch so I'd be happy as owner

I have farrrr more to say about shoddy board building than EVA though

thanks all for the epic input! gotta love seabreeze
why no turps? am in v remote location with seafreight taking 3-6 months, and thinners no go for airfreight.
Why am I removing it? Am using board for wing, prone and paddle and that slice-textured grip takes skin off like a bloody flensing knife.
Will start chipping away with heat and blade on scraper handle, gonna be along process with the concave deck, as Mark points out, and being so prone to tearing.
thanks again all!
***tried soaking petrol around the edge, as thats the only solvent i have, but the Sunova glue didnt budge

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colas said..

It is easy: heat + time. (once you remove the hard edge as Mark said)
I have written an HOWTO in English at:
forum.gong-galaxy.com/viewtopic.php?t=16438#p177696%20
PS: do not use solvents on the pad itself, it is a waste as it is waterproof. Solvents are for the glue underneath.

thanks for the link and info Colas

Now I know why -

Just wax it heaps. Retains grip, makes prone nicer.

Still, only a theory

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Mark _australia said..
Overall it annoys me they've all moved to very thin EVA for winging, removal can be so hard.

I don't think thin EVA is an issue.
I removed a rear FCS T3 tail pad, a very thin pad, with no issue.

As I said, heat is the trick.

PS: I love thin pads. The feel and control of wax, without the drawbacks.

Thin is an issue with how easy it cuts thru with toenails and paddle strike. Then that makes removal and reuse very hard. Remember I'm reapplying the same piece most often

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Mark _australia said..

(1) all cheap SUPS and some decent ones - but really its a massive area to lay grip down on, and in a busy production environment some will surely have an 'almost bubble' from the very start then heat makes it raise. Prick it n push who cares.

I struggled when I found out that not all brands fully finish the board under the deck pad. I was told this saves them a bunch of money in time and labor but I don't know... seems like a bad corner to cut. I popped the bubble and tried to press it down but it wouldn't stick! Finally I peeled the pad off after months of fighting with it and discovered that instead of a smooth board underneath it was similar to high traction non slip paint. I was told by the manufacturer I would likely have to refinish the deck in order to replace the pad. That was the last one for me, moved on despite loving those boards!

IMHO thin is lighter.
So for foil it is better.
Making an ultralight carbon board and then sticking a 5mm EVA rug (with its adhesive) on the poor thing is not very logical.
Those huge thick pads are aesthethic most times.
You need grip in very few places for foiling,wether it is sup,prone or wing.Stance area,hand area for popups in prone...that is it.
But i sympathize with the pad removal blues...it can get very annoying :)