Repair Kits: Fixing Dings

First, you gotta let the board dry out completely, which can take a few days. Then, grab some coarse-grit sandpaper and rough up the area around the ding, making sure to feather the edges of the existing glass. Clean out any loose foam or old resin. Wipe it down with acetone to get rid of all wax, oil, and dust—this is crucial for the new resin to stick. A clean, dry, and rough surface is key. If you skip this, your patch will just pop right off after a few waves.

A simple hot coat is for small pressure dings or surface scratches where the fiberglass isn’t broken. You just mix some resin, fill the dent, and let it cure. A full glass job is for real punctures. You lay a piece of fiberglass cloth over the hole, saturate it with resin (lamination), let it cure, sand it, and then add a hot coat on top to seal it smooth. The cloth adds the structural strength back. So, no cloth for cosmetic stuff, always cloth for holes.

You can attempt a major repair, but it’s a serious project. For a snap, you need to align the stringer perfectly, glue it, and then re-glass the entire area. A massive rail crush or big gash requires significant foam shaping and multiple layers of glass. It’s doable with the right materials and a solid guide, but it’s easy to mess up the board’s flex and balance. For your favorite stick, a bad snap might be a job for the local shaper or repair guru.

Keep it in a cool, dry place out of direct sunlight, like your garage or a closet. Sunlight can prematurely cure those UV resins right in the bottle! Your car’s glovebox or trunk gets way too hot and will ruin the chemicals. A small toolbox or a dedicated bucket under your house works perfect. Just make sure the lids are on tight. The goal is to have it ready to grab when you come in from a session with a fresh ding.