Looking for input on the way forward with my newly acquired Hilbers Scorpion.
My #1 priority is function and use with aesthetics behind that. Bottom line is she has numerous rails dings, a few stress cracks that catch nail, and areas of weave showing. I’ve attached pictures to elaborate.
So - would it be best to:
Only sand down and repair each individual problem
Sand entire board to apply a new fill and polish coat - only applying new glass where needed
Sand the rails to apply new fill and polish - cloth where needed
Biggest concern is weight. I don’t know if this is epoxy or poly, but guessing poly by the stress fractures - seems more brittle. If I were to sand it all it would only be to sufficiently prep for the new coat. Planning to use epoxy which would be lighter and with good enough prep shouldn’t have issues bonding ( I’ve been glossing with poly over epoxy without issues ).
Also, take a look at the fin. It’s glassed on slightly canted from front to back. Should I take that off and glass on a new one? Does that look out of tolerance?
Personally I’d prefer to do it all to make sure it is sealed but I don’t want to add weight or go beyond what’s necessary and risk damage.
Yeah I’m not sure honestly. I plan to actually measure it as maybe the stringer was slightly off but the fin is straight? Not sure. And it doesn’t appear to be slightly either
I’m a little confused regarding your statements about using Epoxy. On the one hand you say you plan on using Epoxy, but in the next sentence you state that you’ve been glassing Poly over Epoxy with no problem. Epoxy sticks to Poly with little if any prep. Poly can be made to stick to Epoxy if the surface is sanded and prepped correctly. Based on your pics; Your board is Polyester. The fin has been snapped off previously and was incorrectly set at that time. May just be glare from your photo but it looks like you can see the the Qcell filler at the base. Maybe not.
This might be an obvious question for some, but want to verify my logic is sound.
Referencing the picture attached, would y’all agree that applying a coat of resin over the damage is sufficient?
Clearly this one leaked as there is damage; however, it doesn’t seem that the cloth is actually damaged. No softness or delam so I am thinking it simply needs to be sealed and structurally is sound.
The discoloration tells you water has gotten into the foam, probably through cracks that aren’t even visible. If you gently put some heat on it you may find the cracks revealed by little beads of water forming on the surface. The visible glass is another indicator of damage (and resulting weakness) to the structure of the lamination. We’ll assume there isn’t enough water to “matter” although once into the foam the discoloration may spread.
As long as there are no soft spots the object is to re-seal the surface. I’d scuff it well with 60 or 80 grit and lay a piece of your lightest available glass over it. Wet out the glass out then tape a piece of shiny plastic snugly over it. Squeeze excess resin out around the edges of the plastic and wipe them off. After resin has cured, peel off the plastic and the repair will for the most part have the shiny surface of the plastic, and you may only have to clean up the edges around the patch with some wet-dry sandpaper. I’d use 220 grit.
If you can’t accept that there may be further discoloration, or it’s not worth your time, you’ll have to cut off the damaged glass, feather the edges, excavate the wet or discolored foam, then (this is me) mix up some Qcell and fill the excavation, topping it with two layers of six ounce (or whatever you have scraps of).
As you suggested, a simple light sanding and a seal coat of resin may do the trick, depending on how long you want the board to last. That the glass is discolored shows that at some instant, the surface deflected more than it may seem to now.
Yeah not so worried about the physical appearance as I am structural as I do want the board to last. No soft spots so it must have just seeped in through those cracks. It’s been sanded with 80 grit and will get a coat of resin to seal it up. I’m not sure it’s worth excavating the slightly damaged foam and believe it to be dry at this point. the guy I bought it from said it had been out of the water for over a year.
