Epoxy resin recommendatione

I have done a few repairs with poly but now I only use Epoxy, much easier to work with and the fumes aren’t nearly as bad. At least from what I have found. I buy the jugs of Ding All Epoxy and hardener. I get the Ultra Clear, seems to be a good product after doing many repairs on several boards, both PU and Epoxy.

 

this stuff will work its cheap.. lowes, auto stores carry it to. it is not clear though it is kinda of brown, you can add coloring agents to the resin beofre you add the hardener if you wish
https://www.lowes.com/pd/Bondo-32-fl-oz-Brown-Fiberglass-Resin-Repair/3371926

 

Anytime! I have found that most repairs don’t require much resin so I use tiny little disposable mixing cups and cheap little paint brushes to apply the resin to the repair. Both very cheap on amazon or Walmart or something. Make sure you use a perfect 2/1 ratio of resin / hardener. Sanding is everything...

 

The right resin for the job would be poly. Since you can't use poly right now.......why not just go to the hardware store and get some 30 minute cure epoxy and make the temporary repairs you need and then do it right in the spring once things warm up.

Also, you can use sun cure poly resin easily down to temps of 45 degrees. I've glassed entire boards in my shed on days in the low 40s with the only heat being what was coming from 4 light bulbs in the shed and whatever sun was hitting the shed. 50 degrees inside the shed tops. Just take it out in direct sunlight and the resin fires off regardless of temperature. Just warm the resin up indoors or by sticking the container of resin in hot water so it flows nicely. If its a deep ding or if you mix cabosil or pigment in add a bit of regular catalyst to get it to kick off.

http://surfsource.net/store/category/sun-cure-uv-resin

 

Yes the resin research is great. Just get some quick kick, additive f, and cabosil since you want the resin less runny

 

Add F can make your repair a little cloudy, especially if it's cool in your work area. I would not bother using it for simple repairs. I use RR exclusively. Here's a few tips...

Get a digital scale and use it to measure your ratios. Small batches are tough to get good ratios by volume. Go by weight. The ratio by weight is close enough to volume for it to work just fine.

Make sure you use really rough grit when you sand the repair area. Epoxy needs a good mechanical bond when bonding to poly. It doesn't bond chemically well at all.

If you're mixing really small batches, try using a few drops of Excellerator. It will help it kick quicker, but won't make it cure to a full cure any faster. But because it kicks faster you'll have less problems with drips and runs and resin draining out of your repair.

Use the Kwik Kick formula from Resin Research, if you can get it.

Mix slowly with a stick (not a whisk) and thoroughly. That way, you won't beat air into the mix... that's what gives you bubbles. Mix slowly for a good minute.

Warm the resin portion of the mix gently before mixing it into the hardener. It will help you mix easier, kick faster, and let bubbles rise to the surface more easily.

 

If you're using epoxy, do yourself a favor and use a scale and measure your resin/hardener by weight instead of volume. All it takes is one batch to not kick and the cost of a scale becomes very minor.

 

Resin Research is the best epoxy resin I've found, and for repairs you want the kwick kick so you arent waiting forever for it to be sandable. The ding all epoxy resin is fine as well but sets up slower....all of the issues you mentioned.

Honestly, if i had a vintage log with a whole lot of places to repair I would probably use good quality poly sun cure resin, which will set up just as fast on a sunny 40 degree day as a sunny 80 degree day, and wont have all of those issues you mentioned. do like 5 repairs in the shade, have some saw horses set up in the sun, carry it out and within 15 minutes your sanding and on to the next 5 holes. It also have the epoxy/poly bonding issues. I've glassed at least 20 surfboards with this stuff (laminating version) and its just as rugged as poly resin kicked off with the MEKP in my experience riding boards for many years glassed with this stuff.

But i'm guessing you already had to rule this option out.

 

Very very very good idea here. On the sun resin. Hard as a rock to sand in no time and no fumes. Stuff is great.

I hate epoxy. More hardener doesn't equal faster results because of the chemical properties of the material.

Maybe wait for a warm spell and just go poly.

I hate epoxy. Uses all my sandpaper, doesn't mold well. Also....think....yes you can put epoxy on PU but you're creating a structural imbalance and may see issues surrounding where the materials meet due to the different densities.

 

Very very very good idea here. On the sun resin. Hard as a rock to sand in no time and no fumes. Stuff is great.

I hate epoxy. More hardener doesn't equal faster results because of the chemical properties of the material.

Maybe wait for a warm spell and just go poly.

I hate epoxy. Uses all my sandpaper, doesn't mold well. Also....think....yes you can put epoxy on PU but you're creating a structural imbalance and may see issues surrounding where the materials meet due to the different densities.

 

I absolutely love the west systems 105 205 combo. I use the pumps that measure the ratios perfectly, it is very light, strong, flexible and has superior uv protection. The flex adds to the strength, it sort of bounces if you know what I mean. This resin makes great fins due to the flex. Also perfect for sanding no need for additive F.

I prefer poly for small dings especially in the winter. The way I understand it (and have experienced it myself) is with epoxy, if the ratios are off or temperature not right it will never cure. With poly if you add too little MEKP it will eventually cure, it will just take a long time. If the temp is freezing it will still cure, it will just take longer. Poly eventually will cure. Just add more hardener or less depending on working time and temp.

All in all I prefer west systems for fins and glossing and poly for ding repair.

 

Regarding the expense of epoxy... especially RR... If you control your waste, it's comparable to poly in terms of cost, especially for ding repair. Get into the habit of mixing only what you need (which is easy when the stuff's expensive). Poly is cheap, so you tend to get careless and a lot ends up on the floor. Suncure is easy to conserve and minimize waste, but your question was asking about epoxy. https://greenlightsurfsupply.com/collections/surfboard-ding-repair

 

LB Crew is a smart fella.

 

You don't need an expensive scale to measure out the epoxy in small batches. Just go to the local pharmacy and go the the children's medicine section and for a couple dollars you can buy measuring syringes. You need two of them. One for resin and one for hardener. Mark one syringe for resin and one for hardener so you never mix the two. Look for syringes like the ones pictured below that don't use a piece of black rubber on the end of the plunger.



You don't want ones like these because the black rubber piece will sometimes come off as you are drawing resin out of the container.



I've been measuring epoxy in small batches this way for over 20 years and never had a problem.

I still wouldn't use epoxy for the repairs to an old poly longboard.

 

Great idea, CJ... As long as those things are calibrated accurately (and they should be, if they're for children's medicine), you should be good using those to measure by volume.

You need to buy pigment that is specifically designed for epoxy. Some pigments are for both poly and epoxy, some are only for poly, and some only for epoxy. Make sure your pigments are epoxy-compatible.

You can certainly use accelerator with the Kwik Kick... but it will kick really fast and get super hot. So if you're pouring a large volume into a deep hole, you should either skip the accelerator, or do multiple small volumes. It will literally start smoking and melt sh!t, and will do it fast. Even just straight KK will start to get too hot if you have too much volume... so control your pours if you've got big voids your trying to fill. For these kinds of repairs, make a paste with microballoons or other compatible filler. Completely fill the void with paste, tape over to get the rough shape your after (rails, flats, etc.), then sand down and glass over with clear or pigmented resin with the accelerator.

Got pics?