Refinishing a windsurfing board bottom

stuffinbox · #1 (**permalink**) 10-01-2007

I recently received a free windsurfing board. The bottom is pretty scuffed up with quite a few deep dirt filled gashes and I'd like to make it smooth again.

Can anyone recommend a method of doing this? (Scrub, sand and wax? How are the gashes best filled or removed?)

sailingdog · #2 (**permalink**) 10-01-2007

wire brush the dirt out of the gashes and the wash the whole board down. Then sand the bottom with 80 grit and apply thickened epoxy. Get it as fair as possible before the epoxy kicks. Use chopped fiberglass for the thickener.

BTW, if the gashes go through the gelcoat and have damaged the fiberglass, you'll probably want to grind out the area a bit and re-glass it.

sailingdog · #3 (**permalink**) 10-01-2007

BTW, you do know that some of the fastest sailing records have been set on Windsurfers... don't you?

bestfriend · #4 (**permalink**) 10-01-2007

There is sooooo much free windsurfing equipment out there since the advent of kiteboarding. Ditch it and get a better one, for free.

stuffinbox · #5 (**permalink**) 10-03-2007

Thanks for the advice. I think I'll fix it up -- its good to have a project on the go. I'm pretty sure I'll find a use for it. It looks like it'll be good for beginning and later on heavy days. (Which we get a lot of around here.)

Thanks for the book zip. I'll check it out.