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Fin Repair |
| Fins take a lot of abuse in windsurfing. There is a tremendous lateral load placed on them during every reach, jump and landing. And sometimes we forget about them, or obstacles hidden beneath the water, and damage the fin by running into things. Not to worry, most of damage can be easily repaired. |
| -Damage most often occurs during launching or
coming in off the water. Sandpaper of varying grits, medium through fine will do the job.
Simply round the flat and rough spots with a medium grit, sanding
only the damaged and immediate surrounding areas, and finish with
fine grit sandpaper. -For more serious damage, rebuilding part of the fin may be necessary. If there is a chunk missing or the top of the fin has been ground flat, it is possible to rebuild the fin with epoxy. 2 part epoxy, and the epoxy found in "ding repair kits" works fine, but UV cure resin or Solarez is much easier and quicker to use. Rebuilding your fin to near-new isn't hard. Sand all the affected area to remove oils and grit that will hinder the bonding of the repair material to your fin. Apply masking tape to one side of the fin, covering the damage and extending an inch or so beyond the edge of the fin. Turn the fin over and with the sticky side of the tape facing up, apply the epoxy (and chopped fiberglass if you like) to the damaged area and set to dry. When dry, turn it over and remove tape. If there are coids or shallow spots, repeat the process on the new side. When all the epoxy has cured, shape the new material with a file, sander or sandpaper, blending it into the foil of the fin. |
| -Over time, the base of the fin at the junction with the fin base becomes increasingly stressed. This is an important area of your fin. First, this is where blemishes in the foil will most affect you and the fins tendency to cavitate. Second, fins shear off their base at this point. The first signs of stress are small internal cracks and an opaque discoloration of the area. As time goes be, the layers of material that make the fin will begin to delaminate, and the foil will be rough to the touch. At this point it is time to retire the fin, or perhaps brush up on you self rescue technique, because fins can and DO fail (read: snap off) here. |
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Windance 108 Hwy. 35, Hood River, OR 97031 |
