You Can Become a Master of The Field with Resin
Fiberglass and polyester resin are normally seen with foam blanks made of PU.
A common structure of a PU central part of a normal shortboard consists of a layer of 4-ounce (0.15 kg) E-fabric in the lower part and two layers above. In this case, S-fabric is a good choice, too.
Its benefit is that it makes an item stronger with the same value of weight. Then comes a polyester resin layer above the fiberglass.
Advantages: Despite the fact that the greatest part of manufacturers works with other materials when making their surfboards, it takes less effort to get a custom-made Polyester/PU surfboard.
When used together, fiberglass and polyester provide such surfboards with more flexibility and better results. That is why professionals choose polyester as an option.
Polyester resin has a low price and is considered a tried-and-true material.
Disadvantages: Polyester is prone to cracks and bending to a greater extent. In addition, it is eco-unfriendly. Because of that, leading manufacturers are trying to eliminate using this resin in such a throwaway product.
Mistaken opinion: It doesn’t mean that manufacturers should exclusively have polyester resin in a PU blank. Another option is epoxy as well.
Fiberglass and epoxy resin. With Clark Foam’s production being stopped, expanded polystyrene (EPS) and extruded polystyrene (XPS) have aroused intense interest.
They break down when they get in contact with polyester. Glassing makers should work with epoxy resin.
The range of manufacturers who offer custom EPS or XPS boards to choose from is quite narrow but you will easily buy a brand-name model off the shelf.
Epoxy resin is normally used with EPS foam despite the fact epoxy can also be combined with the PU. Below, you will find out why epoxy used with EPS is better than a normal Polyester/PU pair.
Advantages: This type weighs less and it is stabler and more robust on the water surface. Epoxy resin is normally less prone to cracks (protected against cracks twice as much compared to polyester resin).
According to the experience of a lot of surfers, such equipment is very good at digging and allows them to cut some inches from the length. Moreover, epoxy is not so toxic.
They say some epoxy boards may have exclusively epoxy resin in their layered structure. You should do some research.
Another advantage is that it solidifies in a much more gradual way when shaped.
Disadvantages: The price of the epoxy type is twice as high as of the polyester type. This is caused by the fact that surfboards without the PU in their composition are more labor-consuming.
When having got a crack, your EPS board will soak more water than an item with the PU or XPS.
Mistaken opinion: As opposed to what you found out, EPS/epoxy resin boards made manually show greater flexibility in comparison to a common PU surfboard.
Without knowing this, it just seems surprising that epoxy is more elastic because it is more robust than polyester.
