I have scored a brand new surfboard which was a promotional giveaway. When it was being made, someone has gone to the trouble of writing the dimensions on the underside of the board....That suggests that it may not be a complete piece of cr#p..although it still could be!!
As I am still learning on a TT, I thought as a low cost progression onto a surfboard at a later date (much later) and a reasonably small investment should I not advance on the board, I could convert this one with a paint Job (to get rid of promotional branding) and add some footstraps. If painting is not viable, perhaps then just applying decals to cover the branding and using a resin of some sort to seal.
Size is 6'4" x 18 1/4" x 2 1/2" and uses FCS plugs for the fins. My questions are -
1. Would this be a worthwhile project?
2. Is the board too big?
3. What sort of footstraps and where to get them
I currently fly a Core 10.5 GT. Any help would be much appreciated '
Honestly - forget footstraps, just use it as is on a light wind day in flat water and practice your gybes. So many of my mates and I thought strapless was hard but it is super easy if you just give it a go. If you must do the footstraps then Dakine make sick ones that they sell with the FireWire boards.
Pretty sure you are stuck with the branding- paint won't stick to the glass and will flake pretty badly.
Lastly - yes the board is big but you just want it to learn on so in light winds I think it will be fine.
By kiteboard standards the board is big but like everything depends a bit on your size also. I used a 6'8" for a few months as it was what I had at hand and I'm pretty big, it flaps around a bit compared to a shorter board but you can definitely live with it.
I disagree on the paint, prepared correctly it will stick, the finishes they use to stop yelowing etc on production boards is basically just clear paint, a light sand with say 400 grit and then spray, clear coat and wet and dry to say 800 grit and it should be fine. Personally though unless the branding is really terrible I'd just ride it and forget it. Forget the decals more touble than they are worth at this stage.
Any straps will basically do it's more of a personal preference than anything, I use ocean and earth tow surf straps as they are a bit stiffer and therefore stick up off the board making it easier to get your feet in quickly. Given that your are new to surfboards perhaps it'd be good to try without straps as the placement is probably the easiest thing to get wrong.
The board is not to big, and for the sake of economics, a block of wax is your best bet. (You will be surprised how easy it is)
Initially the hardest bit is getting started, but you soon conquer that.
If the board is a bit bigger, foot straps will only get in the way, as to stop the front bouncing in choppy water, you move your front foot forward to get your weight over the front and steady it. It also helps you to go up wind better on your toe side.
Put some wax on it, go to some flat water spot and use your persistence and you will save yourself a lot of time and money.
not a worthwhile project IMO - you dont need to do anything, just ride it..it was for free, so keep it that way - nothing to lose in that case.
dims on a surfboard are a standard feature - helps people know what they are buying.
it is a tad big for kite surfboard "generally" (depending on your size and preference), but that doesnt matter - it was for free!
10.5 GT...you might want to consider buying a smaller kite for moderate winds upwards.
Nice Dog Doggie....Does it do High Fives though?
Thanks For the advice guys..appreciate it
I used 3 fiberglass boards as kiteboards, all lasted less than 10 sessions until I bought my tuff lite. Never looked back.
So it's a surfboard, just learn to surf it
Whats your height and weight? A 6'4 is a great size for bigger riders.
Is it a tufflite or fibreglass? If it is fibreglass, the deck will dent and after 6-10 solid rides you will probably notice cracking around the FCS plugs. Putting another layer of glass is relatively easy and will make your board durable. Back deck grips are also a good idea as you back foot seems to kill the wax after about 1 hour.
When waxing buy 2 kinds of wax. Hardest wax you can find for a basecoat and normal stuff over that.
