Subject: Question (surfboard restoration)
Date: Tue, 07 Jan 2003

I happened upon your CPES on the internet and it sounded like a possibility for a project I'm about to undertake. The only concern is that it might "over-penetrate" if that's possible. I recently happened across an old hollow wood surfboard/paddleboard probably built between the late 1930's and early 1950's. It has been sitting in an attic for some years, but I don't know its full history. It appears to have been originally finished with varnish or some other clear finish. The wood is now VERY dry, and it has a few splits and areas needing puttying. My original plan was to sand it a bit, polish up the brass screws, glue the splits and putty as needed with epoxy mixes, then coat the whole thing with epoxy, sand smooth, and finish with a couple of coats of marine varnish. My plan is to preserve it for its educational value (I have a part time sea kayak and surfboard/paddleboard business). It would also be nice to occasionally actually put it into water briefly to demonstrate the "feel" of the original paddleboards. Would your product(s) be appropriate for what I'm trying to do?? I've attached a couple of pics to give you a better idea what I'm talking about. It appears to be made from fir plywood (top and bottom), with pine (or spruce or fir) solid wood sides. The thickest wood on the board would be 1". Thanks for your thoughts. Larry F.

Wow! That is an old one, all right. Our products would be great for doing a restoration. You are right in that our CPES is a great penetrator. But as long as you didn't pour it on, I don't think that over penetration is an issue. I would use a brush and just let the wood absorb the CPES without letting too much run through cracks. If I were going to varnish, I would probably use our Layup and Laminating Resin mixed with sawdust or sanding residue as a filler. This gives a wood toned filler which should look nice under varnish.

As this is such an old board, is there any chance that it might have more value un-restored? If it was made or owned by anyone famous in surfing circles, it might have a fair amount of collector value. And collectors generally put more value on an un-restored object. If it isn't valuable in this area, it would be nice to see it restored, and our products are certainly great for this type of work. Let me know if I can be of further help.

Doc