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Varial denting

ChaseTMP

ChaseTMP

Michael Peterson status
Apr 6, 2014
1,780
3,199
113
S. Redondo
I've mentioned several times around here about taking out random dents in Varial blank constructed boards and took a before and after photo after hitting it with a heat gun today.

I apparently ( I don't remember what happened) got tangled up with my board Monday evening pulling into a backside closeout barrel and got a legitimate concussion in the process. The dent where the board it me in the back of the head was smaller than I had thought in my post concussion fog, but still lame looking. I hadn’t surfed again until this evening, because I was still getting a weird sensation when making sudden movements with my head up until last night and I didn't want risk making anything worse. I have no idea if the board was the only thing that hit me or if I got the Malachi Crunch between the bottom and the board?

While trying to remove a dent on my daughter's used Varial Surf Rx I got a temporary bubble, so I'm more careful now to keep the heat gun about 5" away and keep it moving. I've only done it in non-weight-bearing areas. I've included a picture of the deck and you can see it's pretty dimpled. Most of my boards get really deep wells on either side of the stringer and they're usually concentrated in two spaces, where the ball of my foot and heel typically are. The Varial is pretty weird in that it's randomly dimpled all over. The NB2 had CI's "Black Flag" double concave deck which was fairly subtle, but you can barely see it now with all the dimpling.
Varial 1.jpgVarial 2.jpgVarial 3.jpg
 
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oeste858

oeste858

Phil Edwards status
Sep 11, 2017
7,013
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San Diego, CA
Well, the heat gun trick seems to work pretty well. Looks so much better. That is weird about the dimpling though.
Glad you’re feeling well enough to surf again!
 
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ChaseTMP

ChaseTMP

Michael Peterson status
Apr 6, 2014
1,780
3,199
113
S. Redondo
LifeOnMars said:
The deck of your board looks like a golf ball
Click to expand...
I know. I forget about it until I change my wax. Varial dents so easily, it's nuts (at least my board, that I ordered through Varial and they glassed). I have really shallow dents on the bottom part of the rails from duckdiving. First board I've ever had that's had that happen. The deck's dents haven't gotten any deeper and it's been my main board for about a year and a half.

I love the board and prefer it's flex to the XTR SL-C I had. This board is noticeably lighter than the 8C glassed XTR I had. The XTR barely had any deck denting after 3 months of use. I think I prefer how my Future Flexes got deeper wells in consistent spots and gave me a more locked-in feeling.
 
ChaseTMP

ChaseTMP

Michael Peterson status
Apr 6, 2014
1,780
3,199
113
S. Redondo
SlicedFeet said:
Holy Crater, are those heel dents from airs?

At least they are on top, or you have a whole new Phazer effect going on.
Click to expand...
Not really. I only go for them maybe one out of five sessions. I hate blowing waves and my air make rate is pretty low. We surfed together for the board's maiden voyage at one of the reefs not too far from your house.

Didn't you have a Willis Bros' Phazer bottomed board?
 
ChaseTMP

ChaseTMP

Michael Peterson status
Apr 6, 2014
1,780
3,199
113
S. Redondo
waxfoot said:
How old is that board / how often do you use it?
Click to expand...
First got it wet right around July 4th 2019. I ride it almost every day that it's rideable in the South Bay (morning onshores being the exception) so probably 3-5 days a week on average.
 
waxfoot

waxfoot

Michael Peterson status
Apr 21, 2018
2,096
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ChaseTMP said:
First got it wet right around July 4th 2019. I ride it almost every day that it's rideable in the South Bay (morning onshores being the exception) so probably 3-5 days a week on average.
Click to expand...
Seems that it does dent a fair bit easier than PU, though no real deck sinks.
 
SlicedFeet

SlicedFeet

Miki Dora status
Dec 17, 2004
4,751
989
113
Swarm Diego
ChaseTMP said:
Not really. I only go for them maybe one out of five sessions. I hate blowing waves and my air make rate is pretty low. We surfed together for the board's maiden voyage at one of the reefs not too far from your house.

Didn't you have a Willis Bros' Phazer bottomed board?
Click to expand...
Nice, I remember that day. Never had a Phazer, I think they were more geared toward bigger boards back in the day.
 
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M

Muscles

Michael Peterson status
Jun 1, 2013
2,599
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California/Hawaii
I have a Varial Neckbeard also. But it's regular glass not epoxy. It does dent easy but I really like how Varial feels. My board had some really bad dents after 1 month. The board is probably the lightest board I've ever owned. I don't care so much about dents as long as it doesn't buckle. I may eventually try the heat gun method but it doesn't really bother me right now.
 
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ChaseTMP

ChaseTMP

Michael Peterson status
Apr 6, 2014
1,780
3,199
113
S. Redondo
Muscles said:
I have a Varial Neckbeard also. But it's regular glass not epoxy. It does dent easy but I really like how Varial feels. My board had some really bad dents after 1 month. The board is probably the lightest board I've ever owned. I don't care so much about dents as long as it doesn't buckle. I may eventually try the heat gun method but it doesn't really bother me right now.
Click to expand...
Parker (one of the founders/owners), told me to not do the heat gun thing in weight bearing areas and that repeated treatment of an area may weaken the foam's cell structure where the heat was applied.

I also love how light Varial is.
 
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oeste858

oeste858

Phil Edwards status
Sep 11, 2017
7,013
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San Diego, CA
ChaseTMP said:
Parker (one of the founders/owners), told me to not do the heat gun thing in weight bearing areas and that repeated treatment of an area may weaken the foam's cell structure where the heat was applied.
I also love how light Varial is.
Click to expand...
Alright, gonna grab a heat gun today and I've just about worked up the nerve to try this on a couple dents on my varial plasmic. Both out near the rails, (one deck, one bottom) so shouldn't be an issue bearing weight. One really does look like it could be from grabbing to duckdive. Never seen that before.
The heavier (6+4 / 6) glassing that @MrSteve ordered on my new one seems like a good call for future orders. Still feels lighter than PU, but not as easily dented as the Plasmic (not sure the glass schedule ordered by the original owner). Nice flex/response.
 
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casa_mugrienta

casa_mugrienta

Duke status
Apr 13, 2008
43,662
18,160
113
Petak Island
LifeOnMars said:
The deck of your board looks like a golf ball
Click to expand...
Board looks normal to me except mine have channels too from heel and forefoot.

I once saw a board of Parker Coffin's that had channels from heel/forefoot that were so deep it looks like the board had been made for someone with an anatomic abnormality.

We're talking at least an inch into the the deck. I don't know how he was still able to even paddle it let alone surf it.

Funny part: It was on the used rack at SurfRide for $275. :crazy2:
 
MrSteve

MrSteve

Gerry Lopez status
Oct 1, 2015
1,338
1,765
113
NJ
From Varial:
In the future, you can offer "S-glass" a go which reduces pressures by 15-30% but you have to keep an eye on the stiffness as it does increase it by about 10-15% per layer, so generally we recommend one layer of 4s on the deck if you're going to go this route. Also, carbon does indeed reduces pressures a lot.
And yes, pressures wont affect the integrity/performance of the board in fact, the more you compact Varial Foam the stronger it will get, unlike PU which gets softer as it approaches the core which could cause holes/blow outs. There will be a certain point where you will no longer get any more travel for pressures on Varial and that will maximize its impact resistance.
 
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