I'm doing some maintenance on a friend's sabfoil wing (950). Along with the tip repair, there are some scratches on the bottom. As well, looking at the clearcoat, it doesn't look smooth and fair (a little bit of orange peeling). Water beads on the surface. I'm tempted to wet sand it smooth .

Has anyone else done this and was the result noticeable? Or am I taking my race wing obsessions some place they don't need to go?

If it has orange peel and beads water, it can definitely be noticeably improved.

Mark _australia said..
Agreed

but if there are some scratches I'd say re- clear the whole thing then sand as that will also fill the scratches

Thanks, all. Yes, Mark, my foil ocd wouldn't allow me to do otherwise. Let's just say of it were my wing, I wouldn't be asking the question but some people prefer shiny over performance and was getting an idea of what shiny might be costing him.
Got owner's permission last night to go to town on it. Getting my wet/dry and spray bottle ready.

Mark _australia said..
Agreed

but if there are some scratches I'd say re- clear the whole thing then sand as that will also fill the scratches

Mark, what clear coat product do you recommend?

Sanding day today. Admittedly, this wing is about three yrs old (so current production may be better) but, while it looks good, the factory finish is mediocre at best. The clearcoat hides a lot of roughness. When you start to sand, the weave underneath quickly appears in the difference between sanded and unsanded. It's not a very fair surface. The trailing edge is pretty thick as well.

I have a few friends who use this wing, 950, and it's overall size and design are good. Just surprised that, for something not at the budget end of the spectrum, it's not better. It will be soon, though.

Grantmac said..
If you think SAB is bad you should see how the Gong HA V1s are built ??

We should coin a new term: FSO (Foil Shaped Object)
The spotted areas are flat spots on the top curve of the foil where just part of the weave is sticking up enough to have the clearcoat sanded. This is after 320/400/1000. The flats can be felt while sanding across the curve. As this isnt a wing going to be used in a performance context and just a favor to a friend, called it good enough and quit for the day.

Reality is I'll probably fill these in. Hate doing anything less than right.