QLD
36 posts
Hi,
I recently bought a second hand year 2000 BIC Techno 283.
http://www.bicsportwindsurf.com/products/index.php?sportid=1&catid=43&rangeid=61&year=2000&lang=us
When left out to dry a hissing noise and bubbling was noticed from inside the bolt hole for the fin. Is is the air vent for the board or is this a leak I should repair?
Thanks,
Ripp.
QLD
2315 posts
Techno's dont have vents. There can be a small space around the finbox which the water gets forced into whilst sailing and when left in the sun it has to find it's way back out again, alot of bics tend to do this due to the style of finbox they use. Weigh the board after you know it's completely dry and keep an eye on it in the future (i tend to do this to most new boards anyway). If there is a crack it's not really an easy repair.
QLD
5283 posts
seal the hole with epoxy, or the board will fill with water.
no big deal.
p.s. epoxy doesn't stick to wet unsanded surfaces.
QLD
2315 posts
Yes that is correct RIP, it will look kinda like a sandwich construction there. All my bic's with trim box have done it from full carbon to plastic skinned ones similar to your techno. Have never had any take on any water through there though, you could try to patch it with epoxy if you wish.
WA
101 posts
Hi Rip,
I have a Tiga FreeX - which is identical to the Techno - only yellow/orange with full rear deck pad. To fix the hole properly you'd probably have to come in from the top - but given the techno recessed hole etc. this could entail some real mucking around - you would have to dig away the polystyrene core from the problem area to get a good access to the hole, and then to fix. This would mean youd have to use some expanding foam under vacuum to replace the polystyrene - and finishing with min. 3 layers cloth/epoxy.
I would suggest putting the board in the sun for a while to let the interior heat and pressurise - then get a cup of water with detergent in, and paint on to the suspect area - and see if you can pinpoint the size of the hole, and the position. Whilst your at it test other areas of the board like the edge seams, and footstrap plug holes - to ensure that you dont have any other holes anywhere else. If the hole is localised inside the tube area for the fin screw - a quick fix may be selleys - "aqua knead it", and use a stick or rod to ensure there is sufficient space for the screw to still go in.
It might pay to weigh it also, and see if the bare board matches the stats. - if it is heavier - you might have to drill a couple of holes in the outside to get as much water out of it as possible. I did this with mine once - checking for water - and then filled holes with epoxy, and Q-cells, and sanded back.
Hope this is of some help. Cheers - Gary.
QLD
2315 posts
Matching it to bare weight is hard to do, most are weighed without footstraps or pads.
If there is a hole the only cure is removing finbox repairing and putting a new one in. It's reasonably specialist and last time I checked finbox repairs were $200+, you would have to consider how much your techno is worth.
Since bic's use a modular type fin box, a small amount of water bubbling out on a hot day does not spell death like conventional layups. Water does get forced into the small space around the fin box and has to get out once everything expands with the heat, the easy spot is where the bolt hole is cause it is not all bonded properly: plastic/aluminium finbox-board skin-stainless washer.
