What are your opinions on fiberglass vs. epoxy surfboards?

Question

What are your opinions on fiberglass vs. epoxy surfboards?

Answer 1

My last 2 boards have been epoxy and I have never been more satisfied. I used to ride fiberglass boards and they would always get dinged up,  turn yellow, and get water logged.

In my opinion, epoxy boards are much more sturdy, are lighter, and are more "green" (pro-environment).

Answer 2

Fiberglass is better because it flexes when you are riding it which gives it a more fluid feel. The board actually bends a bit when you do a hard turn, so do the fins. Epoxy does not, I hate epoxy boards.

Answer 3

Not to nit pick but you're not asking the right question.  Epoxy is the materials used to coat the board.  Most epoxy boards use fiberglass just like traditional boards.   Where you see the difference is if the board itself is expanded polystyrene (EPS) versus traditional foam.  EPS must be glassed using epoxy as the polyether resins used for traditional boards will eat EPS.  You can use epoxy on traditional foam though.  

What most people think of as "epoxy boards" are actually thing like the SurfTechs which are a composite sandwich (compsand) board which is a whole different construction method.  They use an EPS core and then have a couple layers of composite materials and then are vacuum bagged and epoxy injected in the bag.  

While epoxy can be much harder than the traditional resin coatings it is available in different hardnesses, so you can select one that will give more flex.

If you want to find out everything you've ever wanted to know about how surfboards are made and what materials are used in different techniques visit http://www.swaylocks.com.

Oh yeah, epoxy does not have all the toxicity problems that traditional resins have either.  I glassed my fish this weekend using Resin Research hard epoxy, very little mess, no need for a respirator.  So how would me board be classified?  Clark Foam Super Green foam, epoxy resin but no fiberglass.  I used bamboo glassing fabric instead.

Answer 4

Epoxy boards tend to be lighter and more durable than fibreglass. Fibreglass has better flexibility and for surfers with enough skill to notice the difference, Fiberglass is a better ride. It seems that most traditional, custom board shapers are still using fibreglass. For somebody who is just an average surfer, the difference is negligible. However, many piece of s--t, mass produced popouts are epoxy boards, so use caution when buying.

Answer 5

interesting you bring this up; i was just talking to shaper bob pearson about this. for what it's worth, i've ridden both fiberglass and epoxy boards (pearson arrow fiberglass and santa cruz epoxy) and honestly i like the feel of fiberglass boards more. they seem to me more fluid rail to rail whereas  epoxy boards seem a little too stiff. the good thing about them though is that they are a little more buoyant and are a little tougher (less prone to dings and whatnot).