Is it worth fixing delaminated skis?

**cirenew** · 03-09-2021, 05:53 PM

Recently delaminated my right 187cm HOJIs. Unfortunately, 4FRNT wasn't able to warranty them given they're over a year old and don't qualify for their new 3 year warranty which only apply to purchases made after Aug 1, 2020.

Wondering if its worth trying to repair and if so how (assuming epoxy and lots of clamps).

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**stealurface831** · 03-09-2021, 05:54 PM

https://www.tetongravity.com/forums/...r-extended-use

**gregL** · 03-09-2021, 06:06 PM

Originally Posted by cirenew

Recently delaminated my right 187cm HOJIs. Unfortunately, 4FRNT wasn't able to warranty them given they're over a year old and don't qualify for their new 3 year warranty which only apply to purchases made after Aug 1, 2020.

Wondering if its worth trying to repair and if so how (assuming epoxy and lots of clamps).

Yes, epoxy and clamps (maybe some scrapers to disperse pressure). If you're doing it yourself, why not give it a shot? Even the best epoxy is fairly cheap.

**cirenew** · 03-09-2021, 06:10 PM

Originally Posted by stealurface831

https://www.tetongravity.com/forums/...r-extended-use

Thanks (again)!

**Core Shot** · 03-09-2021, 06:12 PM

Slow cure epoxy.

Spend the money and order orange hardman.

Wedge the crack slightly open with toothpicks or whatever.
Use a hair dryer to heat it up and get it to flow into the crack while you poke with a paperclip.

**XXX-er** · 03-09-2021, 07:53 PM

that looks like a tech toe of some kind ?

I recenlty fixed one for a bud so the binding had been knocked off the ski by hitting a stump at low tide so what I did was mix up a full syringe of slowset which I injected thru one of binding holes which really got that epoxy into the core and then clamp for 24 hrs

I went to the pharmacy and told them I wasnt a drug addict I just needed a syringe to fix a delaminated ski and they gave me one free

you probably wana take the binding off

**tuco** · 03-09-2021, 08:31 PM

They are dun!
Send them to me w/ a $50 check for disposal fee and I'll make sure they are safely disposed of.
You're welcome!

**SoVT Joey** · 03-10-2021, 04:31 AM

Originally Posted by Core Shot

Slow cure epoxy.

Spend the money and order orange hardman.

Wedge the crack slightly open with toothpicks or whatever.
Use a hair dryer to heat it up and get it to flow into the crack while you poke with a paperclip.

And then clamp the ever loving shit out of it. At least 15-20 clamps. (2-3 should suffice with metal scrapers or something to protect and distribute pressure.

**tuco** · 03-10-2021, 06:41 AM

Fucks sake!
Looks like we need a 'PSA:Fix yer own fucking topsheet delam' thread.
Secure G-flex epoxy,mixing cup, clamps, heat gun(blow dryer kinda works), wax paper or plastic(to separate repair from repair plates), something to use as a repair plate(strip of sheet material ie particle board or 1x2),80 grit, acetone or denatured alcohol,some sort of prying tool(that won't break ie not toothpicks).
Remove bindings
Start by prepping any surfaces requiring epoxy. Sand w/80g as best as you can and clean w/ solvent. Before mixing epoxy, do a dry run so you have no surprises.later.
Mix epoxy and locally heat the repair area---slowly-you can fuck a ski up real quick w/ a heat gun(not to close and always moving).
Pour epoxy into delam and cycle the delam open and closed. This will work epoxy into all areas of the delam.
Once you feel good about your wet out, lay wax paper or plastic over repair, put repair plates where they need to be and clamp it.
Let cure in hotbox or w/ space heater directed at the repair
Let cure.
Remove clamps and plates and file/scrape away at excess epoxy.
When you have that cleaned up, you might want to run file @ 45° around the topsheet to mitigate future delams.

**Wes Mantooth** · 03-10-2021, 10:36 AM

I recently had a pair of wailers delam in the exact same spot and way. The topsheet pulled up right underneath the toe piece (tech toe as well) and grabbed a bit of the sidewall/core with it. I attempted to fix it twice and after both repairs failed I bought new skis. It's worth trying, but I did not have success. I essentially did exactly what tuco said above - prepped the surface, used g flex with a hairdryer and toothpick to saturate into the pried open delam, cycled it open and closed with some clamps before clamping the fuck out of it, cured in a warm area for over 24 hrs, sanded up the repair area afterwards, and 20 mins into the first use since repairing it popped back open on the skin track

I have successfully repaired delams in other areas but from my experience with this location there was just too much torque from it being right under the toe, especially with a tech toe on an off camper skin track. Granted this was on a very old pair of wailers so you may have better luck with the Hojis, but it's a tough spot. Def worth a try though since it won't cost you much

**waxman** · 03-10-2021, 11:50 AM

Are these skis delamming in tour mode or with the toe locked out in ski mode?

**hawkgt** · 03-10-2021, 01:54 PM

I delaminated my TX107's first day on the way down, hit rock. Fixed pretty much exactly like tuco wrote up but I was in front of the fire and he forgot the part about applying liberal whiskey to said fixer. Still ski the shit out of as daily drivers. I like the 2hr marine epoxy as it settled nice.

**Judo Chop!** · 03-10-2021, 02:14 PM

it's worth taking the time to dry them out fully with warmth and moving air. The longer, the better.

use a good slow-cure laminating epoxy. The slower, the better. Hardware store brands all suck.
I wouldn't pick g-flex for this, as it's a bit too viscous to flow nicely and saturate the glass properly; and will build up. You want to get all the epoxy in the right places, but as little of it as possible (epoxy is just the bonding agent; NOT the strength). I like Entropy resin (for this and stuff like surfboard building).
Do it at room temp. I wouldn't use a hotbox.
Fill with epoxy, flex the ski and let sit to permeate, then drain excess.

Clamp that shit.

Trim off any excess with a chisel and sand. go ski.

**tuco** · 03-10-2021, 03:21 PM

G-flex comes in two forms: liquid(650) and gel(655). Never had a problem w/ flow w/ 650.
G-flex is made to adhere to materials that may have not had thorough prep. Which delams can be tricky because it's not easy to open delam-then prep and clean.
I recently made a mistake on this repair and had to pull a 1+ day old patch out and cut a new bigger one. That patch

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was just as hard or harder to remove than the stock material=I'm sold on the shit

**stuckathuntermtn** · 03-10-2021, 04:34 PM

If you can, try to verify that the core isn't rotten, and make sure it's DRY before epoxying.

**old goat** · 03-10-2021, 05:20 PM

My kid bought a pair of cheap beaters to do avy control for a season. I did a quick and dirty repair of a couple of delams and they lasted for a season of climbing and skiing over rocks, and skiing the shit out of the pow before the paying customers were allowed to load. The repairs lasted fine. I'm not advocating quick and dirty repairs--if the skis are worth anything it's worth doing it right--just pointing out that it's not that hard to do a mechanically successful repair. (Cosmetically successful is another story.)

**Judo Chop!** · 03-10-2021, 06:08 PM

Originally Posted by tuco

I recently made a mistake on this repair and had to pull a 1+ day old patch out and cut a new bigger one. That patch

was just as hard or harder to remove than the stock material=I'm sold on the shit

yup. that's a case where I would choose gflex. It's good stuff. It'll work for OP's repair too.

**Core Shot** · 03-10-2021, 07:29 PM

Thx for the heads up on gflex
Should be easier to get since west marine has it.

Point taken is that hardware store epoxy is too brittle. Which is why I’ve been using hard man orange. But gflex for success!

**tuco** · 03-10-2021, 07:34 PM

Yeah, I think it's perfect for ski repair.
That^^^repair up there was trickier than it looks, not just a patch. Blown edge with transverse delams under laminate. I misfuckin calculated the damage and had to remove patch and more base and fix 2 more delams in the composite layers. Kinda sucked cuz I had that patch lined up pretty good. Anyway, I finished it tonite