How to do a Resin Tint Glass Job on a Surfboard

A surfboard really comes to life during the glassing process. The fiberglass adds strength, flex, style, weight and seals the shaper's design inside. Most of the time it's a surfboard with a resin pigment swirl, tint, fabric inlay or gloss polish that grabs your attention and says, "look at me, ride me, I'm cool."
We love that every shaper and glasser has artistic abilities that come out in their work. Since we did a shaping video with Ben Aipa, we thought it would make sense to follow up with a color lamination video with Otis from Hawaii Surf Factory. Otis has been making surfboards for over 30 years and is a true master craftsman.
In this video Otis does a standard magenta tint on the bottom of a Dick Brewer surfboard followed by a pink tint deck inlay. We also cover how to do a standard magenta deck tint as well. With as much experience as Otis has, you'll want to pay attention to the details and the way he uses his tools. You can see more of Otis' work at www.hawaiisurffactory.com and check out the glassing tools and materials he uses at shop.fiberglass....

[@DemopVWgarage]

finished board????????????

[@juancarlossantos9706]

No

[@williambissell794]

Beautiful work. I glassed a few boards back in the 60s. I learned by watching a guy named Jack Reeves in south Florida. I never came close to your level or his.

[@lowellkurashige9342]

i think i get it....at 12:21, Otis is laminating a different board (no longer the pink inlay). first you no catch..then you catch :)

[@matthewrosso8569]

You can always tell a master when he makes it look easy....

[@oschpr]

watching this for first time today. the foam pads are under your carpet. there are two kinds of pigment for resin; opaque and transparent (tint)

[@jasonpine3539]

OTIS....you are da' man! THANK YOU OTIS for all the boards you've expertly created....you deserve a triple crown!

[@yoiyomismo]

Great content, very useful and covering every detail. Thank you very much for sharing

[@gbthrylos]

So much labour. How do they make profit on these ?

[@oschpr]

still trying to figure that out! LOL

[@Collinoeight]

Is that a 1990's era Jazz cup you're using to hold the resin? Practically an antique.

[@ambientcotton7066]

Awesome video but why no pic of the finished product? 😎

[@ammasashwin1]

Jai Sri Mata Amrita Nanda Mayi !!!

[@just___SAYING__8578]

Looks like the hardest thing ever. Wow. I wish we could see the result

[@661EASTON89]

I've never made a surfboard but wasn't there another step that you guys didn't show? The final clear layer?

[@forsakendreamzz5690]

The hot coat and yeah

[@garyh4458]

Tried it and it looks like someone smeared turds on my board. I call it punk rock board.

[@george-3412]

Nice video and good explanation. Can you make a video (or do you have) about how much the foam is sucking resin and what are the trick of making a light board without the risk to have dry spots. I am glassing about 2-3 boards a day and I find it difficult to make the balance between weight and the amount of resin I put. Thank you

[@nannettebattista6224]

I have done very similar with Woodglut designs.

[@honeymorunga]

Otis you the man!

[@jackhu680703]

What a master work!

[@sophialow340]

Check out the Stodoys plans if you want to make it better.

[@sureshrobo8641]

Where we can buy a surfing blank board

[@HistoricSteamTV]

Nice work, resin fumes get into your bare skin over time. Also for vintage woody boats we have hanging clip hoses with air from outside to our masks. Inside tanks as well.

[@petermetcher]

Great vid, informative and well put together.

[@dudeleboski2692]

Rame, sound check please

[@PhillipTritthart]

Is Otis using a 4oz for the inlay and 2x6oz on top? Any specifics on why he's doing it that way would be amazing!

[@timk2763]

Q.The small foam pads on the stand... What type of foam? Does FH sell this? Thanks. Awesome work Otis.

[@Shelterandsea]

You can just use a strip of masking paper as well

[@georgeIucas]

this is SO USEFUL thank you!!

[@sergeykopylov652]

What resin do you use. Epoxy, polyether or vinil??

[@daliks]

that was polyester

[@ionlypostonceayear._.5537]

Glass job

[@dudeleboski2692]

You need to sort out the audio……

[@paulosilva-dm1qb]

Excellent footage excellent professional. Hope all that chemical waste has been properly disposed to a waste treatment facility..

[@RaisingCreativity]

what does resin tint refer to exactly, the color? the process? is it a brand? thanks!

[@888TMONEY888]

+Raising Creativity resin tint isn't a brand i know of, im pretty sure they mean the process of tinting resin and applying the tinted resin

[@an_what]

More than likely tint your resin before adding the catalyst mix it goooooood! Till you have the tint you want. Smash in some catay and spill it. ( add catalyst pour it in fabric and roll/brush/paint scrapper it till the fabric is completely saturated!) ;)

[@an_what]

Raising Creativity oh by the way check out www.fiberlay.com resin pigments yo! Bam your welcome

[@briantrend1812]

tint refers to he translucency of the colour , by adding a minimal amount of colour pigment, eg a fraction, it tints the resin rather than having a solid of that colour which would require more solid pigment in the resin. ie. you can see the foam through the tinted colour as opposed to a solid purple colour. for beginners its like adding more water to your solid orange juice it tints it clearer the more water u add to it.

[@Surfmus]

It's the process of painting/coloring a board. Instead of painting the foam with airbrush, staining the foam, or painting after hotcoat. The glasser use coloring onto the resin by tinting the fiberglass cloth. They use pigment, pour it on the resin and it serves as color paint.

[@an_what]

Subbed👍🏼👍🏼 perfect common sense application with perfect application skills by a master builder. Perfect commentary threw out the entire video! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ great job kiddo keep up the good work brothers🍔

[@fernandocrovato9827]

Muito util tirei todas as minhas duvidas.

[@countryroadstakemehome]

Do you think my shaper would dislike me asking if I can help in the making of my surfboard?

[@caqueosurfboards3662]

Muy buena tecnica el video rapido el waterfall es perfecto muy buenazo!!!!

[@seanwarers8483]

Nice...would have like to see the end result. Also people need to know a swirl,splash,or straight color resin tint,the board will be heavier than airbrush etc.....I know everyone loves poly-but EPS and EPOXY are the way to go(IMO) stronger,lighter and retains flex/return longer..waaay less VOC's....plus eps you get a small ding keep surfing...do that with poly and it's a 300lb board Lmao....nice work and vid... have fun.....

[@Surfmus]

If you get an open ding on EPS, it waterlogs faster than PU. The less pound per cubic the EPS is , the faster absorbs water.

[@dubschweezy]

also, if using fin boxes, I know you tape over the box before doing the lam.....but, how do you remove that tape? do you cut it at that 2/3 cure point? and only tape exactly over the box hole, and not the entire box itself? thanks.

[@ThamilAnbu]

Thanks bro

[@ricardosaosimao5970]

Is it possible to glass my old board with color tint or should i sande it first?

[@user-os5sd7sz4v]

And then I fix some ding using fiber and let my board looking worse than how it started😔

[@BartMan724]

dumb question can you dye the Glass mesh itself with RID clothing dye ????? to make the color more deep?? im doing a rust spot in a vehicle and do not want to rhino line it in rubber afterwards im also going to tint the resin!! THANKS

[@Surfmus]

What ever tint you use, make sure is not oil based but waterbased. Is best to use the pigments/tints exclusive for resins.

[@maestromjg.4323]

much love here from Philippines hope to just have a skimboard

[@k311y5m1th]

only tape the hole, leave it there, when you sand the hotcoated board the tape will sand off when you sand the boxes down.

[@krapart]

i love seeing these types of process videos. thanks for posting.

[@j15246]

witch doctor reddit.com/r/artisanvideos

[@DjPAUPER]

Hi there, really usefull video, thanks a lot.. I just had a small question; when u flip the board over after the 1st glass layer to cut the lap, do you let the board dry in that position or do you flip it back again?.. Thanks a lot in advance, and again thanks, really usefull video :) edit: and another thing, do you take any extra steps to make sure the board doesnt like ''stick'' to the stands, or isnt that an problem after cured for 2/3rd?

[@oschpr]

+Riemer Sorgedrager I let it dry over night deck down. Sooth side tape works

[@GregoryRLittle_GRL]

Great video and really great commentary. Thanks a lot!

[@ZmannR2]

Uhhhhhh wheres the finished product???? so pissed I watched the whole thing without seeing the end result

[@jayc546]

i like his " waterfall " techniques! way more user friendly.

[@Firefly1800]

What's the cost of material on that board? Like 50 bucks for fibreglass cloth and like 150 if thats epoxy resin and then 100 for a blank? sound right? Im trying to make my own board and I find to saturate the fibreglass enough I have to be over generous with the resin and it seems like im wasting a lot. I bought $40 clothe and atleast $120 of resin. That was enough for 1 layer on bottom and 3 on top like your board plus gloss/hot coats.

[@Surfmus]

I spend $275 to $400 depending on custom work. I get to save $50 when making my own blanks.

[@jhonatanvasquezbolanos3992]

good friend greetings from Colombia good job wanted to ask you what kind of fabric is that where you apply the resin as that fabric is called?

[@joeblow1942]

Jhonatan Vasquez Bolaños 6 ounce fiberglass cloth, and probably E.

[@mikedwalrus]

Got some really good info out of this. Thanks for the post. Otis is the man.

[@manchesterunitedpro9295]

when laming the deck why does he do 2 sheets at the same time?

[@mohammadlevy9668]

Ahhhh, that tape cut trick (for the lap) for the inlay prep is totally legit. I like. Sweeeet work Otis

[@Lukeg2024]

Amazing work. inspirational. Thank you.

[@chicoxiba]

really appreciate watching this, props to Otis he's a true craftsman.

[@Nobody99998]

Not bad. Work on your edit skills.

[@Carlos-fh8wk]

Precision of a master surgeon

[@thesurfgroup]

Uncle Otis.. Master Class

[@zip7806]

YOUR NOT SUPPOSED TO MIX IN WAX CUPS.

[@lucas.jacques15]

l love it

[@d-osborn]

One Pono Brother! Aloha Otis!

[@dubadoobie]

Whos djing this video? 🤣

[@praveensurfer5105]

U a surfing bord father

[@joelwalton5334]

Great video just a small technical question- towards the end of the video when you lamintae the deck with 2 layers of glass. Would you not see a difference in colour depth caused by the tightly trimmed deck patch the fully lapped top layer? Or possibly the colour is so deep now it's not noticeable?

[@oschpr]

+Joel Walton . yeah it's minor . not enough contrast to see

[@oschpr]

+Otis Schaper that's a different board. you will see it a little darker.

[@felixarnold4473]

I noticed Otis doesnt use any additive f. Im about to glass my first board i was wondering how necessary it is

[@grampabetts1314]

pretty sure he's doing polyester. Additive F is for epoxy me thinks

[@daliks]

@@grampabetts1314 indeed

[@THEBIGKUSH420]

OTIS IS A MASTER.

[@maestromjg.4323]

much love here from Philippines hope to just have a skimboard

[@GuapLord5000]

How'd that skimboard turn out?

[@bigant3798]

That was awesome, thanks for sharing that.

[@glennsak]

Great video. Horrible audio.

[@jjones9290]

True artist here!

[@josephhertzberg2734]

Beautiful

[@MrNaderFawzy]

i liked the tool he measure with

[@iakovpronozin9370]

wow

[@henrymorgan3982]

Cool.

[@dubschweezy]

how much time goes by for it to be 2/3 cured and good to cut?

[@Surfmus]

It all depends on the room temperature and the amount of catalyst. I would say in a 78 degree room about 1.5 hour with EPOXY Resin. With Polyester resin, it all depends how much catalyst is used but about the same time.

[@justinthorne1919]

go, otis

[@CamposElisios]

Show. Uma verdadeira obra de arte 👏👏👏

[@lukemckill]

good vid mate

[@Goomer]

Otto makes it look easy.

[@tubalap]

Would it have any differnce if after the pink inlay you use a crystal resin to finish the deck lamination? And if have used crystal resin to finnish, the tape and paper in the botton wouldn´t be necessary, right?

[@orcusdei]

Yes, you wouldn't have the fiber glass on that. The fiberglass is semitranslucent even if you put resin on it. If he makes 2 layers of color, I assume he makes the color look deeper. I am not laminating expert, I have nered worked with surfs, but I have little xp with cayaks. Still, maybe I'm wrong about the reason of the second coat :-)

[@jayc546]

+thevil we do two layer's on deck for strength k. his way is correct btw.

[@Surfmus]

From where I saw on the video, he went with Magenta after the pink tint. Your tape remark. Well the answer is that cut laps are cleaner.

[@bradward9857]

He switched to a different board for the deck lam, the pink inlay is on the racks next to it. The pink inlay would be glassed clear, and yes normally that would make the tape and cut lap unnecessary for the deck lam.

[@an_what]

888 baby😎

[@Sorasokah]

what foam and resin did u used..????

[@Surfmus]

PU and Polyester.

[@garinho1822]

Glassing

[@baldassarebuscarinu6541]

someone know the % of tint in poly resin???

[@oschpr]

depends on how dark you want the color

[@guachingman]

you make it look easy! :D

[@jimmiranda7181]

what is the ratio of color to resin?

[@Surfmus]

It all depends how opaque you want it. I know a little does a lot. I used a few drops on my shortboard.

[@tarhovkalocal]

Спасибо

[@MicheleTheberge]

This is amazing! I learned so much, even though I resin on paintings, not surfboards. I'm fascinated by this process and loved seeing all the details of the shop so well set up with the stands for the board and the station for the resin and color and that cardboard collar holding the funnel. So many great ideas here. Thank you for making this!