Base Repair

You want to keep your snowboard base free of deep scratches and flush with the edges to prevent your board from being slowed down. The following equipment will be needed to repair gouges in your base: base cleaner, a 220 grit emery cloth, alighter, a P-tex candle, a steel scraper, and a good straight edge. A hot glue gun can be used in place of the lighter, but is more expensive and clogs often. If you have a gouge that penetrates all the way through the base, have your local shop repair it rather than trying to P-tex the area. Also, you may want to practice on something other than your snowboard before attempting to P-tex your base. As you gain more experience with practice, your P-texing technique will improve.

1) Scrape off any excess wax from the base and clean the base off using the base cleaner. 

2) Make sure that the deep scratch or gouge is free of dirt and or wax and not smooth, but rather rough inside. The emery cloth can be used to add texture to the damaged area. This will allow the P-tex to better bond with the base.

3) You are now ready to begin the repair. It is important to use the lighter rather than a match. This will reduce the amount of carbon caused by burning the P-tex candle, which can make the repair look brown and burnt. To further cut down on the amount of carbon generated, maintain a blue flame with the lighter by dripping the P-tex onto the steel scaper until the flame is regulated. Bring the flame to about 1/8" from the base surface and, while moving the candle along the side of the gouge,  allow the P-tex to flow into the damaged area. The hot P-tex will begin to flow into the gouge, filling the damaged spot. . 

4) With the P-tex fully hardened and cooled, use the steel scraper at a 60 degree angle with the length of the base to remove the excess P-tex and get the repair flush with the surrounding area. Be gentle as you do not want to dislodge the repair material. If the repair is not bonding well, you may have to scrape out the material and start again. The P-tex will eventually begin to make a better bond.

5) Next, check the base for concavity and convexity. Place a good staight edge across the base width, from edge to edge. The base is concave if it only contacts the straight edge along the board's edges and light can be seen between the two. This can be corrected by flat filing the board's edges until they are flush with the base. If the straight edge contacts the middle of the base and not the board's edges, then the base is convex. In this situation you can either have your local shop stone grind your base or you can take care of the problem yourself by using the steel scraper to plane down the P-tex. Just make sure that the scraper has a burr along the the edge for easier cutting. Simply sharpen the scraper edge with a file to accomplish this.