Repairing damaged KiteBoards
See ASSUMPTION OF RISK ( IMPORTANT WARNING) at bottom of page

These can be either structural or cosmetic.

Structural Repair
Manufactured boards use exotic materials and processes that are hard to duplicate for DIY repairs.
One of the main problems is bonding the various materials together to produce a homogenous laminate that matches the original construction. A considerable amount of time is involved, as each stage of the repair has to cure properly and be shaped by hand. In fact the labour involved for repairing a broken board, when de-lamination has occurred, is probably the same as constructing a new board. So it depends how badly you want to repair the board! The materials are fairly cheap, (about 50 GBP, for this particular repair). I have used one of the standard composite repair techniques, ( see stepped sanded repair process (pdf document). )
Most of the materials such as  the the PVC core foam, carbon prepreg and epoxy I had as left overs from  board making. The only material I had to order was the base material made from sintered UHMWPE (ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene). I got this from Tognar in the USA, who delivered within a week.

Cosmetic Repair
A lot of the cost will be in getting back the original finish which is comparable to that of repairing dints on a car. Your local motor part supplier has small aerosols which you can use to match up the colours.(Check compatiblility of solvents first). Minor dints can be re-filled with an epoxy/micro-balloon mix and rubbed down. (Can't be used on anything structural).
Tip:Use a  PLASTIC base primer coat over the repaired epoxy and keep additional coloured layers thin.
Allow to dry well between coats. If its metallic, do not use any abrasive on it and keep it away from grease on your hands. Do not use the supplied lacquer, but  multiple coats of epoxy which is flattened with 600-1500 wet & dry to remove pin holes & dust marks. Be careful not to cut though to the colour layer and then finish with a tough, marine, UV resistant varnish such as International Perfection 2-pack poly-urethane. (Use a mask, gloves and good ventilation). Keep the dust off for 6 hours and you should have a finish that matches or exceeds the original.

Warning: Do a test with the above varnish first as it has a very aggressive solvent, (hence the epoxy layer to seal in the paint layer)

Usually two types are core can be found: Plastic Foam or Wood
On the left navigation bar you can click for  a diary of the stages involved in both types of repairs on a modern composite kiteboard.

Plastic Foam Core e.g. Flexifoil AH Pro

Before & after

Wood Core ( e.g. 2009 Cabrinha Custom Pro)

Before & after

ASSUMPTION OF RISK ( IMPORTANT WARNING)
Carbon boards whilst very strong under normal situations can break suddenly with the release of large amounts of stored energy,
possibly causing injury.
Use of any information on this site to construct prototype kiteboards or repairs involves certain inherent risks, dangers and hazards which can result in serious personal injury or death. In using this information you freely agree to assume and accept any and all known and unknown risks of injury while using the information.
Release of Liability and Claim Waiver:
In consideration of the use of this information on this site you hereby agree to the fullest extent permitted by law as follows:
To waive any and all claims that you have or may in the future have against CustomKiteBoard & its representatives, resulting from the use of any information or device contained on this website.