Hi JC,
good question. There arent any known common problems with this board and I'll give some tips on how to check the condition of a 155 (or any 2nd hand board) before you buy it. These checks should be done with a dry board, before you take it out for a test sail.
First check for obvious repairs, eg ding repairs etc. Most minor repairs wont affect the board at all but do check there is no leak anyway around the repair area, press to check if the repair area is soft..if it is you may have delamination under it.
Use a knuckle and rap firmly all over the top and bottom deck. Any area that sounds different should be check, press down with your thumb hard to see if its soft. If it is, check how large the area is, in any case even small delaminations should be repaired.
Check along rails for small crack and chips. If the chip is only the outer coat you can pretty much ignore it.
Check along the mast box (mast foot box) area carefully for any signs of cracks.
Very important, open the air valve (bung) and look to see if the inner foam is moist. On some boards (eg Mistral Flow) the bung is only there for show so don't bother. Most boards with a seam along the edge are of ASA construction so no air valve is needed (much older hulls, most modern boards are sandwich construction with air valves). If there is moisture in the foam then you may have serious problems.
Rock the fin to see if there is any flex in the box (ignoring fin flex!). If you are buying an ultra light custom board this is especially important to check. Remove the fin and check the inside of the fin box for cracks etc. This damage is caused by running into debris etc (happens sometimes during our south west monsoon!).
Run your hand over the deck and check the condition of the non slip. This is fairly easy to repair but its good to know what you need to fix before you buy it.
Lastly look over the board itself, is it clean? No oil stains? If the owner has kept the hull clean chances are its been taken care of with pride.
For the 155, the wood changes color as the board ages, this is normal. Also, a creamish putty is used around the mast box and fin box areas, this is part of the production process and is normal.
If you are really not sure, you can get our repair expert Ben Jr to check the board for you. He will also give you an estimate price for any repairs you might need (whether cosmetic or otherwise).
Avoid respraying an entire used board, new paint just adds weight.
Ben can be contacted via
benjr@bluefinz.com [ 07. December 2002, 10:32 AM: Message edited by: sukhdev ]
