How to travel with a surfboard

The Best: Qantas, Air Tahiti Nui and Emirates, as surfboards fly free on all three, so long as they are one of your two checked bags, and stay under the standard allowed weight and dimensions. (Honorable mention to American Air and Delta for cutting surfboard fees in 2019.

Multiple Surfboards Bags

Big bags can take up to 7 boards without fins! Bigger bags can take from 2-7 surfboards. Bags that take 2 or 3 surfboards can still be normal bags, ones that take more than 3 almost always have wheels in the back because they get to heavy to carry around.

You don’t want a bag that’s too small or tight because it will make it harder to get your board in and out, as well as leaving it more susceptible to dings. While a bag that is too big will feel really loose while transporting which isn’t ideal either.

You can stack boards to carry more, but DO NOT STACK MORE THAN 3 BOARDS ON TOP OF EACH OTHER! To stack two or more boards, YOU MUST PUT FOAM PADDING BETWEEN THE BOARDS (Figure 5a).

If you want, you can put bubble wrap on the deck of the surfboard for added protection. When traveling with surfboards, dings most commonly occur on the nose and tail of the board, so I usually put bubble wrap in these areas.

Wrap up the fragile parts of your board. You can use bubble wrap or foam padding – or even cut up an old towel and use duct tape – to protect the nose and tail. Some surfers also like to give the rails some added buffer. Foam pipe insulation, sliced down the length of one side, is a great choice for this.

Board Storage

Surfboards should always be kept indoors, away from the elements. Prolonged exposure to sun, rain, and even morning dew will compromise a surfboard’s structural integrity over time. Avoid stacking surfboards.

4. Don’t leave your Surfboard in the hot Car! Heat + Surfboard = Bad News… Even for the shortest amount of time, surfboards baking in cars can cause some of the most serious damage.

If the answer is yes then get yourself a surfboard bag. The board I use most often (every day & sometimes twice a day) I clean off & re-wax it about every three-four weeks. At this time I give it a good wash with fresh water and clean the leg-rope ankle strap & railsaver in a bucket of fresh water.

In a perfect world, you should be at least rinsing and wiping down your surfboard after each use, as the salt water can really take a toll on the integrity of the board. Think of it like a boat. Once the boat comes out from the saltwater, it’s immediately rinsed off to keep scaling and degradation from happening.

You can and often should top up your board every time you surf. But, depending on the temperature of the water you surf in, you should fully clean and re-wax your board every 2-3 months, or 4-6 times per year.

A question that often arises with beginner surfers is, “Should I rinse my surfboard with fresh water or salt water?” Definitely stick to freshwater, as saltwater is corrosive to the board. When you rinse your surfboard with fresh water it will allow you to keep your board looking as good as new for as long as possible.

It is not necessary to take a full shower after each surf.

However, it is still a good idea to rinse off when possible. Although you should keep your skin free of ocean water and bacteria as much as possible, it is only necessary to clean your surfboard and wetsuit once you are done surfing for the day.

If you just picked up a new board make sure to clean the surface of the board with rubbing alcohol before gluing your traction pad down. Once the board “looks” clean apply rubbing alcohol to remove any grease residue from the old pad which may be on the surface of the board.

Once satisfied that you’ve removed most of the wax – grab some white spirit and an old cloth. Soak the cloth with spirit and rub the remaining wax off. The spirit will dissolve the wax and turn your board into a pristine, sparkling, object of desire!

For a new board – wipe the tail area with a clean cloth dampened with methylated spirits or acetone (nail polish remover) to remove any dust or grease.

Re: Cleaning an epoxy surfboard

Mineral turps works great. Just soak a bit into a paper towel and rub through. Epoxy or polyester, both are fine. Make sure you rub fully clean with a dry towel before trying another wax layer.

Go a little dousing with white spirit over your wax before you start. There are less toxic, non-oil derivative natural products you can use like a citrus one, look out for that in your local surf shop. When it’s all scraped away, wet a cloth with white spirit and wipe the whole board, deck, rails, fins, bottom.

Wax comb. A wax comb is a tool used in the maintenance and removal of surfboard wax on a surfboard. The jagged edge is used to create textured grooves for improving the traction of the wax and the straight edge is used for scraping off unwanted wax.

White spirit (UK) or mineral spirits (US, Canada), also known as mineral turpentine (AU/NZ), turpentine substitute, and petroleum spirits, is a petroleum-derived clear liquid used as a common organic solvent in painting. White spirit is the most widely used solvent in the paint industry.

Molecular formulae: C_nH_2n+2 ( n-alkanes and isoalkanes) C_nH_2n (cycloalkanes)^a C_nH_2n–6 (aromatics), n > 6 Relative molecular mass: 150 (Approximate average value) 92-170 (for single constituents) Common synonyms: Lacknafta (Sweden); Lakkibensiini (Finland); Mineral Spirit; Mineral Turpentine; Mineralsk Terpentin (