What do you do with all the old gear you cant sell?

windwiner · Joined: 26 Jun 2002 Posts: 128 Location: Berkeley

Is there anyway to recycle old gear? My garage is full of old boards sails and masts that I am finally going to get rid of. I have been holding a few old boards "just in case" but now I need space for new sticks, SUP (that sucker is huge) and all the other new stuff. I seriously doubt that I can sell my old boards or sails, but I don't want to just throw them in a dumpster. Anybody have any ideas?

OleBCN · Joined: 17 Sep 2007 Posts: 14

Hi,

Why don't you start a Free gear thread. Post a detailed list of the gear you want to get rid of. Somebody may want it... after taking care of the shipping costs, of course.
I've seen this in other forums.
If after a while you don't get any response, just try to recycle as much as possible.

Cheers.

Ole

isobars · Joined: 12 Dec 1999 Posts: 20935

If you visit the Gorge, give it to the Columbia Gorge Windsurfing Association. They sell it for peanuts and pour the proceeds back into the sport.

Tip for swap meet buyers: every once in a while they get some incredible purebreds in their fleet of mutts. I can't imagine a better source to find ... maybe ... a really good classic Gorge board if you can find one with modern mast track placement for those four or five days a year you get blown off the water at home. How can you go wrong with a $20 board that was as good as it gets just 10-15 years ago and is, for some applications, better than much of today's stuff?

\m/

swchandler · Joined: 08 Nov 1993 Posts: 10588

All very good points above in response to your question.

I have a similar dilemma having 8 old boards in storage. Some I couldn't really part with because they were great in their day, and they did their time (5-7 years for many of them). They're all custom boards, so that's bit different than having older production boards. Still though, a good board has class, like classic sports cars (Ferrari or Porsche wouldn't be too shabby). I kind of view it as my personal sort of museum.

For an interesting perspective, do you have any idea how much classic surfboards from the 60s go for?

speedysailor · Joined: 11 Sep 2007 Posts: 841

It is a question of space as these "collectables" take up a lot of it. If you can put together complete rigs, then at least the equipment can be used again. It's better to have an old rig than no rig at all. Ask around your neighborhood, I'm sure some local kid would want a rig. I that doesn't work, pick a poorer neighborhood.

winddave · Joined: 12 Aug 2006 Posts: 37

I can think of 3 options:
List it for free under the Buy/sellsection of iwindsurf, list it for free on craigslist, or look up your local freecycle.org location and give it away there.
I've given stuff away all 3 ways and people are usually as thrilled to get it as I am to get rid of it.
Good luck.

CGW2 · Joined: 19 Jun 2007 Posts: 179 Location: The Gorge

Thanks for thinking of the Columbia Gorge Windsurfing Association! We do indeed accept all kinds of used gear, and use the proceeds to benefit our beach access and community windsurfing programs. We accept all kinds of gear, and are especially excited to receive usable kids gear (including wetsuits and lifejackets). These go into our youth windsurfing program equipment, which we are constantly looking to expand and improve.

To donate, contact the CGWA office at 541.386.9225 or cgwa@gorge.net.

Thank you!

dogalone · Joined: 10 Apr 2000 Posts: 113

you might be able to make a nifty roof top carrier box out of the old boards if you can slice them in half length wise with a bandsaw. maybe some redwood bender board would work as the sides. probably needs a solar fan for ventilation, but would hold quite a bit of gear

PeconicPuffin · Joined: 07 Jun 2004 Posts: 1830

You can always turn the gear into something new. Check out the chair someone made out of a board, mast and boom parts:
http://www.peconicpuffin.com/the_peconic_puffin/2007/03/the_art_of_recy.html

At the local swap meet on Long Island a sailing school comes by and (selectively) picks up gear that still decent but largely unsellable.

windwiner · Joined: 26 Jun 2002 Posts: 128 Location: Berkeley

As cool as that chair is, I don't know what my wife would like less, keeping all the old gear in the garage or having that chair in the backyard. This is a tough situation, I kind of like having all the old stuff around, lots of memories. I am definitely keeping the old custom boards, but the production gear and sails have to make way for new stuff. That old Sputnik 280 World Cup Edition is probably still as fast as any of the new slalom boards though. Hum, what to do, what to do? Thanks for all the ideas.