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If you want to make a surfboard, this is a great video to teach you some of the details for the final coat of a surfboard. Even if you do not intend to make a surfboard, this video has some great discussion about how to finish a project with an extraordinary finish.
They talk a little bit about the prepwork. Sanding the board with 60 grit to give it a rough surface to which the final coat can get a solid grip. They brush on the epoxy, this helps them get a smooth thin surface. They also brush lengthwise and then side to side. By brushing in two directions like this, it helps to spread out the epoxy to an even thin layer.
The creators in this video are working in a space just for finishing surfboards. They have an organized work space that is clean and dust free. Keeping the space free from dust minimizes fisheyes and other minor imperfections on the surface. If you are working in your garage, you can make a clean space by hanging plastic from the ceiling to make a small clean room. This does more than just keep the dust out, this will also keep the bugs out. While dust will make a small imperfection on the surface, a misqueto or fly that gets stuck on your surface will really make a terrible imperfection that will be difficult to correct.
Another trick these guys use is to tape the edge of the board so that the epxoy that flows over the edge can drip away from the surface rather than leaving a heavy bump that would have to be sanded off. This tape can be peeled close to the set time so that tape can be easily pulled free and the epoxy won't glue it in place.