ROD FINISH????

[Fish Poison Rods]

It was a loaded question. Rod finishes first have character, sometimes friendly, sometimes not. Night Heron makes my point. I have tried everything you could imagine for the past thirty years. I have no friends, epoxies are my friends. I am always looking for something new and of course read all the claims. I love it when someone use a phraze "the Worls best" or something like that. Here are a few findings,
Aftcote [Aftco} I received several batches as samples as the finish was being developed. It mixes well , disperses bubbles well, fast flow. Drawbacks; In 24-48 hours its still tacky, not enough high build [mil thickness] ambers badly, looks like pankcake syrup after 6 months.
Pac Bay: excellent all purpose, good with bubbles, clear catalyst, good cure rate, cant find anything I dont like. Good high build.
Amtak; This is actually B&D Classics, repackaged.very good finish, similar to pac bay, good high build.
Threadmaster. Non yellowing! or maybe you should look at the bottle I have thats as yellow as the rest after six months.
Non yellowing till this day is a dream. This finish does have good working properties, yet it smells like 2 diesel engine exhausts emptying into your shop. I have 10' ceilings in my shop, loads of ventilation, this stuff makes you gag.
Rod Armour. Applies a little thin and fish eyes badly. The drawback is that after 30 minutes or so you cant go back and play with it like a polyner.Very little ability to drip, dab etc.
I am sure I missed a couple. I use epoxy by the gallons. In my shop I epoxy between 4-8 rods at a time, with usually three diffent one ounce mixes. It takes approx 2 hours. Each mix is manipulated as we go to deal with bubbles, leveling, bad spots etc, dealing with the fact that each mix at approx 25 minutes apart can be used throughout the entire lineup for fixing spots as we go. Being able to work in this time frame and fix various problems that arise requires the "Best" finish.
I have found Flexcoat original high build to be the best. If you have to paint 6-12 rods and have them ready and cured the next day it never seems to fail. I think Pac bay is the closest second.
UV finishes, sounds good, they seem to have a slow flow rate, dont level as good.
I like a 1/2" china bristle brush, the yellow ones are too small.

[flatliner]

Here is my 2 cents:

Flexcoat lite and high build: Good working time, good cure time, managability is good, clarity is OK and release of bubbles is good. UV resistance is poor in the long run.

U40: UV resistance is excellent, working time is good, cure time is on par.

Aftco: Good working time, good release of bubbles, great leveling and clarity.

Diamondite:
Great working time and mixability, awesome cure time (2 hours), great clarity, phenominal leveling and all around an A+...... I think you know where I am leaning toward at this point. As far as yellowing goes, its too early to know how it will be 8 years from now.

Kevin

[Deep C]

Interresting topic... Perhaps i could get some input from those in the know. I don't build em. I break em... I saw uv resistance mentioned... My rods get a baking outside in the islands for a month every year. I'm guessing what I see is UV wear as its the top of the rods that go basically rough. I mean down right coarse...
I know not to use say wd40. Is there something though short of toting them to a rod shop that I can do to bring them back to gloss?

[clt_capt]

So from a previous life building canoes and Kayaks, Epoxy doesn't generally have UV inhibitors. What about using a good quality Varnish over the epoxy to provide UV protection?

Has anyone tried it? Been successful?

[islandshark633]

flex-cote has a new hi-build out with a UV inhibitor, I have not had it long enough to know how good at non yellowing it really is but it goes on great, all the rods in my thread are coated with it.

[clt_capt]

Originally Posted by Deep C

Interresting topic... Perhaps i could get some input from those in the know. I don't build em. I break em... I saw uv resistance mentioned... My rods get a baking outside in the islands for a month every year. I'm guessing what I see is UV wear as its the top of the rods that go basically rough. I mean down right coarse...
I know not to use say wd40. Is there something though short of toting them to a rod shop that I can do to bring them back to gloss?

By rough, do they look like glass fibers, or like gator skin?
gator skin is a good indication that the epoxy has been UV damaged. If it is glass fibers, then you may be able to apply some varnish to get you by. If it is the epoxy, then they probably need a sanding and recoating...

[Fish Poison Rods]

Rods exposed to intence sunlight, from Florida south often have the problem I think you are mentioning here. IT looks like the finish is bubbling or is very course. You can wipe the rods down with acetone and then recoat them with flexcoat and they usually come out looking good. I dont think varnish or a single part finish will look nearly as well. Kevin Bogan

[flamekeeper]

Originally Posted by islandshark633

flex-cote has a new hi-build out with a UV inhibitor, I have not had it long enough to know how good at non yellowing it really is but it goes on great, all the rods in my thread are coated with it.

I have to agree, This ultaV out performs the original 100% in smoothing out and laying like a sheet of glass. sets up & Cures at a faster rate too IMHO..

[paul708]

here are a few of the finishes we use

we use mostly aftcote, flows well mixes great.
when we give lessons we use flex coat. that seems to be the easiest to mix/use
some of the guys use crysytal coat with flex over
the diamonite is nice with its fast setting time
i did a demo with that and it was dry in less than a hour with a nice glass finish

[Fish Poison Rods]

Through different techniques we all find different properties that draw us to certain finishes. If we succeed, then thats the best finish. Roger Seiders started flexcoat about 30 years ago. He got it right the first time. there have been a dozen best finishes since. He sent me samples of, and I have used a few gallons of UV. truthfully I dont know whether it does much to filter, but I have found it to Have a "synthetic liquid feel". You have to physically move it to where you want it ro go. The original paints much better/smoother. Nothing I have used levels as well as the original. Again much of what we claim could be based on techmique.
Look at Paul's pictures; a dozen different epoxies. Like me he is looking for something that is good, and by using a variety you figure out what each does best.
What I dont like about Aftcote is that it takes 24-48 hours to cure. It yellows worse than most that I have used, it does disperse bubbles and levels well, but feels like a light build.
Take a look at Pac Bay's, a great feel, and brush friendly.
Kevin Bogan