What finishes are prefered here for surf rods? What are the best ways to keep the edges nice, clean and even? Would a halogen lamp work to keep the rod at a good temp for curing? I was looking at the aftcote or dura gloss ls. Any suggestions?

Room temp (70 to 75F) is about right for finishing and curing. You may wish to take a hard look at the new LS Supreme High Build from Trondak for big rods such as surf and boat models. Very high build and allows you to get the job done with just one or perhaps two applications. Plenty of working time at room temp, too.

.........

Careful with the Halogens. I used to use a twim 500 watt unit over my bench to aid drying and it seemed to cause some yellowing of the epoxy. This was with flexcoat high build. I didn't understand why this happened but someone told me that the Halogens actually give off a UV light. The person sent me an article on it but I can't seem to find it. I switched to the AMTAK line of finish and ditched the halogens and haven't had a rod yellow on me since. Not sure if I got good info or not but I wasn't about to try it again. I'm interested in hearing some other opinions on the halogens because they did give of a nice heat source.

Also, I was wiring in a 3 way switch and ceiling light in an entry way. I had lots of troubles up by the light. I was using a floor lamp/halogen bulb to see (no light cause dummy had to have a 3 way switch).
Long story short, I had second degree sunburn on my arm when done-underneath on that soft skin where it hurt like the devil!!

Be careful with halogens!!

Putter

that's what you get for trying to marbleize your light fixture while it's installed on the ceiling! Hey, if you marbleized your arms that would probably be like SPF 3000, no more sunburns!

What about small heat bulbs used in bathrooms??

Note to self: Maybe a new job at the beach for me; body painting (marbling)...