Hello all,

I recently built a 14' spey rod and upon casting encountered a problem that I have no explaination for and was hoping you could provide some input. On all three sections of the rod, the tip 1/8" of the female furrule has the finish releasing from the wraps all the way around the blank. (The total wrap length is 3" for each ferrule) The wraps appear to be completely in tact and firmly wrapped on the blank. I finished the wraps with Gudebrod 811 CP and LS Supreme. The wraps are a bright red and where the finish is releasing, the color is gone. If I press down on the finish that is releasing, the finish comes in contact with the thread and appears red once again.

I've never had finish problems before and have used most of the finishes available in the last few years. The LS supreme was cured for 2 weeks before use and appears to be perfectly fine. I've used regular LS and LS2000 on other spey rods without any problems with one difference, I used U-40 color lock.

Do you think this particular blank has deformation/flex/bending/etc. of the female ferrules during casting, causing the finish to deform/crack/release at the outermost 1/8th" of the ferrules. Keep in mind this is a spey rod which is cast in a much more dynamic way that standard fly rods. There is substantial torque placed on the furrules. Most spey fishermen actually tape their ferrules before casting to prevent the section from twisting apart. (I too tape my furrules before casting.)

As a side note, the stripping guides also have this cracking/releasing problem at the very tip of the guide foot. This I accept as normal, as I have not seen a spey rod produced by anyone with any finish without this commom occurance.

I would like to re-do the ferrule wraps and would like some advice on how to avoid this a second time. As, I mentioned, this is not a finish witch-hunt, as I have great results with all the finishes by simply following the directions. Would not using CP help? In a thread posted below, it would appear CP has nothing to do with this problem, but I would note that it's only the LS supreme releasing, the threads are still intact with presumably the color preserver imbedded in the threads.

Thanks in advance for your help!
Brad

Try wrapping furrules only .75 in. and cp is up to you.I only use ncp thread and no cp. Hope this helps Ken .

Ken
It is not the LS Supreme that is doing the releasing. If the the Supreme were releasing, the color would remain in the threads. Your description of the" where the finish is releasing -- the color is gone-- but the color returns when you press down on the thread." This is descriptive of the dye in the thread doing the releasing. I have seen this phenomena a few times before, but just try and get Gudebrod to admit to it. They will deny it until @#$%& freezes over, but there is no other logical explanation. I have only seen it when using the gudebrod 811 cp, and I think that is due to the better adhesion of this fine product. The quality of gudebrod dye in their threads runs the gamut from very good to very bad, and you are seeing one of the latter. Another spool of thread of the same color will probably be free of the problem. I have seen it in reds and blues.

Ralph

Brad
I mistakenly addressed my post above to Ken. Sorry bout that.
Ralph