What do you do if you are using gel pens to sign and label your rod? Do you just wait a certain amount of time for drying then epoxy right over, or do you do something else?

I let the gel dry for a period of time and then give them a light spray of polyurethane. Let that dry for several hours. They do not run when the epoxy is applied.

I spray mine with Krylon Workable Fixatif, available to art supply stores and even Walmart. Wait about an hour and coat with epoxy.

Artists spray fix. You don't need to hose it on, just a nice light coat. No need to wait any more than 10 minutes. Probably not even 5. I've run the hair dryer over it for 30 seconds and finished immediately. But it dries very quickly.



Better to have and not need than to need and not have.

I also use Krylon Workable Fixatif, but only a couple of lightly sprayed coats, because too much spray force or amount of Fixatif can cause the gel pen to bleed a little. Mask the areas you don't want to get the Fixatif on, because it leaves a shinyness. Let it dry, then one thin coat of Flex Coat Lite to protect it.

On my last rod project, I waited approximately 4 days before applying Flexcoat regular finish directly on top of the gel pen inscription. Worked just fine. Just have to be patient.

I got no patience, I heat it with a hair dryer 2-3 times then finish. Works good.
4 Days??