As I have oftern stated before....I HATE two part preparations. No matter how hard I try I can never get them quite right. Spar is my do-it-all rod finish. It can be airbrushed on, applied with a foam brush, or wiped on with a coffee filter. It can be thinned, tinted, pigmented, glitter can be added, and it is at least relatively hard when cured. Clean up is even easy.

SInce I also do a little woodworking, it is also always around. Now some of these other finishes like Permagloss and Daimondlite among others sound interesting, but my motivations need to be goaded to give them a try.

FYI- Pearl-Ex Powdered Pure Pigments, esp the metallics like Brilliant Gold give an interesting "flash" to spar when added in tiny amounts as an accent.

So far, wiping the Spar on with a coffee filter seems to give the lightest and most even coats.

Derek L. McMaster
Rohnert Park, CA

Born to Fish, FORCED to Work

Derek.,

I have tried permagloss on my last two rods, and have had great results. I am impatient by nature and i try to mess too much with the two part epoxies. I have had success with the epoxies, but i like the no-nonsense of the permagloss. The fumes from the permagloss is a concern, so please make sure you have adequate protection. I live in a non-humid environment ( southwestern Colorado) but the permagloss seems to dry quickly regardless of the humidity level in my area, so work fast!!! Hope this helps!

Carrington

I still use spar varnish for any bamboo restorations that I do. I use low-build epoxy (HobbyPoxy) on most of my other rods because the end result looks pretty close to what you get with varnish and is more durable. I hate mixing two part finishes too, but I am comfortable doing it. I use a small stainless steel measuring spoon to measure the two parts. I have not had great results with any other measuring technique.

Rob,
your email is hidden.
I was wondering what you do to prepare a bamboo rod for the spar varnish?
what grit sand paper and how far do you sand ect.?
The tip is so small it concerns me on how to prepare.
Thanks,Mike

Mike,

I don't do any sanding. Assuming the rod has been cleaned of any old varnish, I just apply it. I happen to use a brush to apply varnish because that's what I'm comfortable with. For varnishing the wraps, I just apply it to the wraps with a brush, usually without color preserver. I am by no means an expert on the subject, but that's all I do. I like to use three or four coats on the wraps.

Rob

I find a dubbing needle works better than a brush to apply varnish to thread, even the best brushes seem to make bubbles in the varnish. If you want to get carried away with varnish finishes on bamboo rods, set up a dip tank with a length of pvc plumbing pipe and either a motor withdrawal system or just use an old fly reel as a winch, the trick is to pull it out very slowly and stop under every wrap for a minute or so to let the excess varnish run back into the tube instead of making a run on the rod.
john

I would like to try spar varnish. Any recommendations of which is the best choice. I found MinWax brand, but said finnish was a semi-gloss and I wimped out.