I am using the flexcoat lite build and have such a hard time with making it smooth at the ends of the wraps.

I put masking tape around the blanks about 1/8 in beyond the ends of the wraps then apply the flexcoat. Once the coat is dry, I remove the masking tape. Unfortunately, the flexcoat looks ragged.

Is there something else I should be trying? Any helpd would be appreciated.

Terry

Don't use the masking tape! The epoxy is soaking into the tape and when it sets you remove
the tape and break the epoxy apart.
If you must use the tape, remove it before the epoxy sets.

Raymond Adams
Eventually, all things merge, and a river runs through it..

Raymond,

How do you keep the ends straight if you don't use masking tape?

Terry

Don't drink coffee...(lol) Try using some type of rest for your arm/wrist while you apply your finish. Many here turn their rods on lathe-style machines and use the tool rest to brace themselves against to keep their lines straight. If you don't have that sort of setup, plant your elbow on the table and brace yourself as best as possible...it is a practice thing...you'll get better the more you do it.

2 cents,

Tim

If you steady your hand and only go 1/16 or 1/8 of an inch beyond your thread wrap and you'll have the straightest line you need. In my opinion whose going to look at every thread wrap to see if your epoxy came off the thread in a straight line ? Using tape or anything else for that matter only adds more time and creates more aggravation than you need. Just lay your brush on top of the rod with a steady hand and just touch the rod with the brush until it makes one or two revolutions then go on to the next one.

If I anticipate applying three coats of epoxy, the first two stop at the edge of the thread. Then on the third coat I extend just a bit beyond the edge of the thread. By doing so I am not extending beyond the thread edge three times (once for each coat) creating too much overlap. This helps avoid a rugged edge.

Jeff Shafer

Terry,
Rest your arm/hand on something as already suggested above and turn the rod.
Practice makes perfect but don't sweat the small stuff!

Good Luck and have fun!

Raymond Adams
Eventually, all things merge, and a river runs through it..

The faster you turn, the straighter the edge will be. Also, what the others suggest is great food for thought. No need for tape.

Jay

Previous posts over the years have suggested applying the epoxy and on the areas that do not turn out as smooth as desired, wet a coffee filter with alcohol and hold it as a straight edge up against the uneven area. Turn the rod and the edge will clean up straight. It has worked for me and I hand turn.

Joe Milligan

I have seen people use tape successfully. Some people don't have the greatest hand coordination and need it. ( I am thinking of trying it.)
I would agree with Jeff above, to stop at the edge of the thread for your initial coats or coats, then on the last one, you can mask it off with Scotch tape, As soon as you are happy with the job and it is complete, carefully remove the tape.

Speed like Jay says makes making the edges easier.

Also, sometime last year someone posted about using a 2-3" piece of thread to apply the finish on the edges. Though I have never tried it it appears the thread "slack" tends to absorb the shakiness in your hand and thus end up with a straighter edge....

Lou

Thanks everyone for the input. I have very steady hands and can apply the epoxy very straight. The problem is when I try to reduce the thickness of the epoxy on the threads and the area beyond the thread. That's when the messes occur. If I didn't put the tape on, then the epoxied area beyond the thread then gets too long & jagged.

I like the idea of just doing freehand application & then using a coffee filter with alcohol and run it against the epoxy.

So, how do I remove the thick epoxy that is already there that is jagged looking?

Terry.

A few things to try.
First . Is your blank is turning true?
If you are using a home-made lathe and your turn is slightly off-center, support the blank at the nearest point where it wont interefer with your hand or the threads.
Second. Rest your hand on something as mentioned above.
Third. Dont use use tape, slowly work the epoxy off the edge of the end of the threads with very little brush pressure
Fourth. Use a brush with a flat row of soft bristles. A brush with a defined edge where bristles wont jump out and spread finish where you dont want it.
(check the pinched brush pictures on the photo page )
Fifth. Try using less finish. build up the edge with your 2nd coat
Yes, a faster motor helps with a straighter edge.
I use 20 rpm motors for finishing and drying with no troubles.
Keep trying!
RB

Thanks Robert.

I just have to work on reducing the amount of epoxy that I place on the thread to begin with.

Terry

Two additional points. First, have you tried a spatula? When I was starting I had big problems keeping a straight line, and saw on the board that a McDonald's coffee stirrer worked well as a spatula. I tried it, and haven't gone back to a brush. Even got a real spatula in Charlotte, but I still like the plastic disposable stirrer better for applying epoxy on the guides.
Second, there is a little plastic gizmo they sell in the dental section of drugstores that has a "U" shaped end with a piece of dental floss between the two prongs. There is a picture by Mike Barkley on the photo page of one of these. They really do make it much easier to get a very fine edge.
Steve Broadwell

Thanks Steve. I have used a spatula & brush. The dental floss device sounds interesting. I have to try that next.

Terry

Put the finish over the edge only on the last coat. Like said. make a rest for your hand. Piece of wood, scrap blank, any thing just to rest the hand on. try cutting different sizes to which one fits nice. practice on some scrap blanks No need for tape, thread.
Thin coats of finish.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 03/17/2006 10:54AM by bill boettcher.

Thanks Bill. Sage advice. I tried of the techniques above. The key for me was to have a very small of epoxy. Everything that everyone has suggested works well. I have not gotten to use the dental floss thing yet.

Terry

Steves tool, "McDonald's coffee stirrers" work great . Up here in the N.E. McDonald's gives coffee over the counter and strait plastic straw type stirrers . When we were traveling to Charlotte , McDonald's was a daily stop for coffee and a hand full of spatulas . They work great for a ton of little tasks . John

Got Fish ?

Terry, I still hand turn my rods to apply epoxy, and found my rod wrapping stand was too tall to allow me to keep my hands steady. So I built three low supports that allow me to brace my hands on my tabletop while applying epoxy. Take a look at the photo section to see the image I just posted. Sorry for the bad white balance.

Jeff


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