I built a split grip casting rod for my self and thought I would try Flex Coat on the wooden grips. I have put 2 coats sanding between coats on the Padauk handles and you can see inperfections in the finish. Can I use OOOO steel wool to knock down the finish and the slight inperfections and then use a buffing wheel to bring the finish back to a semi-gloss or will I have to sand the finish down and try to recoat with flex coat again. The second coat doesn't look that bad but it is so shiny that it magnifies the imperfections. I think I should have stuck to true oil but don't want to start all over again if I can avoid it. Thanks Mark

Epoxy doesn't come back up to a mirror shine by sanding and buffing. Nor does it make a particularly good finish for wood.

Most likely you're going to have to sand past the imperfections and then come back with another coat.

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For wood I would stick to some kind of urathane or spar varnish.

That's what I was afraid of. Thanks for the advice Mark

Try "System Three" clear coat. It's a two part epoxy that will seal against water, acids (fish slime and blood) and is as durable as any finish. It also polishes to a very high, non yellowing gloss if you want to expend the effort. We use it on pool cues and the abuse doesn't get any worse than that. Padduk??? While light weight it is porus and should be sealed with very thin coats. Follow the directions for this finish and I'll gaurantee you'll be pleased with the results.

I put all my grips on a scrap blank. Make sure they are as free of dust as I can get. Then thin out finish and apply just one thin wet coat. It soaks in and is just enough to seal and give a semi-shine to them with a nice feel.
ThreadMaster is the only epoxy finish that does not turn cork yellow.

John - Thanks for the Idea I see that woodcraft sells this product and I can pick it up next time I'm in Madison and I will give it a try. Your right the Padduk (Padauk) is very porus and light and I love the red color. Great for fishing rods not so great with flex coat. With the porus nature of the wood I kept getting air bubbles in the finish coming up from the grain in the wood as it dried. I got all but a few out during drying but with the bright finish of the epoxy it magnifies the few bubbles that were left in the finish. Thanks again Mark