i'm using color preserver for the first time and i was wonder if ya'll could give me some pointers. i'm using gudebrod and i know it can be thinned with alcohol. but what kind of alcohol. also how thin is too thin?

Why are you wanting to thin it?

Easy stuff to use and I usually dont thin it. I do have to say that out of my last few bottles, there has been a noticeable difference in thickness.
If you do need to thin it, use Isopropyl Alc, and less than 1:5 is all you'll need. Be sure it is mixed well, saturate your wraps, and wick away the excess. If you think you got it too thin, apply a second coat after the first is dry.

Try not to thin it more than about 10%. Just enough to make it manageable. Alcohol won't seal your wraps and most CP has a low solids content to begin with. Thinning it means you're putting even less solids on the thread and more alcohol, which will just evaporate and leave nothing behind.

............

thank ya'll for the advice. i usually use ncp threads just not to sure of myself with the preserver.

As Rob stated above. Apply a liberal amount to the wraps, then come back and whisk away the excess. Let dry and your good to go.

Regards......Doug@
TCRds

I dilute Gudebrod CP about 60:40 isopropyl alcohol:CP so it is like water and it is very effective with one coat, as demonstrated the time I strayed onto some thread that I didn't want to "color preserve". I only apply CP on thread where I will do a feather inlay. If I don't dilute the CP, when I apply the feather to the thread (I also dunk the whole feather in the same diluted mixture of CP/alcohol as a fixative), sometimes the second coat of CP (that comes with the feather) doesn't absorb into the thread, leaving a gelatinous mess (I'm not taking credit for the technique, its one I learned from Bob Meiser's tutorial).

At what temperature are you storing your CP? I have a bottle of Gudebrod that became very vicous in a cold workroom. I tried thinning it with alcohol, but that seemed to do nothing. I had pretty much given up ever using it again when I decided to put the bottle in a bowl of hot tap water. After a minute or so it became very thin. I applied it with no ill effects. I don't know if the hot water bath was contraindicated, but it did work for me.
Tight lines,
Hunter

From ghoulies and ghosties,
and long leggedy beasties,
and things that go bump in the night,
Good Lord deliver us!

If your Gudebrod is too thick and the weather is cold, just warm it up until it flows. Don't go to overboard and cook it. Also make sure your rod building area is warm enought to prevent the CP from becoming a glutinous mess.