Anybody can do this...

[www.rodbuilding.org]

Just in case, I'll offer these suggestions:

1. Your finish and finishing area should be between 70F and 80F. This gives you the best combination of flow and pot life for most of the popular epoxies we use in finishing today.

2. You should work quickly, trying to coat each wrap or inscription area in as little time as possible. Get it on and move along - you can come back after everything is coated and touch in dry areas. You want the bulk of the finish on the rod and flowing out while it is still very much liquid. A few seconds per guide is all this should take.

3. Flow the finish from the brush to the rod rather than brushing it on. Hold the brush above the rod, just touching it, and rotate the rod 1 or 2 revolutions under the brush to apply the finish.

4. Only apply heat if the presence of tiny bubbles requires it and even then, use a gentle flame held 2 or 3 inches under the wrap and only for 3 or 4 seconds. Rotate the rod as you gently move the flame to and fro under the wrap.

5. Rotate the rod by hand, 180 degrees, as often as required to keep the finish even around the circumference. When you see the finish start to get heavy on the bottom side, flip the rod 180 degrees.

By all means, make sure the rod's centerline is on level.

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Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/09/2008 09:16AM by Tom Kirkman.

Tom Am I wrong by applying my finish while the rod is turning in the dryer. My dryer motor is a step motor, which means if I interrupt the rotation for a second the motor well automatically reverse it self and go in the opposite direction it was originally turning. I have been using this method for many years with excellent results. I know from past statement you like to apply your finish while the rod is not turning and is only turned by hand until the finish is entirely on the wraps. Just would like your professional opinion. This is not a criticism. If I am doing this wrong I would like to be told. Using right knowledge, the better the product.
Good Wraps Bob

Hi Bob,

I'm actually applying my epoxy at a high rpm, somewhere around 50 - 100 rpm, with this result:

[www.rodbuilding.org]

I find it is much easier to get a nice clean line at the end of your wraps and it is more difficult to put on too much. You just run your brush along your wrap and if there are "heavy" areas the brush will pull it off the wrap and onto my tin foil. After application, a tad bit of heat then turn on the dryer and go to bed. Just what works for me.

Jeff

Bob,

If you've found a method that is giving you excellent results, then no, I don't think you're doing it wrong.

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Hi Jeff After I apply my finish I hit the edges with a little heat, the heat gives me a nice smooth edge and also helps fill the tunnals
My turner does not spin as fast as yours. Also by adding heat the excess well flow to the bottom side an if there is any air trapped it well break them. Any excess is easly removed . This way I do not get foot balls.
Good Wraps Bob

Thanks Tom I always believe if you find a method that works for you stay with it. But there is always room for improvement. Like my spelling LOL
Good Wraps Bob

Tom, you say anybody can do that???? I cant. I sure wish I could but as of now I cant. I am amazed at the finishes shown here.

So to sum it up, I should apply a thin coat, wait till it gets heavy on the bottom of the rod and flip it 180 and conitinue till the epoxy starts setting up. So no swiping of exess epoxy, just let it flow??

I still dont understand if the epoxy is flowing and stops at some point, wont it cause some uneveness when it does stop flowing?

-Mike

That's why you only work it/ manipulate it a bit early in the pot life. By the time it is even close to setting up you should be done playing around. Put on a thin coat, applied lengthwise in long beads as in Joe Kassuba's spatula method in the library. Do the "tire" bead bit over the thread wraps. Once it's all covered LET IT SIT. You'll need a long flat edge to clean up and wick off sagging epoxy. A playing card is a good one to use. Wick off the excess by holding the card parallel to the rod and touching it to the epoxy, then spin the rod slowly and let the sags run onto the card. Once you've gotten most of the excess off, ditch the card and do the 180 degree spinning. Any bubbles popping up, hit with a little gentle heat, like a quick flash withan alcohol lamp or warm breath through a straw. Blow gently: you only want to warm the epoxy, not blow it around. Then keep flipping it 180 degrees is babysitting by hand, or turn on the dryer.

Don't let it get heavy anywhere - turn it before it does. Keep the finish even all the way around. That's the beauty of hand turning - you can manipulate it as it needs it.

I don't put mine on thin, but I don't put it on very thick, either. Just a nice wet coat.

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

Im so confused.....

5. Rotate the rod by hand, 180 degrees, as often as required to keep the finish even around the circumference. When you see the finish start to get heavy on the bottom side, flip the rod 180 degrees

Exactly.

Don't wait for it to get heavy on the bottom - as soon as you see it starting to move that way, flip it 180 degrees.

If you let it sag to the bottom you've waited too long. You may be able to rectify it by flipping at that point, but it's always better to flip the rod prior to that point.

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

He means while rotateing (spinning\drying) keep turning the thing by hand until it doesnt need to anymore. OR just put it on your turner and not ratate it by hand. Its up to you.

This is easier to show than write about. Just put the finish on, let the rod sit and as soon as you start to notice that the finish is getting just a little heavier on the bottom than on the top, flip it 180 degrees and then repeat the same scenario over again. Don't let it sag, don't "wick" anything off (unless you've put on so much that it droops and sags no matter what you do).

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well, tonight is the night i'll be applying epoxy. Im gonna try the suggestions here. I'll try to get my wife to help me take pics tomorrow afternoon and see what it looks like (only she can figure out how to set our camera to take good pics)... I'll get a rod that has waves, and then the one i do tonight for comparison.

I know its hard to explain, especially when it doesnt make sense in my head. I still feel like if its flowing and stops at some point the epoxy that was flowing will show where it stopped as waves or uneveness. I dont know why this is so hard for me to understand......

Thanks for all of the help guy's, fingers crossed.

-Mike

How about practicing on something a few times or as many times as it takes before doing it live on a rod.

Michael,

Your problem is simple. You mentioned more than once that you " should apply a thin coat" first. What do you mean by "a thin coat"? If you use Threadmaster, you have either "regular" or "lite". If you try and limit the amount of epoxy on the rod surface, you will restrict its movement as you may not have enough mass for it to move around. The reason you get wave is because you do not have enough epoxy to submerge the decal. Once you put enough epoxy over this area, it will even out by itself. Make sure you rotate the rod and don't allow the epoxy to sag. I prefer to spin it on my 18 rpm dryer motor.

Henry, that is the most logical thing to do, and it never crossed my mind.....

Anthony, When I first described my problem to Ralph from Trondak at the show in high point, he told me more than likely i was applying too much epoxy and that was the reason for the waves. So since then I have tried to apply thinner coats, but still get the waves.... I use lite build formulas, I have tried a few but prefer flex coat lite for its cure time. It seems to get hard quicker than threadmaster lite. I apply a base coat of epoxy and let that cure before applying my waterslide decal, then another coat on top of the decal. Both coats end up with waves.

Im gonna get it right, im determined. Im gonna take Henry's suggestion, tonight before epoxying my rod I will do a scrap peice and see what happens. I think if its on a scrap peice i will be able to leave it alone and not worry how it turns out and wont mess around with it for 40 minutes. I think this is probably the main reason for the waves.

I have a pac bay power wrapper and the drying motor is 11 rpm.

Thank everyone very much,

-Mike

-Mike

Michael,

Yes, you should do more practice. Actually, epoxy work is the easiest. Once you understand its behavior, you will overcome all your problems.

1. Mix your epoxy for 2- 3 mins.
2. As Tom said, load your brush and quickly apply epoxy as instructed.
3. Use long side to side strokes to even out the epoxy. Make sure your brush is loaded when doing this.
4. Put the rod in the dryer motor and spin it.
5. Watch for bubbles and remove them as instructed by Tom.
6. Don't touch it anymore. Leave it alone. Walk away.

Over a 4 to 6" length of decal area, the whole process should take less than 5 mins.