I have done a poor job of applying my Flex Coat on this rod (waves and bumps)...and have tried to fix it, but now (after 4 coats) I need to strip the finish and wraps and start from scratch. This is a Sage graphite blank and I don't want to scratch the blank finish. Any ideas?

If your finish is the only trouble, why not take a popsickle stick, wrap it with 600grit wet sandpaper and wet sand the wraps down nice and smooth (dont go down and into the threads!), then recoat with one nice thin coat. Tape off the ends of your finish area well so any accidental sanding slip of the hand wont leave a scratch on the blanks finish.

Keep the wet sanding WET at all times, rinse it OFTEN and wipe clean and dry. Never let the mix of sanding dust and water dry as it can be hard to remove in smaller impression type areas. IF you do have sanding "mud" dry on you, re-wet and use a small brush with water to help get tiny areas clean again if needed.

Sounds complicated, but it's NOT.

DR

Thanks, but the last coat never cured fully...too tacky to sand. I remember hearing that you can peel off the coats...ever tried this?

You would have to remove the thread and all. Take a razor blade and cut trough the epoxy down to the guide foot. Once you have removed enough epoxy to get the guide off, the tread will help you peel off the epoxy. I've done this on repairs and I think that the epoxy was older and weather checked and it was just like peeling an orange. Not sure how it would work with fresh epoxy, especially if it hasn't cured correctly.

Chris,

Take plain household alochol and wash off the "un-cured" part, then sand and re-coat, that is, IF, you have cured coats under?

If you have to strip off, listen to Steve.

DR