Harold,
In my post, I suggested the use of polishing compounds.
None of these compounds contain wax. They just do the polishing.

After using any of these compounds, it is always a good idea to go over the blank with acetone, xylene, alcohol or similar solvent to insure that you have a perfect finish free of any contaminants before doing any wrapping or any finish coat.
I should have mentioned this step in my post.

Take care
Roger

Thanks for the clarification Roger. I have a rebuild to do on a blank that has lost it's lustre. It doesn't seem to be dinged up too bad, it's just not consistently glossy. I am going to strip it down and clean it up. Originally I was going to use PermaGloss on the blank, but read this post, and of course the wheels started turning. Once I strip it down, I'll go over the complete blank with denatured alcohol. I'll try a small section under where the reel seat will be with a bit of wax and another with permagloss. If the wax does bring out the shine, then I'll rebuild the rod and wax on the lathe after it's done.

Thanks for all the guidance everyone.

cheers
Harold

Harold,
If you're stripping the rod, I'd use a polish and not a wax. You want something to clean up the rod surface and a wax won't do that. The uneven luster can be corrected with the polish. That's what polishes do. Even applying PG which will add back luster may still leave you with an uneven look. The key is to get a consistent finish on the surface and then you can do your PG/ wax comparison. The PG or wax will only accent the surface underneath.

Wax is what you want to put on last to dress up the look, add depth, luster and a little bit of protection. I like to put a light coat of wax on every rod before I ship it out. It will give PG, a natural blank or even a painted blank a nice luster.

Good Luck,
Robert

Thanks Robert

Is there a specific polish (brand name) that is better for this application than another. Could I use "Silvo-Polish" or something similar. I would think a person doesn't want anything too harsh. Once polished, I would wash it down thoroughly once or twice with alcohol to ensure no contaminants are left, correct?

I wasn't overly excited about using the perma-gloss on the blank, only because I haven't done a complete blank this way before. I'd rather strip it down, polish it, clean it, rebuild it and then wax it if this process will work.

cheers
Harold

One of the most stunning blank surfaces is the Lamiglas XMG. No polish or wax. Todd Vivian clued me in on using brown craft paper at high speed to develop the final luster after using a 800 to 1200 grit wet sanding pad. The funny thing is that when done properly there is nothing on the blank surface to scratch - it will keep the same appearance for long periods of time under heavy use conditions.

Bill Stevens turned me onto this last year and it works great!



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/26/2009 09:20PM by Steve Gardner.

Harold,
I use Meguiars 105 and 205 because that is what I like to use on my cars. I only use automotive stuff because I've had good luck with it and have lots of it. You can also pick it up at your local auto supply which makes it easy to find. The 105 is a pretty heavy cut that I use on rods I stripped and rods with scratches.

If that doesn't correct the finish completely, you can use sand paper. I'd start with 1000 grit and only go coarser if needed. You can then do as Bill and Steve suggest and use craft paper/ paper bag to add some depth and luster.

Robert