Has anyone ever used a hot plate to place your finish on to help keep it warm allowing the finish to "thin out". I seem to have better luck with a thin finish as was thinking this might help keep it thin while its being applied.

I think you will probably accelerate the finish setting up.

I'd be careful using a hot plate as the plastic epoxy bottles may melt. Builders have diferent methods that can all work. Some folks like to put a gentle flame to the epoxy after it's applied, some set the A/B bottles into a pan of warm water prior to mixing, some give them a quick zap in the mocrowave, some just put them in their shirt pocket.

I use a hair dryer to warm the bottles prior to dispensing the A and B parts into a shot glass before mixing. I put a 1/2" ball bearing into the glass and then let it mix. I also heat the shot glass with the hair dryer during the first 30 seconds or so of mixing. Works great and no bubbles.

Be sure to pour the mixture onto a flat surface like foil to extend its pot life.

Hope this helps.

Thanks,
Chad Huderle

Huderle Custom Rods
Prior Lake, MN



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/17/2009 09:46AM by Chad Huderle.

Go to Wally world and get candle warmers. They are about 5 bucks and are great to use to preheat the bottles before mixing. Marshalls or any other craft store have the warmers. I use them and preheat my bottles. It makes mixing easier and will release more bubbles than doing it at room temp.

DONT HEAT THE FINISH ONCE IT HAS BEEN MIXED!!!!!! AT THAT POINT, LET IT SIT AT ROOM TEMP. THE PREHEATING WILL KEEP IT WARM FOR YOU TO USE THROUGHOUT THE 3CC MIXTURE.
Kevin



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/17/2009 11:18AM by kevin knox.

Heat will accelerate the thickening and setting of the epoxy.

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Tom Kirkman Wrote:
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> Heat will accelerate the thickening and setting of
> the epoxy.
>
> ............

Exactly. It will get thinner for a little while and then start setting. There is no going back at that point. You may have problems getting the finish to level if you do heat it. I only use heat in an emergency, such as a bug landing while turning. It might be better to use a low build (lite) finish, and/or mix multiple batches if you are finishing a long rod with lots of wraps.

Thanks for all the input. I normaly warm the bottles before i mix the 2 parts together. I just seem to have a bit more trouble with the last few guides because the finish is cooling down and seems to be thicker. I guess i just need to work more on my speed to get to those last guides quicker. Each wrap seems to take about 1 min for me to do. so for example with 7 double foot guides its over 10 mins before i get to the last few.

To get the epoxy on initially, it should only take no more than 30 seconds to get it on a guide wrap. You do not need to be so precise with it at first, just get in on the guide and move on. You can go back and fine tune it after all the guides are covered. For myself, I use the Flex Coat 200 RPM motor setup they have for applying epoxy, this really helps me get the epoxy on quickly on all the guides.

There is an excellent article-pictorial in the newest edition of Rodmaker that shows how to coat a guide wrap very easily and very quickly. It seems too simple to work but I can attest that it does work and gives about the best possible results possible.

to mitch, why dont you start doing the guides first, its a lot easier

Thats what I do. I finish the guides and any butt wrap separate. What vol of rodmaker is the article in???

I personally place my threadmaster lite in front of a heater, it does thin it out, does not seem to accelerate the set up time, I do it, because it gets rid of practically all bubbles. Very nice.
James

Heat will accelerate the setting of epoxy, whether done before, during or after mixing. There is a fine balance between heating it enough to thin the early flowing and shortening the pot life.

Pre-warming the separate parts to approximate 80 degrees works best for me, and enables me to apply to an entire rod without problems. I doo the large areas such as inscriptions first so that the mixture is at its thinnest.

Mitch Leppelmeier Wrote:
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> What vol of rodmaker is the
> article in???

The latest issue, 12-4

Raymond Adams
Eventually, all things merge, and a river runs through it..

Your finish is probably getting thicker not because it is getting colder, but rather because it is starting to set up. You need to learn to apply it a little faster, pour it out on a sheet of aluminum foil to: allow it to spread out to slow set up time and letting the pool of finish to thin out so bubbles you introduced can rise easier to surface to burst. then if you use a brush, lay the bristles in the finish allowing the finish to seep into the brush thus displacing the air/bubbles. Next don't paint on the finish, let it run off the brush with very little wiping action. Get all the guide wraps coated before you go back to fix or take off extra finish. Extra finish can be removed by stopping the rod with the guides UPRIGHT and letting the finish to form drips on the bottom side which you can touch with your brush to wick off. Next you might find a finish that works for you that has a longer working time and/or thinner. There are many good brands out there now which have many admirers. I happen to use both U40 High Build and LS Supreme.

I use a warmed piece of marble to mix my epoxy finish on. I warm it in the microwave, place aluminum foil over it and mix the epoxy on top. It is slightly warm to the touch and stays warm long enough to apply the finish.

It is almost that cold front time of the year when thread finish will be blamed for many problems. Trouble free application depends on the stabilization of temperatures of all intems, including the resin, hardner and rod blank, in the 70 - 80 degree range. In some cases it is real hard to get your work area rigged for cold weather operations to minimize finish problems. Spot excess heating with no upper limit controls will cause many problems which normally result in drastically reduced working times.

[www.flexcoat.com]

Mitch,
Actually, I prefer to keep the finish a touch on the cool side. i.e. I use no heat at all during the initial application of the finish.
I use a high speed wrapper - about 50-100 rpm to put the finish on initially. With this method, I am just spinning the rod to get the finish on the rod.

Then, I put the rod on my dryer at 6 rpm for drying as well as final leveling.
I go over each wrap, guide and butt wrap with my heat gun - just wafting it across the finish to thin it enough to level it. This will also give me nice razor sharp edges on the finish as well.

I don't like to have any heat on the finish at all before putting it on the slow dryer, because if I do, the finish will began to "kick" and cure, before it has a chance to level. Once it starts to cure, the leveling is all over.

Good luck.
Roger