Hi, another question from a newbie,
Is it safe or could it harm to use acetone to remove adhesive residue from my fly rod blank?
Regards,
TC

Good Morning Phillip,

Solvents such as acetone, methyl ethyl ketone (2-Butanone), and Xylene can damage the finish on blanks. To remove adhesive residues denatured alcohol or 71% rubbing alcohol will work, but even then, I would do a test on the butt of the rod to see if the alcohol solvents affect the finish before trying to remove any residue.

Mike Blomme

Phillip,
I will use Acetone for certain cleaning jobs, but only if other things don't work and only in the fresh outside air with plenty of ventilation.

For adhesive removal - with no finish damage, the best thing to use is common mineral spirits or paint thinner. I have never seen any blank or finish ever damaged by mineral spirits. Also, mineral spirits do a wonderful job of removing adhesive remnants.

However, one caution - if you do use mineral spirits on a rod, you will leave an oil residue behind (this is the reason that the mineral spirits work so well to remove the adhesive).
So, after any use of mineral spirits, you need to clean the blank and or any other components that may have been exposed to mineral spirits with alcohol. The Alcohol does a nice job of removing the oily residue left behind from the use of the mineral spirits.
I use 100% pure alcohol that is readily available from your local home building store in the paint department. If you are only going to use one type of alcohol for cleaning, as well as use in your alcohol lamp, it is much better to use the 100% pure alcohol. The 100% pure alcohol burns with a clean invisible flame and leaves no residue behind on the blank. Lower % alcohol burns with a yellow smoky flame in a burner and leave carbon deposits behind on the blank.

The use of an alcohol burner is a very good course of flame and specific heat for various uses in a rod building shop. Just use the right fuel for it, if you do use it.

Take care
Roger


p.s.
One place where I will use Acetone is when I clean all of the markings off of PVC tubes that I use for shipping. I will take the tubes outside and work cross wind so that any vapors are blown away from me. Then, liberal use of Acetone and a paper towel or clean rag do a great job in removing all of the factory marking and or shipping marks on a PVC tube that you might use for shipping rods. I have not found any other solvent that works as well for this job. This is also indicative of the reason why you normally DON''t want to use acetone on a blank that has finish on it. However, if you are stripping a rod to be left in a polished unfinished look, or for refinish, then the use of acetone in an outside well vented environment works well to remove the balance of factory finish after you have removed the bulk of the finish using other methods.

Will acetone damage the carbon fiber/ epoxy composition of the rod, or merely remove the finish?

Rich, it could. Keep in mind that guys with fiberglass gas tanks are finding a little ethanol is bad news.

One thing that I think worth mentioning. When you use a strong solvent like acetone you are making it more likely that whatever you are removing is likely to be absorbed by your skin. People doing epoxy boat work are cautioned to clean up with waterless hand cleaner for this reason.

No experience but I have heard of citrus based products being used and would think them safer.

An acetone "wipe" isn't likely to damage your rod blank's surface or the carbon fibers. Soaking is a different story, however.

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

Russell,
You have it right. Any liquid can be absorbed by the body through the skin. The more volatile the liquid, the easier it is for the skin to absorb the liquid.

If in doubt and you want to eliminate the possibility, be sure to use rubber or latex gloves when handling any thing that you don't want to be absorbed by your body.

--
Also, as I mentioned earlier, any of the very volatile solvents may be very damaging to the respiratory system. If in doubt, be sure to use the chemicals outside with a bit of wind bl owning cross wind to avoid the inhalation of the fumes.
If that is impossible then the use of a full re breather mask is the order of the day.

Roger

Hello Philip,

Welcome! I saw your post and wanted to offer an alternative to you. We just introduced our Bullard Brush Cleaner at the ICRBE this past weekend. It is unlike anything folks are using now. What you do need to keep in mind is that it is a "cleaner" not a harsh chemical so if you were trying to get adhesive off of a blank for example I would suggest wetting a cotton towel with our product and giving it a good rub down with it. Solvents are always quicker no doubt, but you always worry a little about the effect it may have. It sounds like you are happy to take the extra time to clean with a safe solution and have a good result and as Roger pointed out one that will not be harsh to your skin and easy on the respiratory system.

Our product is primarily biodegradable with a citric component. You do not have the harmful fumes to worry about because it is not a volatile solvent. I believe from what I am reading this may be what you are looking for. I would like to point out—we provide a brush “cleaner,” therefore you do need to "clean" your surface or brush in the product. For example, sitting a brush in a bath of our Bullard Brush Cleaner will not begin to clean the epoxy from your brush. You must swish your brush vigorously; using a tall cup or a brush cleaner that has a screen is perfect. As far as clean up, it works like a dream. As long as the epoxy is still tacky Bullard Brush Cleaner will not only clean the surface area, but not leave a white residue or have any harsh melting effect. This is the gentlest cleaner I have ever used with epoxy that will still tackle the job.

We are also introducing the “Bullard Brush Bucket” which is really a great little item for a rod builder. It has the screen that I mentioned as well as a coil top that allows you to pop your brush in and out easily either as you work or upon completion—really a handy item. I only had one for demonstration at the show and it was a big hit at the expo. So I promised that I would add it on the website as soon as we got back. It is now available for purchase at @#$%&accessories.htm .

Silvia Davis