Just curious...has anyone had any trouble with Gudebrod CP? I am doing some practice/sample tiger wraps on a spare blank and used the CP on the underwrap. When I put it on, the thread went almost clear and was a little streaky. You can see the tag ends of the thread under the wrap, and looked almost like you could see the burnish marks. I thought maybe once it dried the color would come back, but its been about 2 hours now and still looks almost the same as when I put it on.

This is a brand new bottle. I shook it up really well to make sure it was mixed. Luckily I am using it for the first time on a practice piece (see...we do learn things now and then). Maybe I just need to wait a lot longer for it to dry all the way through? It's definitely not acting like the U40 product I just finished off. Ideas?

Matt Smith
Greensboro, NC

Not sure, but some have said the new formulation wasn't as good as the good old formulation. Maybe some who have expierenced it first hand will chime in.

My seminar advice rings true, and all CP formulators are going to hate me but it's the truth - every CP stinks, (I dind't say stink). There isn't one that works for everyone, there are complaints about each and every one. YOu are ahead of the game, testing first to see how it works before finding out a new brand doesn't work the way you hope it does. The good news is, CP is the cheapest part of building any rod, so for $5 you really havent' lost much if you find that one doesnt' work well for you. I want to make sure nobody thinks I'm singling out the brand mentioned here, as I wan tto make it clear I'm singling them ALL out. FInd one that you can get to work well, one that you know what to expect, and stick to it.

Thre have been a bazillion CP posts, and everyone always has different recommendations for what to use. It's funny to see someone post use xyz, and someone else says I tried xyz, it doesnt' work, use ABC. lol.

The U40 product, and the Flex Coat product, are straight water based acrylics. The older Gudebrod 811 was a urethane/acrylic. I have no idea what the product is based on but it's definitely a different product than what Gudebrod has utilized over the past 10 years.

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

Haha thanks Billy...and I enjoyed the seminar.

This one says its water-based and also says it is #811. Supposed to be environmentally safe and all that, but don't drink it! (It says not to on the bottle)

About 3 hours in and it got a little lighter, but the lime green one still looks almost like variegated thread, the candy apple red looks like garnet, and the gunmetal looks like um...rather not say...too dark though. Don't know why its all swirly, like some of it penetrated and some did not. Will keep you posted.

Matt Smith
Greensboro, NC

If you burnished the thread, maybe it got roughed up? I dunno why it's swirly either. I probably shouldn't have said or posted that, but with all the problems everyone has with CP, it should make them feel a sigh of relief they aren't alone. I will say thay I have tested and used a bit of CP, almost exclusively on dec wraps and straight wraps, not at all on guides. The biggest problem I have with CP is they each have a different level of "P". They usually all darken the thread uniformly, unles I've done a poor job packing, or I only use 1 coat of CP.

Specifically with MAdeira darker colors - no matter what CP you use, certain MAdeira colors are going to darken. THe lighter colors will usually come back and almost match the color on teh spool (certain CP's do better than others), but the darker Madeira colors will often get even darker. I dont blame the CP for this, it's the thread's fault. Going one step further, it's MY fault if I don't test and take into account the real life results of CP and epoxy, trying to use Jedi forces to make CP work with thread 100% perfectly is unrealistic, taking 5 minutes to brush CP on half your Madeira color chart so you see the actual effect of CP on the threads is what a smart person woudl do.

Since I am an occasional rod builder, making 1 to 3 rods a year (or re-building them after I break 'em!), my experience may speak to what works well even with limited experience (talent? lol). I had color retention problems on wraps come out poorly using multiple coats of the new style Gudebrod CP on Gudebrod thread. I switched to Flex Coat CP and have no problems since using two thins coats before epoxy. My application technique and handling is exactly the same. On the wraps that came out poorly, it looks like there was still some way for the epoxy to penetrate into the threads.

I just recently used it on a rod and it does not work. It cost me 10 hrs to strip the guides off.
I spent a large amount of time asking guys at the NC show which one 'really' works.
Bottom line...Everything but the Gudebrod.

I have been successful with Flexcoat, but there are issue with it that is not to my liking...the white clumps for one.

I purchased some others at the show and will be testing them out.

You did the right thing by testing before using.

My 'bust' but I knew there were issue with Gudebrod, but I got lazy and did not test. I wrote a letter to Gudebrod to complain, don't expect and answer but I want to let them know that their product is not to my liking.

Ah well...I have a big bottle of *insert other brand here* that I got at the show and is one that was mentioned as working above. Just wanted to try out the Gudebrod first.

Actually, I think this is going to look kinda cool under a tiger wrap, what with the swirly effect and all. Mebbe I hit a new technique! If it comes out I will post some pics.

Thanks all.

Matt Smith
Greensboro, NC

I use the Flex Coat but I thin it with a few drops of water and put several coats on The 811 - the old stuff was good but ya can not trust it now.

You could try to thin with water just a little and then try it on new thread. See if it works for you They do seem to get old and lumpy.

Bill - willierods.com

I have personally tested the Cason Crystal Clear, before it was marketed, on Silk, Mariera polyneon and Gudebrod Nylon on these colors for each: White, Yellow, Green, Blue and Red. It was far superior to numeros other CPs that I have used. Since it water thin/clear there is also no clumping and no thinning. Finally it is deloped by a fellow rodbuilder.

Kerry

I've also struggled with the water based CP's. I never had problems before, but lately I've found that if applied straight from the bottle the results were very blotchy. It seems they are now too thick to dry properly? I've tried several different brands, they all seem to behave similarly. I haven't tried the Cason brand though. I have had good luck lately by Using the American Tackle brand and thinning it half and half with water. I Put the first coat on as light as possible and let it dry completely. I am using 5 or 6 coats, letting each coat dry completely and the colors restore. I keep applying until the color no longer changes with a fresh application. It takes several extra days to finish a rod, but it's worth it to preserve painstaking threadwork. Hope that helps.