If I clean some threads with alcohol and let them dry thoroughly, say, overnight, and then put epoxy over the threads, will the epoxy be affected? Alcohol evaporates quickly, but I do not know if it leaves anything behind. Clinton

It depends on the brand - some actually do. Scents are sometimes added to IPO and these can affect epoxy behavior.

This is a hard question to answer, because it's going to depend heavily on the brand of IPO involved.

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If you have to use alcohol for some reason - use denatured alcohol (hardware store)- not rubbing alcohol (drug store)
Herb

I am using S-L-X Denatured Alcohol I bought from Home Depot.

Hi Terry,
When an alcohol is called denatured, it means that something has been added to prevent the alcohol from being used for purposes other than the intended purpose. For example when ethanol is denatured and sold for industrial uses, compounds are added that prevents the alcohol from being consumed. Often these compounds are ones that are toxic to humans.

When we use denatured alcohol we have to keep in mind that there are compounds present in the alcohol that could leave a residue are affect the finish on the blank or even affect the epoxy finish. Therefore it is prudent to think about this before using it to clean a blank or remove dried bits of glues. Testing the alcohol on a piece of blank is always a good idea.
Having said this I use denatured and ISP (91%) for many purposes in rod building. I'm just careful before I use it. Before the advent of graphite rod blanks I used both acetone and MEK for the same purpose. I stopped after ruling the finish on a 3M graphite blank.

Mike Blomme

Thanks Mike, that was a very thoughtful reply. From your experience, however, has denatured alcohol affected any of your epoxy work and if so how?

I found if I have 2 shots and two beers that my hand allows me to make very straight lines at the end of a wrap with the epoxy and finish all guides before the epoxy starts to set. . Any more than that and it gets messy and I run out of pot life with the epoxy.

Freddwhy (Rapt-Ryte)

Clinton,
I use denatured alcohol to remove any epoxy that I spill before it cures. When I finish a wrap I do not use alcohol on the wraps on the guides or decorative wraps. To remove dust I use either a brush or an electrostatic tack cloth (Home Depot). Since I always use color preserver, I apply that after finishing wrapping a rod and after it has dried, I apply finish. When the finish has cured, I will clean the rod with soap and water. If I find any goo left from pieces of masking tape, I remove that very carefully with GooBegone. i hope this helps. Sorry about your name in the first post.

Mike Blomme

Mike,
Is Goo Gone the same as Goo Be Gone?
I can only find Goo Gone over here in the UK on @#$%&.
Philip

Not a problem about the name. Thanks for your input and insight; it was very helpful. Clinton

Philip,
To be honest, when I sent that e-mail, I was just to lazy to get up and rummage around until I found our bottle of the stuff. I just did and it is Goo Gone. Actually, the smell of the stuff makes me believe it is just an organic solvent. You could probably use Xylene (Xylol), turpentine, or paint thinner and achieve the same result. I apologize for the mix up. Thanks for bringing it to my attention.

Mike Blomme

Clinton,
If there is an issue with alcohol is that it is really not considered to be a solvent for epoxy. i.e. alcohol really does not mix with epoxy very well.
Having said that, alcohol does clean things pretty well. As long as enough time elapses between the time that alcohol is used and the use of epoxy there is generally no issue.

Although more dangerous to use from a health aspect due to its very volatile fumes, Xylene is considered to be a solvent for epoxy and epoxy paints. i.e. Xylene mixes well with epoxy and will act as a good thinner and cleaner as well.

The warning about using Xylene is that one should be using a full re breather mask as well as rubber gloves and or outside during its use to prevent health issues.

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I have to ask, why are you using alcohol on the thread after wrapping the rod?

One very important thing to do when wrapping rods, is to use very good personal hygiene. i.e. wash your hands frequently with soap and water, as a surgeon will do before operating. You want to minimize the skin oil on your hands, as well as excess skin cells.
If you do end up with things on your threads like skin cells and other contaminants, use a good tack cloth, or use low tack masking tape to tack off the threads. Really no reason to use any type liquid on the thread after wrapping, before coating.

But, I do think it is a very good idea to do an excellent job of cleaning the blank very well before ever starting on the build. i.e you want to use alcohol, soap and water or similar to really clean the blank very well. You should be sure that all oil, grease, finger prints, etc. have been removed from the rod before ever starting the build. Check the butt and tip of the rod, to be sure that you have nice clean straight ends on both ends of the rod. If necessary, If not, slightly trim the irregular end as necessary before starting the build.

Good luck
REW

Clinton:

I use the S-L-X Alcohol. I haven't had a problem with it effecting FlexCoat epoxy.