Is there a good, better, or best speed to dry a rod at after flex coating my guides, I see rod dryers on @#$%&, 6 rpm, 9 rpm, 11 rpm up to 24 rpm, and I'm really confused which one I should purchase.

I have a 6rpm and an 18 rpm, I personally prefer the faster of the two, but you will get many different answers ....welcome to the board and welcome to rod building.

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Super Tight Lines......Don

That was my concern when I was going to buy mine, some say the faster ones help the epoxy to level out better, and others say the slower ones, mine has an 11rpm, and it does a pretty good job, took me awhile to learn how to apply the epoxy, I guess wether an 11 or an 9 or an 24, first you got to know learn how much epoxy to apply in each application, for it to come out right, well at least I had to, the thinner the better, helped mr alot! Hope all comes out alright, tight lines!

For putting the finish on, I use a 200rpm setup. For finishing it up, mine are 4 or 6 rpm.

I use a 4 rpm and though I havent done a large number of rods (20 or so) I havent had a problem.

Rufus
Port Saint Lucie, FL

Andrew -
The dryer speed really isn't that important at least to me. The ones I have turn at 11 and 18rpm. I do not use them to apply finish. Honestly I find those speeds too slow for application. I apply using my lathe at very high speed (in excess of 120rpm) with hand application on the edges nearest the guide ring. I find this better to get crisp edges on the ends of the wraps. The key - again in my opinion - is putting on a thin coat of epoxy. Lots of people hand rotate the rod as the epoxy sets (zero degrees for 5 minutes & wipe away excess then rotate to 180 degrees for 15 minutes & repeat). This doesn't work for me as I tend to apply finish to multiple rods at the same time at the end of the work day and let them spin on the dryer(s) overnight.

Andrew,
I have a variable speed motor on my main dryer.
I have found that if I dry at speeds over about 18 rpm, the finish will tend to form ridges.
However, as long as I turn slower than 17 rpm it is just fine.

I think that common sense dictates a speed of at least 4 rpm just to keep things from settling.

As Ken stated, I also apply at speed up to 200 or 300 rpm. At times, I will slow the speed to 0 to coat in and around a guide foot, and then resume the high rate of speed for the application.

A power wrapper is a wonderful tool to use for applying finish. If you value the bed of your wrapper, put cardboard or similar cover over the base of your wrapper to avoid any epoxy drips from getting on the bed of the wrapper.

Be safe
Roger

My preference is 18-24 rpm.

David Dosser
Coshocton, OH

I'm with Ken, I put the epoxy on quickly using a wrapper and then switch to one of my dryers and haven't had an issue at any speed. We are offering 20% off the prices on our site on our dryers and wrappers to kick off the fall season. [www.getbitoutdoors.com]

Tight Lines and Bull's-eyes,

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