Hi all, made a rookie mistake and didnt triple check my guides before I put a coat of epoxy finish on! Is there anything at all I can do to straighten it out It prob only needs to move a 1/4 inch or so.

Obviously I am thinking heat it up (been on there about 3 days) but wanted to check here first.

thanks!

Scott



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/11/2011 11:16AM by Scott Backholm.

You wont be able to move it that far. Your only good option is to remove and rewrap.

dammit, had that feeling thanks for the reply. Will heating it up and trying make an absolute mess of it? If I have to redo it, is it maybe worth trying? If I can move it a little I would be happy. Its for me, so I am not as concerned as if it were a client.

Thanks again Phil.

Scott,
The problem is the way that epoxy cures and what heat does to it.
Yes, you can heat the guide enough to get the epoxy to soften and turn, you may have to heat it so much that you damage the blank.

The big problem is - what happens after the epoxy cools after you have heated, and moved the guide. The epoxy does not re harden to re cement the guide to the blank.

Better to use a bit of heat to slightly soften the epoxy. Then, use a razor blade on the foot side of the guide to slice off the guide.
Use a craft stick or credit card to scrape the slightly heated epoxy off of the blank to allow for a clean rewrap.

Then, reposition the guide, rewrap, align and re coat as needed.

The total time spent on the guide repair will be about 15 minutes - plus the drying time for the finish.

It is Christmas, do it right.

It has happened to all of us at one time or another. So, you aren't in this by yourself.

REW

great advice,, thanks so much!

Plastics that can be heated and returned to their original properties are called thermoplastics. Epoxy is not one of them. It gets hard through a chemical reaction that is irreversible. While it may soften with heat, it will not return to any semblance (sp?) of its original strength. It is not a major effort to remove and rewrap, and that is a very low risk process. Do it right and you won't have to do it again.

thanks very much. Ended up redoing it, good learning lesson for me too thanks!

I always bring my rods outside - better light to line them up

Bill - willierods.com

Bill,
One thing that I have found that helps a great deal when aligning guides is to rest the tip on the white wall of the shop under the very bright florescent lights.
The white background and the stability effect that one gets by resting the tip on the wall really helps to finalize the guide alignment.

I have also found that for folks who wear glasses - as I do, that having the correct pair of glasses - can be a big advantage as well. i.e. for folks over 40 who wear bifocals may find that their glasses are really a hindrance while aligning guides.
i.e. part of their glasses may work for the butt guide, and part of your glasses may work for the tip, but what about some of the guides in the middle.

If you do have a visibility issue - in this mid range 3=6 foot range that is often not covered by glasses as normally prescribed - you might pay a visit to your eye doctor and have them make a pair of glasses for you that are single vision and are in perfect alignment for perfect vision in the 3-8 foot range, that is sometimes not covered by normal glasses.

Take care
Roger

Great info, thanks guys. Yes, I do have an eye issue, and I use the headwear/mag glasses. Things look much different when I take them off. I will try both of these, thanks again!

Scott

I find that the easiest and more effective method for me is to, turn the rod over and then using the rod itself as a "straight edge" it is quite easy to see if a guide(s) is off to one side or the other. They should all be centered under the blank with none off to one side or the other I find this way more effective then trying to line them up with them on top of the rod., and you wont need new glasses to do it!!



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/13/2011 05:09PM by Phil Erickson.

Hello All

Phil use micro's sometimes and you can't see them from the other side, what do you do then?
I wish someone would build something with a laser sight (battery operated) that you could mount to your reel seat and shoot the whole rod so you can mark it before you start with the guides, and later check the alignment of the guides.

If someone could do that I would be glad to buy one from them!!!

Have a good day all!

Bob,

New Bern, NC.

You can get some bright colored line that is easy to see Run it though the guides put a weight on and use it to check the alignment

Bill - willierods.com