Hey fellas, do you still prep the guide feet before wrapping?

Is there one manufacturer that has a better prepped foot and finish for wrapping?

Speaking solely for spinning and casting rods up to 20lb.

Thanks!

Will



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/08/2013 03:32PM by Will Dea.

Absolutely not. You missed Kigan, they also offer a nice titanium alloy frame.

Alps, too. I prep feet only when I need to. I think there are other factors in guide selection much more important than whether I have to prep the feet or not.

I always prep the feet you get a better transition from blank to guide. To each his own I guess. It is just out of habit. It is like cleaning primer pockets when reloading.Everyone does it different.

Lone Wolf Rods
"Keep your powder dry and your lines wet"
God Bless

I at least sand the feet with 400 dry paper It takes any sharp edges off and gives them a nicer serface so the thread does not slide off

Bill - willierods.com

You're right, Bill, it does help the thread climb the foot. I got lazy, will go back to your method.

I find the Batson and Snake brand guides the best for minimal need of preparation. As I only build fly rods, I have no experience with other types of guides.

Kigan. I RARELY prep guide feet and use size A.

Occasionally on a 30 or 25 spinning, but not much other than that. Never on running guides.

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I am doing a rod for myself
Did not do any prep hard chrome plate very smooth
When i hit the feet with 320 - 400 dry paper the thread does not slide off and grips better and climbs up the feet better
How long does it take with a quick scoff even with a scoff pade ???
IMHO

Bill - willierods.com

It isn't about time ... it is about removing the factory coating and/or changing the metallurgic properties of the frame material. It is possible to wrap without prepping and there are fewer problems with saltwater corrosion down the road. Those building for freshwater, most likely won't have issues with prepped guides being compromised down the road.

I would say the whole idea is to KEEP the saltwater away from the frame as to incase it in finish

And also wash the rod after every trip ??
IMHO

Take care of your rod and it will last And then you can use Steel frames

Bill - willierods.com

You absolutely compromise the integrity of the frame material by grinding on it ... period. Rinsing is good, but it doesn't completely stop corrosion. Epoxy can only do so much, it isn't going to totally stop saltwater intrusion. Ask the guide manufacturers what they think about changing the metallurgy of their guide frames with heat and grinding.

some do an some dont but , take the time an do a good job , the best you can , don't cut coroner's do a great job , you would be happy with my 2 CTS

William Sidney
AK

With a Titanium Alloy (or even 100% Titanium) foot prep should have no effect since the guides are a solid material. Titanium Coated is a different story as are any stainless coated guides. Breaking the coating exposes the stainless which, since stainless is "minimally" corrosive if CARED FOR PROPERLY should not be a big deal. The problem lies in the finished surface. Bill Stevens used to talk about this all the time. Stainless steel creates a "vapor oxide barrier" on the surface that "repels" oxidation (holds oxygen molecules away from the surface so no corrosion can occur). The quality of the polish improves the non-corrosive properties. When you grind a stainless foot to improve the thread tracking characteristics you are at the same time reducing the corrosion resistance of the guide foot because the polish is compromised.

Thanks for the info fellas!

And to clarify, I am referring to the complete titanium alloy guides rather than plated models.

While most of the discussion has focussed on corrosion resistance, there are BIG structural differences between at least two of the brands of titanium frame guides. I have experience with two only, and they are markedly different, to the point that one I would consider pretty fragile and easy to bend/break and the other almost indestructible.

I am in the process of replacing guides on my 9wt fly rod with pac bay titanium guides,a 16 and 12 double foots,a 10 single and 8's for the running guides.They all needed prepping for the feet but it does not take long to do it with sand paper.Also don't have to worry about taking off the protective coating as they are solid like you said.The double foot guides light casting series is very light framed.The DP series of double foots would maybe be better for your application.

I just received a set of American Tackle Titan all purpose set of guides,Mudhole had them for $25 a set for a 24 hour sale I could not pass up on.The feet on all of them needs prepping especially the larger sizes.These are all double foot guides and look and feel quite sturdy and the nanolite ring does have a larger inner diameter for their OD compared to the pac bays.

Both brands are good for their cost.


Also bought a set of Tich coated american tackle single foot spinning guide set with coated zirconia rings and they are very nice.Cosmetically the finish looks better than the titanium alloy guides and the feet needs very little prep.