Is there any wax or liquid that can be applied to outside of graphite flyrod to protect it from scraps/scratches?
Would canuba car wax work ? Or anything not too expensive?
Thanks.....

The best thing to protect the outside of a flyrod to protect it is to leave it hanging on the wall of your study.

If you want to protect it, when you are out in the out of doors, keep your rod tube with you and put the rod back in the tube, or if you wish, put the fly rod in a fly sock which will prevent most scratches on the rod when you are moving through brush etc.

Wax and similar products won't do much to protect the rod.


Since the bulk of the fly rod guides are small, you could pick up a thin wall pvc tube to fit from the tip to the stripper guide which would protect the bulk of the rod, if you wanted something more substantial moving about in the brush.


Good luck

Sam

Minor scrapes (as in very, very shallow) that do not reach the graphite fibers and are only cosmetic are just part of the deal. Wax is not going to help.

However, there is all manner of bad stuff in the water that your rod would be better off not having on it. A good cleaning with soap (Dawn), potable water and a micro fiber towel will do wonders for the rod. Thoroughly dry the rod then finish with a non automotive wax (J Wax paste) will restore a bit of luster and provide some limited protection against the bad stuff in the water. One caveat - no wax on the male ferrules or inside the female ferrules.

Sam,
Roger and Donald are correct in that a good wax will have a limited effect on preventing scratches while boonie-bashing. However, the slicker the surface (surface tension) of the rod is, the better the chances of a twig sliding off before having a chance mark your rod. The key word is limited. While Donald has a very good point concerning contaminates in the water not being good for the finish of your rod, I have found a quality pure carnauba automotive wax has worked exceptionally well for many years. And I wax all of mine, especially the salt water rods, each time I return home. But NO silicones, teflons or any other wazoo waxes. Silicones, in particular, have a tendency to make most plastics, including urethanes, more brittle. Pure carnauba nurtures it. Automotive clear coat finishes are (basically) urethanes and so are many rod finishes. While, admittedly, a newbie to rod building, my experience in the composite industry leads me to believe all of the modern FG or CF / epoxy rods, have an additional finish applied. The “B” group (I can never remember the tech / chem name) epoxies, whether wet lay-up, infused or pre-preg, utilized in structural composites, rods assumedly included, are very sensitive to UV degradation. Because of this, virtually all composite pieces are painted or coated in some fashion. I have tested UV blocking “B groups” from other manufactures only to discover they work no better, and even worse than my normal manufacturer’s epoxy without UV additives. Perhaps thread epoxy, which is quite different from its structural cousin, is an exception and my “B group” supplier is very interested in investigating.
I guess none of us really consider scratches, chips or other marks on our rods to be honorable battle scars. I’ll keep waxing mine and leave the tube in the truck.

Mark Talmo
FISHING IS NOT AN ESCAPE FROM LIFE BUT RATHER A DEEPER IMMERSION INTO IT!!! BUILDING YOUR OWN SIMPLY ENHANCES THE EXPERIENCE.