OK, I went to finish the rod I built for my friend that had clouded up when I test fished it. I put it in the bathroom with aux heat and set it on the dryer ( room was at 102+ degrees) to make it set up as much as possible. After 3 days I recoated the decorative wrap and put it back in the heated room. I had bought a decal to put on the rod before I present the rod to my friend. so I put a coat of epoxy where the decal was to go. Well, as luck would happen dust specks were apparent in the finish epoxy when it came off the dryer. So much so that I felt the decal would not lay down flat as I wanted because of the nibs. I sanded the areas with 320, coated the areas with crystal clear and put the rod back in the heated room. Since I've been having issues with this finish I mixed by volume very carefully put the finish on and waited a few minutes then tried brushing off all that I could. I just checked on the rod after 24 hours and the finish doesn't look right. You can see the areas where I sanded through the finish. I've never had an issue like this! The CTS finish went on crystal clear, but when taking the rod off the dryer it looks like cr@p. Not pleased at all!!!. Always in the past, a new coat of finish would cover the "dull" areas and make them invisible. By the way, I also used the SAME batch of Crystal Clear on the decorative wraps of 2 other rods and they came out perfect. .SAME batch of epoxy, same time period drying, and in the same room side by side. I finished all of them the same way as the problem "child" Used masking tape to remove any dust and used an alcohol pad to remove any oil. Let dry and coat. What am I doing wrong? Thank goodness I only bought $35 worth. I'm going to recoat the one rod again. Question mix up a new batch or use the batch that I pit in the freezer? TIA Sorry so long..



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 04/08/2020 12:16AM by Albert D Allbritton.

Albert,
Please stay away with any solvent cleaning like DNA - after you have wrapped the rod. Liquids like this, just bring on a lot more issues than it fixes.

In your case, the scuffing between coats was also an issue with this finish.

Take care

Albert,
I am hesitant to reply as I do not have any concise answers for your situation with some of the same batch of CC responding well and one not. From your very thorough explanation, I conclude the CC was not set well enough to be sanded, hence an unsatisfactory over-coated end result. CC inherently takes much longer to set and cure than other, more common epoxies. If the 320 you used caused the epoxy to “ball-up” on the paper, that would be an indication such might have been the case. Other than that, I am baffled as to the cause of your consternation. Sorry I cannot be of more help.

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

Never use a solvent as the last step in any finishing operation.

From the sounds of things, you are vastly complicating and overdoing the entire process.

..............

I have never had the problems you are describing. Other than the slow cure rate, I have been quite happy with Crystal Coat. I measure by volume, and never tack, sand or use alcohol before a second coat. If previous use gave perfect results, you obviously did something different this time. Just keep it simple.
Norm

Norman, that is so Ironic you say this. I did all three rods at the same time with the same batch of finish. Same time, same method and steps, Quite different results. This is what is confusing me. One of the rods is still tacky after 2 days. The other 2 are cured completely. I LOVE how clear the finish is, but if I can't get this figured out have consistent results the CTS is going in the trash!!!!!

Then it must be something on that particular blank that caused the problem. Since the other 2 rods, done at the same time, came out perfect, it is the only possible variable left. For your information, there was a previous post here by Mark Talmo concerning the use of some brands of blue painters tapes causing contamination problems with Crystal coat and other finishes. It is also possible that the solvent you used spread the contaminant around rather than removing it. Crystal coat is the clearest, best leveling and most bubble free finish I have ever used. Its major drawback for me is the long cure time, so I only use it on special occasions when I have plenty of time.
Norm

Albert,
Coming from the structural composite industry, we almost bathed in acetone and used it to de-contaminize surfaces for subsequent epoxy/composite application. However, for whatever reason, such may not be the case within rod building. I have listened to, recognized and adopted the procedures of Tom, Roger, Norman and others to only use an acetone wipe-down just prior to the application of rod building epoxies as an extreme last resort. It makes logical sense. I must say it has saved my pimply white butt a couple of times though. The trick is to wick the contaminate off the surface rather than simply smearing it all over but with difficult contaminates such a silicone, it can be a crap shoot at best. I would certainly stay away from using DNA as it is not compatible with most epoxies while acetone generally is.
After all is said and done, consider not applying any solvent to a surface just prior to the application of epoxy. If a solvent is required, allow sufficient time to thoroughly degas then scuff the surface prior to the epoxy.
Contaminates can come from a multitude of unsuspecting sources, even the burger joint two blocks away. While the contamination possibilities may seem minimal, the detrimental effects can be devastating.

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