I’m rewrapping an old surf rod for which I had coated the wraps with Clemens Crystal Coat, aka HobbyPoxy. I slogged through removing the guide wraps, but the diamond wrap has been particularly annoying. Any ideas about dissolving the epoxy to make my life easier?

If you can get some of the wrap thread loose enough to get a grip on and unwind it, a good bit of old finish should "flake" off with it. You should be able cut into the wrap a bit with a razorblade held parallel to the blank. Heating the wrap with a heat gun to soften the finish can speed this process. Don't overdo the heat or cut into the blank. You can also coat the wrap with Citri-Strip paint remover and let it sit a day or 2 to soften finish.

Ditto on both comments from Lynn to use heat, but not too much heat.

Normally in the butt area of the rod with the much thicker wall section of the rod blank - there is not any issue at all with excess heat.

However, as one gets closer to the tip of any rod blank the wall thickness gets thinner and gets progressively more and more sensitive to heat.

To avoid getting a razor blade under a piece of graphite - I always suggest that folks hever hold the cutting tool at any thing except 90 degrees to the blank. By holding the razor blade perpendicular or at 90 degrees to the blank, you are essentially scrapping off the glue and finish.

On butt wraps, I am generally pretty generous with the application of heat. Once the blank, glue and other products on top of the blank - is nice and toasty -- most times the finish, thread wraps etc. may quickly be removed. Once you have the worst of everything removed, then more heat and the perpendicular scraping with the single sided razor blade will quickly make the blank as clean and as smooth as a "new born babe" so to speak.

Then, once all visible finish and adhesive has been removed I will use 600 wet and dry sand paper used wet to remove every vestige of any thing left on the blank except the original blank material.

Hobby Poxy is not similar to what we normally use as guide wrap epoxy. It is more of a paint than a casting resin and as you're no doubt aware it is very hard and brittle. Heat will have little effect on it. To that end you're left with having to hope that unwinding the thread will remove most of it (wear safety glasses as the debris is quite sharp to the eyes) and then pick and pull at any remaining residue with a dental pick or corner of a razor blade. There is no extremely easy way to do this. It will take some work and time.

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Agreed. That is more or less what I ended up doing. It was not fun. One of the reasons why I’ve gone back to varnish on rods that I.build for myself.

Wear safety glasses.

Dennis J. Danku
(Sayreville,NJ)

Never knew of Crystal Coat to be "aka" Hobby Poxy. Plenty of good 2 part epoxy finishes out there, why varnish?

i think it was hobby poxy before crystal coat.. used for painting lures etc..

Most of the other epoxy finishes seemed to be designed as “one-and-done” finishes, possibly to expedite manufacturing. I like to apply multiple thin coats. With Hobby Poxy, I’d get a look similar to varnish. I don’t believe Hobby Poxy is available anymore. Plus, I like working with varnish, and any rework is definitely easier.

Copy that.

Copy that.

Clemens Crystal Coat was Hobby Poxy, AKA Klass Kote.

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