I searched previous posts and did not find an acceptable solution to my problem. I have had some difficulty with placing decals on the rod. I know the problem is with my first coat of epoxy. It is not leveling well and looks kind of lumpy when looking at it closely. I use heat and it still does not level well. If I put the decal on this lumpy coat, no amount of coats will make to look right. I use a high build product, and after reading an unrelated post, am thinking I need to use a lighter product. Am I doing something wrong? Possibly a layer of CP would be better than epoxy.

You're putting on too much epoxy. Any epoxy is only going to support so much of itself before it starts to sag and run. Try putting on less.

[www.rodbuilding.org]
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Thanks Tom. I will try that. I was thinking it did not have enough epoxy and was not covering completely. I will try a few on my practice blank and see if that solves that problem.

Danny,
Tom may very well be correct; if so = great, you’ve solved your dilemma.
If not, consider this. All thread epoxies are designed, amongst other things, to self-level and they all do a good job of doing so even if some possibly better than others. Discovering how much to apply is the key; too little may leave ridges / streaks circumferally while too much may produce a smooth surface but “football” shaped. I have found that the light versions self-level better than the high-build versions, noticeably so when applied thinly. If indeed you are applying too much yet still getting a lumpy, uneven surface, you may have a (slight) contamination issue. Consider wiping the surface with a solvent such as acetone or DNA, allow it to thoroughly dry, then lightly scuff with 400 or a gray ScotchBrite pad, remove the dust, followed by applying your epoxy. Good luck!

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

Danny,
I am here to 2nd Tom's comment. I have found that applying a thin coat of epoxy on the rod yields the best result. I primarily build on raw graphite rods so when there's just enough epoxy on the rod so that I can't see the bare rod that's the perfect amount.


Lee

Make sure the room temp is at least 70 + degrees because for epoxy to level really well it needs to be warm in the room you're applying it in . Whenever I had issues with epoxy not leveling correctly and getting lumpy it was always due to the room I was applying it in not being warm enough . It will get lumpy really fast in a colder room .

Even if you warm up the epoxy beforehand like you admitted to doing, if the room temp isn't warm enough you will still have issues. High build if mixed correctly should work fine just do what Tom said to do which is apply less . Read his link it covers it all.