Brandon,
Rather than feeling stupid, consider feeling enlightened and to have learned something! I seriously doubt that wiping the blank with acetone prior to applying the epoxy had anything to do with your dilemma! Yes, there are those who say (if not stress) to never use a solvent to wipe the blank without sanding afterward. I understand their point but respectfully do not totally agree. It is common practice to wipe things down with acetone in the structural composite industry and I have also done it while rod building, NEVER WITH AN ISSUE.
As stated earlier, I suspect that you coated the guide wraps with one batch of epoxy and the logo area with a different batch, but Michael’s scenario is possible as well.
How have you decided to correct your debacle?

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

I don't think acetone or alcohol are the problem, but regardless of what caused the problem, you may (has it hardened by now?) still have tacky epoxy. I always take the least disruptive approach first, and in this case that is to simply put another coat of epoxy on the decal area. If it works, fine. If it doesn't , a more aggressive approach, like removing the whole decal area is necessary. But why try that first?

Nothing in the decal would prohibit the epoxy from curing. Is the vessel you used for mixing smooth sided, or ribbed? There is a reason why I ask this.

.........

There has been a lot of post on this topic i mixed wrong years ago now any. resin that i have finish or paste epoxy I put green masking tape on it including the bottles, caps and syringe. I load both syringes and shoot both into cup at the same time to help mix I have not had any problems since.

Brandon,
I expect that Acetone is NOT your problem.
Yes, acetone is a very strong solvent.
However, it also has a quick evaporation time and it evaporates completely. so, as long as it was a while between wiping down the rod blank before applying finish - expect that the acetone is not part of the issue.

However, as others have mentioned - even though you had equal portions of part a and part B - how did you mix the components.


After having he same issue on a couple of my first builds many years ago, I went back to the rod shop and talked to the master builder about the issue. He suggested - insufficient mixing.
He recommended mixing slowly in a cup with a craft stick frequently scraping the sides of the cup as well as scraping off the stick itself during the process.

Then, keep an eye on the clock on the wall and mix for a minimum of 120 seconds or 2 minutes - with the frequent wiping of the mixing cup, as well as the stick itself.

----------------------
Also, raise the temperature of the environment around the rod to at least 90-95 degrees for 48 hours and see if that will be sufficient to "kick" the finish.

Best wishes

Permagloss cures rock hard and will certainly work, but it is water thin and will not give the appearance of an encapsulated wrap unless many subsequent coats are applied, and maybe not then. It'll be bullet proof, but will never look like epoxy. Many good epoxy choices out there, all more user friendly than Permagloss.

I used Flex Coat High Build for the first time earlier. I have mixed feelings about it. I like that it's thicker (than ProKote), but I think I prefer ProKote for the first coat. It's thinner and I feel like it might soak through the threads and fill up the tunnel a little easier. That said, I'm pretty certain I'm going to prefer the the Flex Coat for the second coat. I'll be building a 6' shooter next and I'm going to go Prokote on the first and Flex Coat on the second. Once I run out of finish epoxy, however, I'm going to try the Gen 4 folks are high on.

Doubt it was the Acetone. I have used denatured alcohol to thin wraps and it works but you need to really mix a long time, let stand for 5 minutes or more, and don't use too much DNA. I find it also takes longer to cure, so I often leave it for two days. And don't thin subsequent coats.

I also hit my wraps with a heat gun or heat lamp after applying epoxy to help remove any bubbles and spread the epoxy.

I think any epoxy should be mixed for at least 5 minutes, and at room temperature (68 to 72 degrees). it is easy to not mix thoroughly. Once you measure equal parts 1.5 oz or more I think it very hard to not have the ratio correct. But one must mix in all areas of the cup, sidewalls, etc. Best to use a plastic stick not wood. Some say do not use mixing cups or syringes with silicone in it.

[www.youtube.com]



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/06/2023 01:40PM by david taylor.

David,
The advice to use a plastic stick compared to a wood one is spot on - except.

Except if you take several sticks and use them for mixing and to not do a close wipe on the sticks. Then you will have an epoxy coated stick that will not leave any residue behind - ever.

Once there is a thin cured coating of finish on the mixing stick, one can simply take a piece of paper towel in the future and wipe down the stick, and you will be left with this thin layer of cured finish on the stick that is encapsulating the wood of the stick.

Take care

I mix with a clear (not white) plastic butter knife. I find them easier to mix with than those little round lollipop stick looking things.

Happened to me. Not sure what I did wrong. Scraped it off. Rod got ugly. Put a fresh coat on. The final outcome still looked ok after a second coat. Not my best work.