I'm having a problem on a rod I recently built and can't figure out why it keeps happening. The butt guide finish keeps cracking and the guide comes loose. I have redone it 3 times waited at least 7 days for the finish to cure and still. This is the only guide on the 10ft rod that does it. Anyone have any ideas why this keeps happening just on this guide?

Threadmaster high build finish, single foot guide, size A thread no color preserver or anything like that. wrap is just a basic wrap just 1 color and no decorative parts.

Thanks!

How bad is this cracking? Just across the end of the foot, or bad enough to completely move the guide loose? If the latter, I would suggest moving to a double foot guide in that location.

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

Or maybe try the fornham (spelling?) wrap and see if it holds then?

Forhan locking wrap may help on a single foot guide. You may also want to consider a double foot guide on your first guide.

How old is you epoxy? Did you prep/grind the foot to ensure a smooth thread transition up the foot? You may want to try multiple coats of a thinner, lower build epoxy.

Tom Kirkman Wrote:
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> How bad is this cracking? Just across the end of
> the foot, or bad enough to completely move the
> guide loose? If the latter, I would suggest moving
> to a double foot guide in that location.
>
> .............

bad enough that it completely loosens the guide and i can wiggle and pull up and the guide will start to come out. it cracks at the bottom of the foot and a crack up the left side of the foot from bottom of foot to top of wrap.

epoxy is about 2 months old now and i prepped all the guides the same but this is the only problem one. same bottles of epoxy were used on all the guides for this build.

All I can surmise then, is that a single foot guide in that location simply isn't going to get the job done for you. Move to a double foot model in the same height. I suspect that'll take care of your issue.

..........

Suggest you also make sure you're not exposing it to abnormal forces in travel/in and out of tubes/cases/ rough water in a boat locker or travel to the beach . . . .

I have a single foot KLH surf rod build that I use for lighter stuff and while those guides are much more suited for freshwater and much lighter saltwater applications my butt guide has never moved or shifted in any way .


I could see it happening if the guide type and size is a major mismatch especially if you're spooling up with heavier lines but having it loosen the way you explained it is odd for sure . Curious to know what specific guide model and size you're talking about .

I'm more curious as to the type and power rod he put these on, my 10 - 10 1/2-foot salmon rods are not affected by his situation, 3/8 to 2 oz casting weight rated, fish to 40 lbs.

Ditto on Michael's comment.

I rather suspect that the guide is being knocked free from an external force that has nothing to do with fishing.

Rod lockers and certain storage situations can break any guide loose from its position.

If you continue to have a situation like this, first do a very very tight wrap with at least a 5 turn locking wrap.
Then, do a 2nd wrap on top of the first guide, extending the wrap by at least another 7 turns past the first wrap.
Then, when you do your finish application, particularly the first one, do a fresh mix and either be in a very warm place or add some local heat on the finish when applying it quickly after mixing to get 100% saturation and penetration of the thread.

Be sure that each coat of finish is dry before putting on the next coat.

Then, when handling and storing the rod, be extraordinarily careful about how you treat this rod and never, ever let any of the guides touch a solid object when storing the rod that could potentially cause damage to the guides and or rod.

Also, for this guide in particular, put a near razor edge on the ends of the guide to minimize any tendency of the thread to come off the guide.
For myself, when I prep a guide, I use a 1 inch wide belt sander with about 220 grit paper. When prepping, I hold the guide perpendicular to the direction of the running sanding belt. This will essentially put fine scratches perpendicular to the length of the guide foot, and really helps to solidify the positions of the thread on the guide.

Note:
Go back over your use of the rod and the way that that particular rod is being stored from leaving the shop to its fishing duties and back to the shop again. Just double and triple check of any possible way that the guide have have been subjected to some sort of a pulling or jerking force when storing or removing the rod from storage. It takes a lot of force to knock a guide loose that has been well wrapped and finished. I have a difficult time figuring how the force required to knock the guide loose would come from using it in a routine fishing situation.

Best Wishes



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/16/2023 03:44PM by roger wilson.

I think you guys are correct on the how its being treated part. It doesn't seem to be happening while fishing because I check after I'm done fishing each time and its fine. Mostly i see it when i get the rod out of the car. I treat this rod a lot easier than the other rods in the car and they have no problems. I think I'll switch it to a double foot guide and make a pvc tube to store it in. I'm going to use all the advice you guys have given on finishing and prep too hopefully this stops it because its my favorite rod right now.

Thank you guys so much I appreciate all the help!

When you remove the guide check for anything that doesn't look right. Such as, check the tunnels to see if the epoxy filled the tunnels.

everything gets filled and when i remove the thread there is still a bunch of epoxy under the threads and such. im going to try a double foot guide this weekend and see how it goes.

"bunch of epoxy under the threads. . ." Except for the tunnels I would expect only to see the pattern of the thread "under the threads." If it looks like more than that then maybe your wrap tension is not high enough. This will be important with any type guide. If after wrapping you can with a little difficulty change the guide's alignment, that's about right. If the guide is "loose," easily moved, then increase tension.

jon edwards Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I think you guys are correct on the how its being
> treated part. It doesn't seem to be happening
> while fishing because I check after I'm done
> fishing each time and its fine. Mostly i see it
> when i get the rod out of the car. I treat this
> rod a lot easier than the other rods in the car
> and they have no problems. I think I'll switch it
> to a double foot guide and make a pvc tube to
> store it in. I'm going to use all the advice you
> guys have given on finishing and prep too
> hopefully this stops it because its my favorite
> rod right now.
>

> Thank you guys so much I appreciate all the help!






You need to find a way to transport your rods without banging them into things . A double foot may last a little longer but it will eventually loosen and suffer the same fate as the single foot unless you find a way to stop jarring that guide while transporting it and putting it away .