Seems that a lot of people are refinishing/finishing rod blanks these days.

I talked to a couple and described my blank painting method. SInce neither of them had heard of it, there's probably others that haven't either. This is not original to me, I read it somewhere on the Internet, moons ago, possibly on the wmi board.

The poster described a method they used to paint rod blanks in a factory in New Jersey that he'd worked. They used a paint-filled tube with a rubber membrane at the bottom mounted between two floors.

I use a small tube, large enough in diameter to accommmodate the blank. It just has to be long enough to handle. I use a plastic film stretched across the bottom of the tube. You can use a piece of bicycle inner tube. Whatever works for you! Make sure that it's clean!

To use, pour about 2 Tablespoonsful of your favorite finish. (I have used it with paint, epoxy and other finishes with equal success), into the tube. I have gotten by with 1 Tablespoonsful on small blanks.

Prepare the blank. Stick the rod tip through the membrane. Thick membranes may require piercing with a nail , but on thinner membranes you can pierce it with the rod tip. Grasp the blank by the tip and slowly pull it through the membrane. The blank will come out the bottom side with a thin coat of finish. The membrane squeegees the extra finish from the blank. I've never had to pass it through twice, but I guess that you could if required.

The hole in the membrane closes itself after the blank passes through cutting down on the mess..

I throw away the membrane and wash the tube out for reuse, but I'm cheap.

I have also used this method for applying a second coat of clear to a blank after applying a finish.

Sorry about he length of the post, but I figured that someone would like to hear about the process. C2

It would be great to see some photos of the process

rgds
Myles

There is a small squeegee tool you can make from some butyl rubber and a short piece of PVC. I prepared on article on this for RodMaker some time ago but never got around to running it. You pretty much summed up the particulars, however.

I know some builders have tried it with latex but the thinner membrane tended to split once you punctured it. Just like you, I used a piece of bicycle inner tube until I had the shop roof recovered. The roofers left behind several strips and squares of thick butyl rubber. I rarely paint blanks anymore so what they left is a lifetime supply.

It's a good process and I'm glad you mentioned it here.

...........

I believe St. Croix still uses a similar method on their blanks. The set up I saw used a tee, on a downward angle, so you could pour the finish in the top and stick the blank through from the side.

Ray

Charlie/Tom,
If there is pigment in the coating do you have to vary the rate that you draw the blank through the membrane so that you get a uniform color?

St. Croix was using that method when I was there in August. An upside down T fitting with rubber membranes at each end. Paint goes in the top. Drastically tapering rod blanks will require you to run 2 different sets of squeegees. Muskie blanks for example. At St. Croix the painters stood on an elevated platform and inserted the blanks horizontally, withdrew them and hung them on a conveyor line that ran into the oven.

I would think how much pigment you have in the finish decides how dark the color will be. If you were withdrawing out of an open tube then speed of withdrawal will determine the thickness of the coating. Since you are working through what amounts to a squeegee, fast or slow shouldn't matter.

I use pigment but never really noticed it. I pull my rod from the bottom so I can see what's going on. If it looks OK, then I must be drawing it through the membrane fast enough.




Thanks for the pics. C2

Do you cut just a small hole or a slit in the membrane?

Steve;

I just poke a hole in it with an ice pick or nail. Depending on what you use for a diaphragm material, you may have to make a slightly larger round hole. Hint: Heat the nail first. d8-)

I have cut an 'X' in the middle of one, just like the straw hole in the top of a drink cup. Works just as well. It's self adjusting.C2

Go to Mark Steffen's website and he has a picture of his painting set-up. Sounds like what you all are describing.

[www.steffenbrothersflyrods.com]

great, now i have to set up an area in the attic and explain to the wife why i am cutting a hole in the ceiling.thanks alot.

rick

To make my K.I.S.S. rod painting thing comparable with the big guys, I have put another piece of rubber at the top of the PVC tube so the rod can be inserted and extracted from the tube. I don't know why they do this; they are commercials who paint a lot of rods and have their reasons. Mine paints well with one pass; maybe they get a better coat. I don't pretend to know. I will use my little old thing for my one-rod-a-year paint job. If I painted a lot of rods like they do,maybe I'd have to borrow their 'T' fitting idea. C'est la vie. C2