New rod building question

[IdratherbePhishing]

Ok I got my wraps on and I'm ready to epoxy the wraps. Here is where I'm confused. I bought a 20 dollar kit from mud hole. It has resin and hardener. But two parts to each. Two parts to mix the resin and two to mix the hardener. Do I put the resin on first to the wraps?
Then add the hardener? Any info I appreciate!


John

 

[BradFromPotter]

mix equal parts of each then apply to wraps. What I do is to make a small "dish" out of foil. Them mix your finish in it. After mixing let it sit for a few minutes so the air bubbles disapate. You can speed this up by apply warm air from a hair dryer. Also as your rod is spinning on your dryer you can apply warm air again from your hair dryer.

 

[PACOFRANSICO]

I breifly heat the foil bowl with a lighter really quickly that thins out the epoxy and relaeases the bubbles. Its the easiest way to get rid of the bulbbles. This is touchy dont over heat it. Its easy to dot

 

[springer1]

Be sure to first use color lock or some other thin stuff on the wraps before you put the expox or flex coat on.

It's not just to keep the color from changing, its to seal the threads and prevent air bubbles from coming up thru the threads into the epoxy coat.

Some people even do 2 coats before for this reason.

 

[NorthBranch]

John,

The guys have given you some great advise. I would add... try and be as precise as possible when measuring the resin and hardener. Too much, or too little of one or the other might cause issues.

With that in mind, Mudhole has some decent instructional videos. One about mixing and applying epoxy. Might help to have a look...

Mudhole Rodbuilding Videos.

 

[kbobb]

In addition to the mudhole videos there are also some vids on you tube - some are better than others.
Doing a test mix and application on a dowel rod or old cheapie fisihng rod is good practice and a way to get the feel of coating wraps so you dont mess up your good rod. - try it on something that doesnt matter first.
Also you don't always have to use color preservative - if you like transparent wraps the don't use it - the epoxy will sink into the thread - look on rodbuilding forum site for some photos to decide what you like.

As stated above precise measuring is important as is complete mixing - please be sure to pay attention and mix a little longer than you think is necessary - it wont hurt to mix a minute longer.
Also if the epoxy starts to feel thick and doesnt flow well off your brush stop using it and just make a new batch - its much cheaper and eaasier to mix a new batch of epoxy than to try and fix mistakes from using epoxy thats started to set up.
good luck and try a practice job first to get the hang of it.

 

[PennKev]

springer1 wrote:
Be sure to first use color lock or some other thin stuff on the wraps before you put the expox or flex coat on.

It's not just to keep the color from changing, its to seal the threads and prevent air bubbles from coming up thru the threads into the epoxy coat.

Some people even do 2 coats before for this reason.

Color preserver is purely a cosmetic choice and most color preservers actually are weaker than the epoxy you would finish the wraps with.

Bubbles can indeed be minimized by using two (or more) thin coats to build your desired finish depth. But even then, most of bubbles are coming from the mixing process, not the thread itself. Almost all bubble problems can be eliminated by changing how you mix the epoxy. Also, the light versions of most rod building finishes release their bubbles easier than the high build versions. Warming the components of the epoxy before mixing will make the mix temporarily thinner and bubbles will release easier. Application technique also contributes to bubbles problems. Working the finish with a brush can also cause a lot of bubbles. The finish should be applied heavily and let to spread over the wrap with only gentle direction from the brush. Excess epoxy can be left to sag off the botom of the wrap and then removed prior to rotating during drying. However, this is getting out of the scope of this thread.

Kev

 

[FrequentTyer]

All good advice here. I'll just add a tip I picked up a while back. You can add a few drops of denatured alcohol to the mixed epoxy. this will thin it a bit and help it flow, and will also help release bubbles. But you do want to do this with an eye dropper and check the consistency after each drop. It is easy to add too much.

 

[IdratherbePhishing]

Gosh all this info I'm sure to ruin it lol. I bought a cheap kit in hopes that if I do a good job I could cheapen the prices of building a bamboo. Well see how well it goes first! I appreciate everyone's help. I'll retread before I start Tom.

Thanks
John