sally hansen

[herefishy]

Can I put a coat of this between two coats of threadmaster and have everything stick?

[modocdan]

Seems like ya could, Fishy. I thin 'em both with acetone.............ModocDan

[ol' blue]

I would try it out on a scrap blank or graphite arrow before putting it on a rod.

[dunfly]

Just curious, but why would you want to?

[William Fitzgerald]

Why are you using nail polish under threadmaster?? Are you using it instead of color preserver?

[herefishy]

Well, I want to cover up the ugly plastic winding check I got. Guess I'm looking for an easy way to make that check invisible. I have a layer of finish right in front of the check, but could probably "ramp" a couple of layers onto the blank.

[MontanaMoose]

Hello herefishy, if your cork grip diameter is quite small at the winding check you can do what some have done and 'build' an expoxy hosel and then smooth/shape it carefully with small files or sandpaper. I've done this quite successfully and once I've got the epoxy hosel shaped, smoothed and transitioned into the cork how I want it I then top it off with the same winding thread as on the guides, signature wraps etc.

Grips finished in this way take some extra time but the OOO's and AHHH's you get when folks inspect your rod closely will be well worth the effort...and here's a big plus...you can make it look just exactly how you want it to look. If this interests you, let me know and I'll be glad to help with any questions/details that might come up.

Cheers friend,

MontanaMoose

[herefishy]

Thanks, Moose, and the others. I am not sure I have enough room to transition a sloping bit of epoxy into the grip, as I put a wrap on for the hookkeeper already, right next to the winding check - course, guess I could just cover that up - right? Make it a part of the grip, rather than a part of the blank? I just don't know if I have a steady enough hand to start applying a slop of epoxy onto the grip, but I wouldn't mind tapering down the end of the grip and trying it. Just leave a little edge on the new end of the grip for the thread, and then start applying epoxy?

[MontanaMoose]

Thanks, Moose, and the others. I am not sure I have enough room to transition a sloping bit of epoxy into the grip, as I put a wrap on for the hookkeeper already, right next to the winding check - course, guess I could just cover that up - right? Make it a part of the grip, rather than a part of the blank? I just don't know if I have a steady enough hand to start applying a slop of epoxy onto the grip, but I wouldn't mind tapering down the end of the grip and trying it. Just leave a little edge on the new end of the grip for the thread, and then start applying epoxy?

Hello again herefishy, well it's not nearly as difficult as it might sound and a steady hand isn't a real issue since you'll be shaping it after it dries for a time. You can use 20 or 30 min. epoxy to give you some working time and you'll be amazed at what you can do with a toothpick and a rag/paper towel during the initial shaping process.

To me it needs to look delicate in the transition area, i.e. where the epoxy leaves the blank and just barely meets the first cork. Tapering the grip to make the transition barely noticable is the key. Mine have a compound curve on the cork that ends up almost parallel, but not quite, with the blank at that point.

Not much epoxy actually winds up on the cork at all and that's the beauty of the epoxy hosel once it's wrapped. In addressing the hook holder, well...I don't use them anymore, but when I still was, I incorporated the wrap for the hook holder all the way back and just barely up onto the first cork. If you understand all of this or if you get your own inspiration, good, if not we can move to pm and I'll take pictures of rods I built 15 years ago using this method. Which, btw, I didn't invent, but unfortunately, I have no idea where I saw rods like that but I'm sure other builders know about/have seen this done.

Oh, one important step is a tiny groove where the epoxy ends and the cork begins (remember, we din't put much epoxy up on the cork) to facilitate a smoothness of thread, epoxy and cork where you finish the thread as you can't file/sand that area once it's wrapped.

Lastly, if you're curious about the wrap detail from tip end of the hook holder all the way to the end of the wrap (one continuous thread/wrap) at the first cork, let me know and I'll explain how that's done, with or without a hook holder for that matter. Hope I'm explaining things in a way that makes sense !

Cheers,

MontanaMoose