You are dead on with the fighting butt.

The best place to buy Snake Brand Guides is from Mike directly. Order on the website or give him a call. Warning: He will talk your ear off like you were a long lost brother.

I get my agate strippers from Angler's Workshop. Agate guides are sized by the inside diameter of the frame, not the agate. A #10 agate stripper is most likely about the same size as a #8 ceramic guide. Many places have their largest agate strippers at #8 or #9. This is fine for a 2 or 3wt but I like something bigger for a 5wt. A #10 is a minimum with my preference running to a #12 if I can get my hands on one. I recently ordered a Winston blank for a build I am just about finished with and thought an agate stripper would lend a little class. I ordered my blank from Angler's Workshop and asked about agate strippers. The blank is a deep green and they managed to almost match the blank color in the agate. They had great prices on both.

I would probably use the snakes on a glass rod. No particular reason other than I think it looks better.

Finish. I use ProKote and love it. This stuff levels beautifully and it's crystal clear even in the bottles.