I am new to the rod building world. I am however a furniture/cabinet maker with 30 years experience. So I am not completely green here. So thanks in advance for any help. I was thinking of using hydro graphics on a rod blank before building it. Has anyone tried this ? Is the finish on the blank sufficient for dipping ? I am going to buy some and try it on a broken rod to see how it looks. I will post pics . Thanks again

We covered this in a RodMaker article some years back. There are some specifics you need to know. Are you going to do the dipping yourself or have it done elsewhere?

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

I will be dipping it myself. I have the tank design. I did see an article but it was sketcchy. I have emailed a couple suppliers of the graphics. My real question is can I scuff with a grey scrunch pad and dip. All the graphics makers say I have to prime the blank and then paint the bank. Then dip and then clear. I don't want to add anything more than I have to. Just wondering if the factory finish is OK the stick to. If I can't get an answer I will test on an old rod and let everyone know how it works for me. Thanks for the reply. I also found a rod builder magazine that did an article on this subject a while back. I ordered that back isue. I hope it has some answers.

The article in RodMaker covered the specifics in depth.

The "prime" portion is important, as it provides the base needed for the film to adhere to. The supplies you buy should have instructions on the containers as well. Follow them to the letter.

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

temp is critical

So the rod blanks are not primed and painted by the manufacturer?

Yes, but not for hydro-dipping. Different process.

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

thanks for the info. I will get some graphics and do some test runs. I will post pics when I do. Thanks again.