I have just finished building my first rods. Now is the time to add the finish. I bought Pro Kote from MudHole and all the reviews I read look good, but then I get to the one that says Pro Kote is great, but too soft for big offshore rods like the ones I have built. Is this true? Should I not use this on my Tuna rods? What should I use, and how many coats should I use? I'm scared to mess them up with the last step. I am very proud of them this far, and hate to ruin something at the end..... Lots of money in these rods.

Thanks in Advance,
Gervais Sharp

I don't like prokote because of its short working time but it does cure crystal clear. I prefer flex coat or aftcote. I get a more even finish with a slower cure time. I don't know the answer to your question about using on offshore rods. A longer cure will allow you to do touch up and fix the occasional bubble under a guide foot and also allow any small bubbles in finish to rise to surface and pop. Good luck. MH

That is the opposite of everything I have read about Prokote. Everything says 24 hours between coats and plenty of working time because it takes SOOOO long to set up.

It's not "soft" soft. It'll be fine.

Working or pot life has a great deal to do with temperature. The last issue of RodMaker detailed how to build a finish cooler that allows you to sort of dial in the amount of pot life you want with most any finish. Otherwise, work in a cooler area for more pot life, or a warmer one for quicker set up.

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

Original ProKote was designed as a clear medium build finish with a longer pot life. Temperatures being equal - it does have a longer pot life than most other finishes - this was done by design 1) to allow new rod builders more time to apply the finish, 2) to slower cure time produces a more flexible finish, 3) allows more bubble release. It was also designed as a medium build finish, like a high build but not as thick yet thick enough to cover wraps in a single coat.

Feedback from customers was great, but they requested a high build finish which would set up faster - so the Newer ProKote High Build was designed. High build Prokote sets up 25% faster than original ProKote and provide a 25% thinker one coat finish.

Both the original ProKote and the newer High Build ProKote are very good finishes - each one has its own merits and loyal followers who like select properties of each. Read more about them by following this link: [proproducts.us]

As far as offshore tuna rods - which are subject to high UV exposure and high flexibility, we would recommend original ProKote, two thin coats.

Regards.
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Just take a deep breath and relax. The medium viscosity ProKote will be just fine. Except for bamboo, I use it for all rods including the heavy fly rods for salt.

Really good advice from MudHole above for the original, medium viscosity flavor. Make the first coat thin. Not so thin as to not wet all the thread, but don't worry about thin spots for the first coat. Turn by hand rotating every minute for 15 minutes, then every 90 seconds or 2 minutes for 15 minutes. After that first half hour you can use a rod turner. Second coat will go on easier, just guard against applying too much epoxy. Repeat the manual rotation then a rod turner process and it should be perfect.

I must have used the new high build because it was starting to gel 15-20 minutes after mixing for 2 minutes. So much so I was rushing to coat all the wraps on surf rods. I switched back to the flex coat in same temperature and it took an hour for that finish to gel the same amount. Like some other builders I bought it because of the rave reviews. I did like the clarity of the cured product. I used the rest of bottle for epoxy flies.

Great feedback! I am excited to get started! One more question on the two thin coats...... I wrapped my guides with metallic thread. Everything I read was, don't do this, but I emailed a well respected custom rod builder out of Florida who does use it for heavy offshore rods, and he said its fine. So my question is, do I still only use two thin coats if I double wrapped the guides?

Generally, it shouldn't take more than maybe 30 seconds or so to coat a guide wrap. Do less. Don't paint it on and brush it around. Just load the brush, lower it to the wrap and let it apply itself as you rotate the rod. Then move on to the next guide.

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

Tom, I do. I use your method. I like to do two or three rods at a time. Some might have an 8-10" thread pattern as well. The finish didn't work for me but that doesn't mean it's not a good product. I'm happy with what I'm using. Thanks for the input.

Michael,
I generally do 2 rods at a time. I generally apply finish with the rod spinning at about 30-40 rpm. Stop for an instant to take care of the tunnel, and move on to the next guide. I get the finish on the rod and then move the rod to the dryer for the final touch up of the finish. I will get all of the finish on two rods, and then go back over each rod for a final clean up and touch up of any of the finish that is required. For the touch up - I keep a heat gun in my hand to give a bit of gentle heat if necessary to thin any of the finish to remove any problems.

In the past, I would do 4 rods at a time, but it was tough to get all of the finish applied and cleaned up as needed in the gel time of the finish for 4 rods. So, I just do two rods and a time and it works better.

Be safe

Thanks Roger. I'll give your method a try. MH

Gervais, If procoat is the same as AMTEK rod finish you'll have no problems. In the past I've used just about every finish made and their all good but, AMTEK and PacBay are the most forgiving. Mix ratio, mixing time, application, not a problem. Just slap it on remove whatever sags and 4 hrs spin time is all you need.
After their fully cured in a few days your good to go.Durability will not be an issue.

Dennis J. Danku
(Sayreville,NJ)

Gervais, there are many products that work fine and there are many ways to apply them. What is most important is to find what works for you and stick to it. Therefore I strongly advise you make some pratice runs before doing your first rod. Rebuilding a couple of old rods is a great way to start.

There are trade offs. A harder finish is typically more prone to cracking. That is often a problem on bigger offshore rods with roller guides. Also the guide wraps shouldn't be seeing a lot of scuffing (compared to a wrap near the handle that might contact the boat's gunnel/rail).

One common theme seems to always come up with guys just starting out....they apply the finish too slowly. They try to paint and fuss too much. You want to load the brush with finish, lower it so only the epoxy touches the blank, not the actual brush, hand rotate 360 degrees.....move over a brush width and repeat.

The biggest problem with metallic thread is it fades in the sun. Some colors are much worse than others. Gold and silver are fine for me but I only use them for trim bands. An entire guide wrap in certain colors is likely to result in you having to cut the wraps off and redo them in as short as a couple of years. But then I live in a sunny place!

Russ in Hollywood, FL.

Thanks for the info! I used metallic silver for the guide wrap and metallic blue for the underwrap. I fiswh out of Venice, La and a few older guys turned me onto WD-40 for wiping down my rods. I saw some older rods that looked really great and they say it helps protect against the sun too. Since then, after I wash down my rods/reels with fresh water, I spray WD on a rag and give them a once over. Hopefully this will help with my metallic thread choice? Only time will tell.

Your metallic blue will fade fairly rapidly! The WD40 has no UV protection, it does help against corrosion.

Don't use WD-40... Wash down your rods and reels with liquid dish detergent and rinse with fresh water.

Dennis J. Danku
(Sayreville,NJ)

Don't use liquid dish detergent, it cuts grease

Then you must repack your reels with fresh lard and bacon grease.

Dennis J. Danku
(Sayreville,NJ)

Dennis,
The good news with this technique is that you could do bear hunting with the smell of the reels and not get into trouble with the DNR for Bear Baiting.

Be safe