Painting a blank

[Hayden@LostSea]

Hi guys, new here so please forgive the amateur question.
I have a very rare zziplex quattra match in banana yellow ( it was handed down to me by the late Mick sullivan).

It is in need of a total rebuild so im hoping to do this myself.

I have stripped it down and sanded it to a smooth finish I have then applied several coats of yellow plastikote which went on great.
I heard that you can use a high build to go over the blank so i tried this and it had a slight wavey look to it so again some more sanding and a respray.

I then found myself looking at bonda seal so I did a spot test on the paint all seemed fine .

So put the rod into the dryer and started to use bonda seal got about 3 inches o to the rod and as you guessed it started to peel straight away.

Have any of you guys painted a blank not just tinted it and if so what do you recommend, please help

[PierPoint]

Hi Hayden

Unfortunately, not all paints and colour pigments work the same. They all have different strengths and weaknesses and are usually designed with specific application in mind. When paint spraying a carbon rod some work and some dont and some have good interaction with other products and some dont.

However, if using a spray paint a few rod builders use the K2 product which has a hardener built into the pack and this is quite effective.

Bondaseal is great to use as a clear coat when the carbon blank is bare and colour pigment can be added to great effect. When adding colour pigment you have to be careful not to go too heavy handed with pigment as too much can lead to an orange peel effect when dry.

You can use a high build to coat the blank and as this is a two part epoxy resin will give a nice hard finish. You said it was a bit wavy? you just need to stop the rod and allow it to level off the bottom so that it settles in a bit more of a level state. You can also add colour pigment to this as well.

Hope that helps.

[StanM]

Not sure where you heard you can use high build over the entire blank but you are listening to the wrong folk. 2K car paint with hardener in the spray and nothing at all over the top unless a top clear coat supplied with the 2K.

[PierPoint]

I have a Bruce Ashby Perimeter rod in my possession and its a chestnut brown. I'm convinced (unless I am mistaken) that the finish is a high build one along the entire length of the rod. It is wavy and dips here and there, now I am not a great fan of this finish as I am a Bondaseal person through and through.

I would like to ask Bruce what he used to coat this particular rod, unless it has had a makeover, but alas he slipped his moorings a wee while go. I may have to wait a while to ask him in person.

[StanM]

I have a Bruce Ashby Perimeter rod in my possession and its a chestnut brown. I'm convinced (unless I am mistaken) that the finish is a high build one along the entire length of the rod. It is wavy and dips here and there, now I am not a great fan of this finish as I am a Bondaseal person through and through.

I would like to ask Bruce what he used to coat this particular rod, unless it has had a makeover, but alas he slipped his moorings a wee while go. I may have to wait a while to ask him in person.

The very fact that somebody may have done it does not make it correct, actually a dumb and very expensive way to do it which would cause the entire blank to yellow over time with UV.

[PierPoint]

Was Bruce not a renowned rod builder or am I mistaken?

[StanM]

Was Bruce not a renowned rod builder or am I mistaken?

He was a decent rod builder but better known as a carp angler. In the years before his death he built on Harrison blanks and those are not finished in high build, they are on Inty perfection and dyed.

[Hayden@LostSea]

Thanks for the reply lads. I went with plasticote in the end, bright yellow with plasticote clear over the top. Unfortunately I tried bondaseal 1st before I bought the clear spray and it peeled straight away. So restrip and start again.
The tip is all finished now and it looks OK but still alot to learn but thats number 1 build nearly out the way.
Would love to show you the end results but can't upload a photo on here

[PierPoint]

Great post, thanks. You should be able to upload photos maybe it dosnt like your phone. Send me some photos by email or messenger and I will put them up.