Hey everyone. Im new here as you can tell and I'm new to glass as well. Ive been guiding full time for about ten years now and part time for even longer and I always refused to use glass because of the action ... until this one day. I was going on a trip with clients to a brook trout stream and broke a 2WT on the way out the door. I called a guide friend of mine on the Scott pro staff to borrow a rod and when I showed up they gave me a Scott F2. I didn't have a choice so I took it and by about halfway through the instructional phase of the trip I was sold and converted forever.
And thats my spiel. All that being said I have an appreciation for old fine things and although Ive built plenty of rods I've never done glass and Ive never done a restoration. I want to restore a couple of old glass rods but I don't know where to begin especially as far as the stripping goes. I don't want to damage the rods taking off the epoxy or wraps. What is the best way to remove the epoxy, finish, reel seat, cork, etc. I know out Citrus Strip and by looking through other posts here, every time this question is asked thats the response they get. Im looking for a little more detailed response or a link to a good video or pictorial ... anything. I know there are some out there but since many of you know what you're doing I thought it best to ask here so I don't take bad advice somewhere else. You guys are all great and I'm really enjoying the time I spend browsing. Thank you!

thanks for that buddy, it definitely gets me started. Im a little nervous with heat but I'm gonna give it a shot, I guess my main concern is with the real seat and cork though. I don't want to damage the blank taking them off. I know most guys cut the cork off I just wasn't sure if there was a better way. Im gonna dig throughout the archives some more.

Ive built plenty of rods but I'm as new as a high school freshman to fiberglass. I want to do a full restoration and my concerns are mainly involving the material because never having worked with glass I don't really know what the blank can take or can't take when I start working it over. I really don't want to damage a nice classic glass rod. I don't even have the rod yet but I have a general idea of what I'm looking for and I know it will more than likely be in rough shape. Thats why I was looking for a pictorial, because it will help me see the differences if any between stripping down a graphite and a glass rod.

thanks a lot P, that certainly explains one of the steps I've been concerned with very well. Out of curiosity, how do the blanks look after you strip them down. Do they look like good raw newer unfinished blanks or can you still see the age and blemishes in them?

I think you are over thinking the differences between glass and graphite. Like Keith said, they are the same, a woven fabric impregnated with plastic. One uses glass fibers, one uses carbon fibers.
There are no differences between stripping a graphite and a glass rod. If you are just re-wrapping the rod, follow the instructions above. If you want to strip and refinish the blank, you use citri-strip. If the blank is painted, the citri-strip will take the paint off along with any clear coat over the paint, so you will need to match it and repaint.
Removing the grip is simple. The reel seats can be tough. Applying heat is often not enough, or will require so much heat that the blank underneath is damaged. Also putting an anodized reel seat directly in boiling water will cause its color to fade, so you will need to heat it in a plastic bag without melting the bag to the reel seat.
In many cases, old reel seats need to be cut off. It's not hard to do, but if you are truly restoring a rod you will need to find an identical one which may be difficult if not impossible. On all of the rods I've restored I've left the original reel seat in place for this reason.
I'd suggest you start a thread about each specific rod you want to restore. I'm sure you'll get excellent advice about how to proceed, but right now we can only give general advice because we're not sure exactly what you're trying to do.

First of all, welcome to the forum.

This is a wonderful group of people with varying levels of experience and certainly willing to help. I have gotten quite a bit of help myself.

Part of the confusion, for me at least, is whether you plan on restoring or rebuilding the rod. Your questions suggest rebuilding but the use of the word restoring in your post makes giving tips a little more ambiguous in nature and could present the response as appearing basic.

The great thing about this board is the willingness members have in taking other along their build/rebuild/restore journey. Hopefully the PMs have been civil and I for one look forward to seeing your project.

Again, welcome to the forum.