Interesting. Never heard of anyone trying hards as nails. Might have to try that one out. I am a varnish man, so I generally use a 50/50 mix of Epifanes gloss spar and Walnut oil alkaloid medium. Then followed up coats of spar. 50% Thinned lite epoxy is also used by many of the bamboo guys. Probably easier to work with, but I still prefer the vanish mixture.

Question, are you applying another finish overtop of that?

GB, that's an interesting idea. It's really intriguing.

For those who know more than I do, is there any worry that something like Sally Hansen's lacks the necessary flexibility for a fly rod? Would cracks or other problems develop later on after use?

White or natural silk, Threadmaster lite thinned about 3 to 1. A rod turner is necessary as it takes forever (2.5 days or so) to harden. You can work out any bubbles with a needle and a little patience and still be able to return the thread to its place. A second coat of unthinned epoxy is necessary.

Clear nail polish has remarkable durability that surprises anyone who has used it for a quick touch-up fix and then not gotten around to doing it over. Nevertheless, it isn't so reliable in self-leveling and uniformity of thickness. Sooner or later it will cloud, crack, check or chip--or peel from the substrate. It will be irregular in durability from one wrap to another. There is a reason that marine all-weather outdoor finishes are the norm for wraps. All that said, you could probably get a darn good quick job out if it that would outlast the interest in fishing the rod--or until wanting to do it over anyway.

I'm far from an expert, but have had many people advise me who I respect. And 50% of the time I get good results. If I could just get signature blocks to come out all the time I would be happy.

1) Methods differ depending on the finish. Varnish penetrates really well, you have to put on numerous coats, and some people have really good results, but I get air bubbles around the guides. Especially on the stripping guides.

2) for epoxy, warm the parts before mixing. It decreases the pot life, but it penetrates much better. Also, a warm drying cabinet helps if the temperature is cool where the rod is drying. I avoid thinning. The thinner evaporates instead of cures and will cause shimmers and gaps in the tunnel if you use too much. If I do thin, I use the approved thinner for the epoxy (or acetone) and use a no more than two drops for 2cc of epoxy (1cc resin, 1cc hardner).

3) Silk thread is a must if you are going after transparent wraps. Nylon will go translucent, but not get that true transparent finish of silk. Wrap with as little tension as possible while getting well packed wraps without crossovers.

4) guild foot preparation is a must. file, grind, or use whatever method possible to get rid of any steps between the guide and the blank. This really decreases bubbles and makes wrapping with lighter tension easier.

5) If it doesn't look good, cut it off, clean it up and start over. Even after the epoxy is partially set, this is the preferred method. However it doesn't work well on some blanks, since it will peal the color layer off. I have heard of this problem with Epic/CTS blanks.

And experiment, experiment, experiment. If you are disciplined enough, take notes and pictures so you can remember which wraps go with which process. I'm always too lazy for this, but do as I say, not as I do.

I look forward to what you figure out.

Multiple coats of Thread Master Lite thinned with acetone. Several years ago I had a thread here on a rod build with the instructions in it.

If you send me a private message with your email address, I'll send a tutorial I put together on the entire process. As for the wrap in the example, the single thread inlay is done with a black pigma micron pen. You want to make sure that when you do this, you don't want to use a pen that will fade in direct sunlight. I've always used pigma micron pens or india ink to avoid this. Although I cannot speak from experience, I've heard sharpies will fade over time. I have a hard time believing the black sharpie would fade, but potentially some of the other colors will. The trim band is a 3 turn band done with silk thread, not a pen.

Anyone is welcome to the tutorial if you PM me. It used to be available on my website, but the link isn't working for some reason and I need to rebuild the website to restore it so that will have to wait.

Jim

I have done the marker trick, and I like both the Pigma Micron markers and the Faber-Castell India ink pens. For writing on a blank, I liked the thicker look that I got from the India ink pen. I'm not sure that it matters for coloring silk thread.

Either way, both are archival. I've seen Sharpies fade on other things, so I assume that would eventually happen with thread on a rod.

Others will know more, but this is what I know… here is copy from the Proof Fly Fishing web site. I’m sure others will chime in with their experience.

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Kimono silk thread #374 Mikimoto

Invisible thread wraps start with quality silk. Mikimoto is raw white silk. Used as is it is perfect for getting crystal clear thread wraps. If clear wraps are your goal make sure not to wrap with too much tension. A nice moderate tension is what you want. Another under-rated use for white silk is to seal it with CP for an opaque wrap. The silk lays down so thin it looks like the guide is being held on with paint. Finally, because Mikimoto does not contain any pigments or dyes you can dye it yourself if you choose.


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Update:
I’ve tried every technique that was suggested and this has provided the best and clearest wraps so far.
Appreciate everyone’s input.

Not as pretty as the pics posted above but I’m getting better….



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