Painting A Rod Blank / Red Blanks ?

[macstackleman]

I have built rods before and I am interested in a red blank of fiberglass construction.

Can not find a red blank and saw where they have spray paint to paint the blanks. Just wondering if down the road they would look bad after awhile?

Possibly a two color rod!! How sick is that?

Thanks folks your the best.

[ratstar]

I'm still fairly new to the rod game but paint I do know. If you prep your material good, and lay down your paint well, using quality materials, I cant imagine you would have any problems with it. Maybe if you left it in the sun it may fade over a really long time, but we're talking years in the sun, IF you use quality materials.

That being said i think I read on here or rodbuilder.org that someone used automotive paint and had it turn out great.

[GT hunter]

I have built rods before and I am interested in a red blank of fiberglass construction.

Can not find a red blank and saw where they have spray paint to paint the blanks. Just wondering if down the road they would look bad after awhile?

Possibly a two color rod!! How sick is that?

Thanks folks your the best.

I paint blanks all the time. They look fine years down the road if you do it right. Do it wrong and you know right away. There are many different ways to paint a blank. This is just the way I choose to paint my blanks and I haven't had any problems with them even ten years down the line. First, I sand the factory top coat a bit. Some people sand it off, I prefer to just try to evenly rough up the exterior. Then, spray paint whatever color you like. You may need several coats if the blank is dark and you're trying to paint it lighter colored. Then, I like to add one to two layers of clear paint...really thin layers. Let the paint really dry for a awhile. Then, mix up some epoxy finish for rod building, put on a latex glove and apply the finish to the blank with your gloved hand. Make sure there is no powder on the latex gloves! Make sure to really squeeze the blank tightly when making this application. Let this dry for several days in high heat and low humidity of possible. There are many other ways to do this, but this is a very easy way that works. I've found that without the clear coat, any nicks and dings that penetrate the outside finish also remove paint. Also, if you don't scuff up the factory finish, the paint doesn't seem to hold as well for me. Hope this helps. Again, there are definitely better and/or more advanced ways to paint a blank, but this particular method seems to work ok.

[Braided Line]

Have painted rods in various colors and after

the stress of fishing and general banging around they seem to have passed the test. Meaning, they still look good.

[Mattman]

I frequently paint blanks for customers.

I Scotch Brite the blank well.

Prime, wet sand, prime, wet sand blank.

Spray color coat, wet sand, color, wet sand.

Clear coat, wet sand, clear, wet sand.

Polish.

I prefer an automotive grade clear system, even if it is from a can.

Paints and clears must be able to withstand the flexing of the rod blank. Paints and clears designed for bumpers for instance.

Acrylic airbrush paint is another good color option. It looks dull and flat but when clear coated it pops really nicely.

[aaron4mvp]

Mattman,

 

What grit scotch brite pad do you use?

 

Do you wet sand the blank with the scotch brite pad as well?