Refinish an old fishing rod

[smljaw]

I have a GLoomis IM6 that I've had for 20 years. It's a great rod and still in good condition. Because it's 20 years old it has scratches, slight discolorations, etc. Any way to refinish this rod blank to make it look better or like new?

[MsgMills]

I got a rod that I'd like to refinish as well, I got the gook that comes with the line eye fixing repair kit, is that the same stuff that is used to make the rods new and shiney...Can I just put a coat of this stuff on the rod and make it look new again...Just askin...Poor boys new rod repair kit if you ask me ...lol...

[Danny]

We've had a new poster on the board who builds rods... I can't remember his name, but WCRods was a part of it. Hopefully he will see this post and offer up some help.

Good luck guys.

Tight lines and God Bless

Danny

[roadrunner]

Danny

You are right it was WC Rods his name was Lynn Williams and he is from Owensboro I think.

[WCRODS]

I think Loomis use to dip the blank with some type of clear finish before the rod was built. The finish may look like varnish, if so it will be hard to get the scratches out, if you can get them out at all.

I had a friend give me a “Tibet Almond Stick” about three years ago and it works very well. The Almond Stick is used on furniture, but if you do an internet search on it you will see that it is used on lots of things like counter tops, glass, mirrors etc. (www.zcwinc.com/ ) You also can try Lemon Pledge on a small area to see if it works first.

I have heard of some Rod builders spraying the complete blank with Dupli Color clear coat (an automotive spray available at auto part stores). They say it seems to work well. The auto clear coat has a flex property built in. The clear coat seems to be pretty resistant to scratches as well. I wouldn't recommend it without some more research.

If the epoxy is cracked around the guide, then the guides will need to be removed and cleaned. Also clean the blank, then rewrap the guides and re-epoxy them.

Hope this helps, if not let me know.

Lynn