Glass rod restoration

Question
I have an old (probably worthless) glass rod I like and want to restore.  I'm wondering if these rods were coated with a varnish when the threads were coated.  If so, how can I clean up the old blank to prepare it for a new finish?

Answer
Hi Todd,

It may or may not have a coating and it may or may not be a thin varnish or paint.  You can probably take the guides off of it and then strip the blank with one of the citrus based strippers available.  That should remove any coating and not harm the rod.  If it needs it, a light sanding with wet or dry paper is fine.

You can paint the blank very easily by using one of the Krylon patio furniture spray cans.  This paint is made for plastic and has the needed flex agent included.  It will bond even if you don't sand and prep the surface.  They have a pretty good selection of colors.  I just did a lavender paint job on a rod for my great-granddaughter that turned out good.  That may or may not be your color.  You can sand and recoat the rod if needed or you can coat it with clear (same type of paint) if you like.  There are other brands besides Krylon, that just happens to be what my local store carries.

Once the blank is ready, build it out to be whatever you want.  Most of the older rods did not have enough guides on them so you might want to update the spacing and number of guides to improve rod performance.

It won't be worthless when you get done.

Thnaks,  Joe