Gleeming

[Phil13]

Do most contemporary makers use the “gleeming” process on their wraps? I’m not a big fan of the look.
For those of you that don’t please post a pic of your “un-gleemed wraps.


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[perfesser]

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[Gnome]

The ultimate in the effort to achieve what many consider to be the "Right Look" or as the gnome views it;

unneccesary and truly making a mountain out of a molehill IMHO


non gleemed wraps on the rod above and fully approved by Pteronarcys!!!

glemming = sanding your wrap finish with a fingernail file / sanding board called a gleemer prior to final finish to achieve a flat finished wrap.

[LeeO]

Sanding between wraps? I do it to smooth out the wraps. Not to make them flat but more to reduce the number of coats of finish needed.

[Gnome]

so what is the difference between smoothing them out and flattening? It is the same thing!!!!! This is the practice of some bamboo rodmakers of today.

And totally pointless IMHO. Look at how flat the wraps are on the rod pictured above and it was not gleemed and it does not have "shimmers" !!! 2 part Epoxy finish thinned with 1/3rd DNA, 2 coats and then 3 extremely thin sprayed on coats of Automotive clear coat. done deal ready to fish.

[Phil13]

Don’t get me wrong. I am new to bamboo and have only seen a few rods. The two gleemed rods I have seen were both impeccable. The gleeming makes the wraps appear to be transparent/translucent. I wonder if it’s a relatively new look to bamboo rods. Not shown in any reference I have.


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[Gnome]

You can achieve translucent wraps without gleeming. use no color preserver you end up with translucent wraps or use the epoxy finish which has the tendency to make wraps translucent. gleeming is fully in the realm of the hand planer. not done by professionals that I know of.

[perfesser]

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[6tUc05]

The "blobby epoxy on graphite rod wraps" is a result of poor, careless application technique. If applied properly, the epoxy rod wrap finishes can be as flat and attractive as those that are simply varnished.

[LeeO]

I am not flattening. I am just getting out divots and bumps during the first few coats. Just how I do it. I am sure the other technique is vastly superior

[Middleton]

I'd never heard of gleeming so I'm learning something ;0) I do use very very fine sandpaper on a popsicle stick (like an emery board) to address poke-outs and boogers, but thats about it. Got to work on my technique as its a bit time consuming.

[jim royston]

There used to be a nail polisher called the Gleemer. I don't think they are made anymore. When I started making cane rods 12 years ago, my buddy and mentor mentioned them, I'm a big fan of those sanding and polishing sticks that nail salons use. For touch up or last minute holy crap how did I miss that, they are great

[reidrods]

Let's not disparage the hand planers please. All varnished wraps continue to cure and eventually show individual threads. Look at any rods that are 20-30 plus years old. And being a professional is not necessarily a goal of a rod maker.

Willis

[eastprong]

These are the source of the term:

https://www.amazon.com/TOUCH-4-Way-Turt ... B01N23GBRE
https://www.terrybinnscatalog.com/Sand_ ... 309025.htm

[Gnome]

Willis

not all wraps are finished with varnish and I have rods that I built 20-30 years ago with epoxy finished wraps that do not show individual threads. I do not know of many professionals that gleem their wraps (to time consuming when trying to make a living IMHO). And a properly applied epoxy finish will be as flat as a varnish finish when executed properly.
Lee so what is the difference between removing bumps and divots compared to flattening?? seems to be the same thing to me, you are evening out the surface to achieve a flatter finish right?

after your first coat on your wraps take a single edge razor blade and cut / flatten the bad spots, fuzzies, etc to as close to flat with the thread as you can. simple to do and much faster than sanding 6 sides per wrap times X number of wraps. The razor blade trick was taught to me by the ladies at SCOTT. Very effective and also very fast compared to gleeming and you end up with a very proper finish. not ovoid / footballed but flat with the guides sealed and glued to the blank with no open tunnels for water to penetrate and cause problems.

[LeeO]

OK, I am flattening the wraps then. Whatever

[wbinn]

You gotta be kidding me! A critical thread about "flattening" wraps, Not a how to, but a why is it necessary!
To each his own. No right or wrong here. Get a life folks!

[LeeO]

Never a shortage of “you are doing it wrong” here