Maiden voyage w/ System3

[pbadad]

Well fellow wood chip makers I coated my first Pikes w/ System3 clear coat. I used a sponge brush for first coat. One thing I noticed that it is thin viscosity. Spreads great but I notice when there is a dry spot you need to pick up some more epoxy on rush instead of dragging from another area. Definitely needs 2 coats like Prof M says fir a better look. I will say if you want a boutique finish, use e tex. I don't need to spin ,just 1 flip and the epoxy stays. I did run the heat gun after I coat over quickly to help flow. Also in 12 hrs it's dry, not tacky like e tex. I don't use a heat box. Hang near furnace. I'm going to let the plugs cure for a week before sending off to the briney deep. BTW I mixed 4 cc to 2 cc w/syringes. Used 3 cc each pike for the first coat and much less for the second. On prepping b/4 epoxy, I scratch coat w/lacquer satin finish over Createx, gray scuff pad then clean w/ 91% isopropyl alcohol. I do this for e tex too. Hold plug by lip and apply. I will keep you update on it's durability and adhesion.

[numbskull]

System three advised no scratch coat when I emailed them about problems I had with using their Clear Coat product over krylon clear in the past. It does adhere to createx well (i.e., it won't peel) although fisheyeing is, as you mentioned, a curse with the stuff. The propensity to fisheye seems to vary by manufacturer batch and by the color of the createx you are putting it over (black and purple are bad). I try to do dark plugs near the end of the batch as the stuff thickens up. If you use a wide fine hair brush it does much better than something like an acid brush (you can clean the good brush in alcohol and reuse).
Washing everything (cups/stirrer/brush) with alcohol first helps. Don't use medical syringes, they have some sort of silicone coating that causes fisheyes. When I finally get off my a** and build some plugs again I plan to try their Mirror Coat with a added flex agent (don't try plain Mirror Coat as it will crack).

[pbadad]

George I'll be letting everyone know how the sys 3 holds up throughout the season. I did use a fine horse haired brush and sponge brush. The brush marks disappeared after I hit the finish with heat gun. 2 coats are a must as I see. They did look good this morning all dried. Not a deep finish as e tex but nice low "profile" shine. Your darter is still holding up well and still catching.