Not knowing how that line of Powell rods was finished, it's hard to be sure, but I'd be very surprised if it's varnish. Old varnish doesn't lift like that anyway. It dries and shrinks and checks. If the rod is unpainted graphite, it was probably finished with some type of epoxy or urethane clear coat, which may explain the milky appearance of the bubbles. If the finish has lost its adhesion and is lifting, the only cure may be to strip the entire thing, polish it out, and refinish with something like U-40 Permagloss. Epoxy rod finish might work if you could keep it from sagging while drying (Permagloss is recoatable in an hour, and is sag free in about 5 minutes, so it's much easier to control). It's a lot of careful work, though, especially considering the re-wrap job that follows refinishing. Maybe others will offer better options.
|