Originally Posted by
kbproctor
I hear about all this waxing and oiling and such for ferrules and it is the dead wrong thing to do. I do not give a rat's rectum what you have done for the last hundred years, if you have been waxing or oiling a ferrule, you have been doing it WRONG. The wax and oil attract DIRT. DIRT is what has caused that ferrule to stick. This is nothing more than plain old Common Sense. Here is how to fix it.
First, you CAN get the ferrule apart. Hold the rod behind your knees with one hand on each side of your legs right next to your knees. Spread your knees apart. The ferrule will pop loose. Your legs will give you the extra oomph to separate the ferrules.
Now. take a drill bit that is smaller than the inside of the female ferrule. Wrap it loosely with 0000 steel wool and dip the works in a touch of mineral spirits. Now insert that into the female ferrule and gently twist it around a bit. It doesn't take much. Remove that and clean out the residue with a cotton swab. Wipe the male ferrule off with mineral spirits and dry it off. DO NOT apply anymore wax to gather more dirt. The ferrule should fit like new and separate with a nice "pop."
The only time it makes any sense at all to wax a ferrule is when it is loose. The wax will provide a temporary and artificial "fit" that will need to be cleaned off and re applied occasionally. The proper thing to do when ferrules get loose is to have your handy dandy rod repair guy fit new ferrules for you.
If you want to wax your ferrules and trap more dirt in the wax to wear them out faster and make them stick again, go ahead.