I picked up an old LM Dickson bamboo rod. The cane is in great shape but a couple of guides were mashed and the seat was dented. It is a 3 piece rod with 2 tips. Both tips are in fine shape. The varnish was scratched and chipped as one might expect but no damage to the cane itself. The ferrules are tight if not real pretty, but serviceable. All in all this will make a nice bamboo rod for someone when finished.

I measured guide locations, removed the guides, sanded the varnish smooth, and got it ready for refinishing. Now for the seat. I heated and cooled for over an hour with no luck. I finally got out the cutoff wheel and ever so gently sliced the seat. I was being extremely careful so as not to damage the cane. When I finally got the old seat off, this is what I found.



Another view...



Cane goes in the other end of the grip....



The wood measures .664" in diameter. I take it I am going to have to whittle or turn that down to get a new seat on it. I have no idea how far the wood goes into the grip, if at all, or how far the cane extends towards the butt of the rod. The wood is not very hard. I might be able to chuck it in my drying motor and slowly work it down with a light rasp or file to get it small enough to get a seat on. I have a nice Xylosma Wood seat with sliding bands for it. The insert can be bored out a little, but the butt has to be smaller, too.

Has anyone else run into this kind of thing and how did you handle it?