Cork

[Betty Hiner]

Don't think I've seen this before, but wondered if you can replace just sections of a deteriorating cork grip? Can you cut out pieces and epoxy in new 'half rounds' ? (half on one side, half on the other, epoxied together, to the rod and remaining cork)

[Diane]

Hey Betty.

I'm no rodbuilding expert and have never done what you're proposing but yeah, you could give it a try and it should work. The end result is going to be highly dependent on a few things that come quickly to mind:

1. when you cut away the old cork, you're going to have to make an absolutely perpendicular cut to the length of the handle.

2. the center hole (or half holes, really) of the new pieces is going to have to be sized and tapered carefully.

3. This idea lends an opportunity to give the rod handle a unique custom look. You could choose to emphasize the new section by using a different material (stained cork, hardwood) and even a colored filler to join the two halves. Or you could just hope to blend in the new section and minimize the difference.

4. Seems to me that doing this would give some new opportunities or the cork to wear away in that section due to the extra edges you're introducing. It might be both easier and better to heat up the grip and rod seat, remove them, replace the whole cork, and reassemble.

There you go. Wisdom from someone who has no idea what she's talking about. Let's hope someone who really knows something about this chimes in.

[TampaJim]

If it is a nice rod, remove the handle and put on a new one. If it is a less expensive rod, I would suggest the use of "Quick Grip" to redo it.

[dleo6446]

hey Betty,
it can be done but from my experience in the past, that old cork will not be the same color, density or anything and it will probably not be suitabel to you. If it has failed, I would replace the whole thing, If you are replaceing a "dig", different story.

If you do attempt it, go to your local Hobby Lobby and pick up a couple of matt cutting blades to use to slice the cork where you want to put the new section in, they are a little stiffer and are only sharpened on one side and super sharp. be much easier to cut a nice joint that way

Leo

[flyfisherjoe]

Use a lathe to cut out the section the width of your replacement section. Be careful to not cut the blank. You can leave a center section of cork. It's the best way to get a good straight uniform cut out. It will allow you to fit a new piece with some precision. You can then shape it on the lathe.

[Photojoe4]

And if you don't HAVE a lathe, I'd strongly just suggest replacing the grip. The only really tricky part is going to be if the reelseat is pinned, but even this is pretty easy to deal with. You can shape your new cork grip by hand, using a reamer/file and sandpaper. Simple, easy, and pretty darn cheap. Of course, you could go out and buy yourself a lathe...

Regards,
Joe Martin
Salem, OR

[Diane]

and if you DO buy yourself a lathe, you could always become a woodturning addict like me! Think bowls, pens, goblets, little mushrooms, rod handles, more bowls. You NEED another hobby, don't you??

[clyde holmes]

Yeah Betty, buy the lathe, I need some reel seats, grips etc. I saw your picture from the fish in. Even without the name in picture I knew it had too be you from the mile wide grin. Carey acts like me. Stay in background let gregarious wife be front person

[Betty Hiner]

Hummmm ... I wonder what time Home Depot opens?

Surely, I could justify the cost! How many reel seats could I turn? Bowls ... yes! Need something to hold all my stuff! MOM!!! Diane's putting evil thoughts in my head!! (heh, heh, heh!!)

[kengore]

It is possible to do a good repair without removing or replacing a handle. With careful attention to matching the surrounding cork you can use split rings to fix an existing cork grip.

As others suggested it it very difficult to match color, density and texture. It is also more difficult to get really good glue joints when splicing into the middle of an existing handle. A new handle will look better, but a very servicable repair can be made.

If the area you are hoping to repair is fairly small the repair might work well enough. You can get a better glue joint with a small V shaped repair, since the clamping pressure can force the pieces together.

First decide how much cork needs to be removed for the repair. For really small defects small notch might be enough. I had a favorite rod which had a BB sized void right where I liked to place my thumb. Although it was a small defect it often caused a blister. I was able to remove a 1/2" wide wedge of material by cutting a 45 degree notch into the handle.
I cut a matching wedge from new cork ring, being extra careful to exactly match the angle of my notch. I glued the wedge into place with titebond II, a waterproof carpenter's glue. I wrapped the area with plastic wrap, then a layer of masking tape. When the glue was set I carved the oversized wedge into a rough shape with a sharp exacto knife and blended it into the surrounding cork with sand paper glued to a paint stir stick, using a series of grits from 80 to 200.

For a larger repair you will want to remove entire cork rings. The clamping pressure is only able to apply radial force, there is no way to apply pressure to the face of the cork rings. So the fit of the repair must be very good or you will have gaps in the glue lines.

Using an extremely sharp knife slice perpendicular to the handle. I like using a matt knife with an extra long blade. You dont need to cut all of the way to the blank, stop about 1/16" short to insure you don't risk slicing the rod. Make your cut's about 1/16" shy of the the final width, so you have room for final trimming. Any leftover can be removed with sand paper. Make two vertical cuts, one on each side of the area to be removed.

By making angled cuts you can slice out the unwanted material until you get close to the rod blank. Remove the last 1/16" using sand paper. You don't need to remove all of the cork, just enough to create a good glue foundation and provide for a min. ring thickness of 3/8". When the waste material has been removed you can make a final trim cut on the shoulders. The idea is to make a near perfect flat surface for the new rings to attach. A lathe is ideal for this, although a steady hand and sharp blade will work. Wrap a layer of masking tape around the handle and use the edge of the tape as a cutting guide. Slightly under cutting the shoulder so the outside of the ring has better contact will help prevent glue lines. The final trim cuts should match the width of your cork rings, and be perfectly perpendicular.

Split the repair rings in half with a very sharp blade, mark the pairs with a pencil for easy re-assembly. A knife blade will make a better joint than a saw. Shape the inner hole to fit around the rod blank using sand paper wrapped around a dowel. Work carefully for a perfect fit, no voids. If needed you can place a cork ring flat on some sand paper and reduce it's thickness. Don't worry about matching the outer diameter at this stage, the repair will be sanded to shape later.

I like to use 1/4" masking tape to hold the split rings in place while I shape more pieces. Stagger the joints on each ring pair as you dry fit the patch. The patch should fit very snug, it's easy to compress a slightly oversized cork ring to fit. Pre- compress the last ring pair in a vice between two small boards, as it expands back to normal size it will hopefully fill in all gaps.

For gluing I like to use bvoth waterproof carpenters glue and 30 minute epoxy. The epoxy works well for gap filling and to attach the cork to the blank, The carpenters glue has good cork to cork bonding strength and will wear more like the surrounding cork. If epoxy is used on the face of the rings it could cause ridging as the soft cork wears more quickly than the glue joint.

Protect the existing cork handle with a layer of plastic wrap or blue painters tape. Smear a blob of epoxy over the rod blank, then use carpenter's glue sparingly on the face of each ring. I use a piece of 1/4" wide masking tape to around each ring pair to hold them in place. Pre-compress the last ring for a tight fit. Clean up the extra glue mess with a little warm water and vinegar, it's a lot easier to get it off while it's uncured. Wrap the whole area with a layer of plastic wrap, then cover the whole repair with a spiral of stretchy vinyl electric tape for good strong compression.

After the glue has set I rough carve the repair with a sharp knife or razor blade. Then sand the area smooth. If you don't have a lathe you can sand by hand. Use a long thin sanding block, such as a wooden paint stir stick. I glue a strip of sand paper over the stick using spray adhesive.

Place the rod in your lap and sand in long stokes at about a 30 degree angle to the rod axis. Rotate the rod 10 degrees with each stroke. The idea it to sand in an even pattern of overlapping spiral cuts, so the shape of the handle is maintained. Sanding too long in one spot with make the handle 'out of round'.

A final sanding with 220 grit or 'soft scrub' will return the old cork to a nice light color. I like to give the finished handle a coat of linseed oil cut 50/50 with turpintine to bring out the cork color and protect from dirt.