Cork replacement for beginners

[LouisianaAngler24]

So I've never worked on a fishing rod before but read articles and watched videos here and there, i plan on removing all my old cork, the reel seat,and the foregrips off three of my baitcaster rods and replace one guide below the first eye let. I already have clippers to measure the existing cork. I do plan on picking up some old broken rods to practice tearing down so i dont mess up mine to bad. I know I'll need:

 

Gudies

epoxy

thread/thread tool combo

pliers to remove the old cork,

some type of blade to remove the access cork

masking tape

new cork or eva foam (i plan on keeping the three full grips as thats how they were originally)

new reel seats and locking nuts

butt caps. 

RDS Rod Dryer with Dryer Clutch

Maybe a dremel to remove the old reel seat/or a oscillating saw.

Mixing Cups

Brushes

Reamers just in case

 

Am i missing anything? Happy holidays guys! 

[MikeK]

What is wrong with the handles and reelseats that they need replaced?  Are you planning to replace those parts from the bottom of the rod?

[LouisianaAngler24]

7 minutes ago, MikeK said:

What is wrong with the handles and reelseats that they need replaced?  Are you planning to replace those parts from the bottom of the rod?

Yes, one rod the reel seat moves and turns when you cast, my dog ate the cork to the point i can see the blank of the handle on the other rod, the last has a broken guide and the cork is old and pitted and some of the expoxy is showing up were the handle meets the reel seat. I rather just change them all as ive been wanting to work on rods for extremely Long time. I saw a couple of videos done that way without removing the existing guides. 

[MikeK]

It can certainly be done but getting cork to fit well if it is installed from the butt can be tricky, especially the front grip.  Good luck!

 

You do not need the dryer clutch.

Epoxy adhesive for the parts is not the same as epoxy thread coating.  You need both.

[casts_by_fly]

Mike got you most of the way there. Depending on how much taper there is from butt to front of grip, you might need to build up the front grip end to match the hole diameter of the grip. For a single guide I wouldn’t bother with a rod dryer or epoxy. Just get some permagloss as your wrap finish. It’s thin and dries quickly enough to hand turn the rod.

[spoonplugger1]

Depending on the type of reel seat you are using, how do you put an exposed blank reel seat such as a Fuji ECSM on from the back?

[LouisianaAngler24]

8 minutes ago, spoonplugger1 said:

Depending on the type of reel seat you are using, how do you put an exposed blank reel seat such as a Fuji ECSM on from the back?

Look up youtube videos, theres about four of them that explain how to do it.

[MickD]

13 hours ago, MikeK said:

Epoxy adhesive for the parts is not the same as epoxy thread coating.  You need both.

Amen!  

You can replace parts from the rear by reaming the cork pieces so they just fit over the butt of the blank, the largest diameter of the blank.  As you go farther up, the diameter decreases and you build up arbors with masking tape tightly wrapped to form a "cylindrically" shaped set of arbors on which to mount the parts.  Of course the farther up the blank you go, the more tape is required to maintain the same OD all the way up.  This way the parts will slide up from the butt.  When you glue them together make sure to totally encapsulate the tape arbors in epoxy adhesive to prevent deterioration if water gets in.  Don't skimp on epoxy adhesive-the reason your one rod failed is insufficient adhesive.  I like U40 Quik Bond, a gel adhesive which gives you time to adjust the fit of parts, but doesn't run like liquid and doesn't take a long time to set.  Be sure to dry fit all the parts before trying to glue.  You want to ensure that everything fits together before gluing.  

 

You don't really need a drying setup for the guide wraps with wrap epoxy , either.  Apply the epoxy sparingly.  If it drips off you're using too much.  Mount it level and rotate the rod by hand every 10 minutes or so for a couple hours and it will be fine. If you need a second coat, do the same thing again.  The room temp should be about 70 or higher.  

[LouisianaAngler24]

1 hour ago, MickD said:

Amen!  

You can replace parts from the rear by reaming the cork pieces so they just fit over the butt of the blank, the largest diameter of the blank.  As you go farther up, the diameter decreases and you build up arbors with masking tape tightly wrapped to form a "cylindrically" shaped set of arbors on which to mount the parts.  Of course the farther up the blank you go, the more tape is required to maintain the same OD all the way up.  This way the parts will slide up from the butt.  When you glue them together make sure to totally encapsulate the tape arbors in epoxy adhesive to prevent deterioration if water gets in.  Don't skimp on epoxy adhesive-the reason your one rod failed is insufficient adhesive.  I like U40 Quik Bond, a gel adhesive which gives you time to adjust the fit of parts, but doesn't run like liquid and doesn't take a long time to set.  Be sure to dry fit all the parts before trying to glue.  You want to ensure that everything fits together before gluing.  

 

You don't really need a drying setup for the guide wraps with wrap epoxy , either.  Apply the epoxy sparingly.  If it drips off you're using too much.  Mount it level and rotate the rod by hand every 10 minutes or so for a couple hours and it will be fine. If you need a second coat, do the same thing again.  The room temp should be about 70 or higher.  

Yup, i figured there wasn't much expoxy used to hold the seat down. Its a old castaway rod thats not made anymore. I reached out to the company and they put me in touch with the person who built there rods (this was back in 2018) , needless to say he was very admitted it was my fault the the seat came undone, after that i went on YouTube and started reading forms on and off. Ill definitely look into U40 Quik Bond and dry fit everything. Im keeping notes in my phone and a notebook and plan on taking pictures and videos of everything. 

[MickD]

If the only thing wrong with the Castaway is a loose seat or grip, that might be fixed by drilling small holes and injecting epoxyl adhesive.  It often works.  In this case a liquid form of epoxy adhesive would be used, not quik bond or other gel types.