I just purchased one of Amtak's wood and cork grips. I'm waiting for my lathe chuck to arrive and I may not be quite ready to ruin some good wood making one anyway. I had planned to used this grip on an Amtak Matrix 8', 4 wt blank which is supposed to have an OD of .321. The grip has an ID of .34! Has anyone else encountered this or did I get a defective one? Is there any way I can still use this grip and have a satisfactory result?

Thanks as always

I'm not sure I see any problem here, the grip should fit the blank with very little room to shim. The wind check will cover the space at the front of the grip. If the blank butt OD is .321 and the ID of the grip is .340 you don't have a problem, or am I missing something?

Hi Gerry,

I'm just getting ready to build my first rod soon, so this is what I've heard from other people. I think you should be safe just wrapping some A size thread up the blank to make up the difference in diameter.

Mark

Maybe I've been lucky, but I've never had to shim a blank at all, except for the reel seat. I've always had to ream the grip to fit the blank. As a result, I get a grip with a tapered ID that fits the blank very closely and probably makes the rod more sensitive.

Fortunately, this is the last grip I'll ever have to buy.

You can do a Mark stated . Spiral some size A , or C thread up and down the blank where the grip will sit . The thread will act as a shim under the cork and wood . Don't forget to scuff the blank and rough up the wood before bonding. Have fun , John

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