Hello all, I just received the first 2, 7'6" telescoping flippinn' stick blanks I have ever ordered. Upon opening the tube I found the blanks had been shipped in the full extended state and that one of the blanks is STUCK! and will not collapse as supposed to. What can I do to get this telescoping blank un-stuck? I have ran hot water over the handle section to try to get it to expand and release to no avail. Please, any and all help will be appreciated. There is probably a simple solution to this so pardon my ignorance. These will be my 4th and 5th rods so I have a lot to learn yet.

Expanding it only makes the fit tighter. Try cold, not heat. Cold water or ice cubes banded around the joint should do the trick.

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First thing I'd try would be putting a hand on each piece close together and twist while exerting down pressure, as soon as it's moved a little bit it's done due to the blank's taper. Second put it vertical, double a towel on the floor, put your hands about 18 inches above the ferrule, raise the blank as far as you can and strike the towel with the blank in a straight motion. The bottom piece on the blanks I've done are pretty heavy duty and I've had no problems with breakage. Good luck.

Spencer

I take two hand sized pieces of that rubberized toolbox liner sold in rolls and with a piece in each hand gently twist the area just above and below the split as you close it

Thanks guys, I finally got it using a combination of all 3 suggestions plus tapping at the union of the 2 peices with my plastic burnishing tool.