I am building a Surf Rod using EVA material for the grips. Any segestions on cutting and shaping EVA?

Thanks in advance.

Jim Gerst

If I am using square turning stock,I will start by "rounding" off the hard edges with a knife. Cutting is then done with a small hobby saw. I don't worry if the edges are at a perfect right angle at this point because I typically cut them a little longer than my desired finished length. This allows for any shrinkage in length due to compression of the EVA. Then I sand to nearly the final shape I am after. I say nearly, because most final sanding is done on the blank once the grip is securely epoxied to the blank. The final sanding I do sometimes requires the seat mounted to get the "fit" that may be required. While its a step by step thing that may take longer,I find it to work very well for me. Any decent commercially made power wrapper should be adequate for shaping EVA grips. If you do not have one,many of the Sponsor vendors listed to the left will carry the Flexcoat cork lathe setup. This may prove to be more than adequate for your needs.By using scrap blank sections or even wood doweling material,you have a handy set of turning mandrels at little or no cost. I would advise against using too much pressure on your sanding material as it may bend the mandrel,thus giving you an "out of round" grip. Just make sure that the turning mandrel is leveled.There is an excellent article in the latest Rodmaker magazine on making one of these centering tools yourself.
Best wishes
Chuck

As Tom suggests in Rodmaker if you have the grip on a mandrel and spinning use D thread but dont wrap it around your fingers to cut the material.This gives a straight cut.

Freddwhy (Rapt-Ryte)