Sorry I guess I should have said that the sticky ferrules are on a bamboo rod. sorry. how do i make them go together and come apart a little better?
Thank you

you might try using a metal polish to very carefully polish the male ferrul till it fits and pops on separation.
before you do that, take a piece of 0000 steel wool and roll it into a piece that will fit into the female ferrul and twist it around in there to make sure there is no gunk or corrosion in there. after doing this and blowing it out well see how the fit is. it may solve the problem. at one time that ferrul fit(unless its a new ferrul) so, it got tight later which usually is due to dirt building up in the female side.

Andy,

Here's what I have done for years with my two bamboo rods. The stickiness is generally from two sources: old lubricant or corrosion. Remove the first with an evaporative solvent, e.g., denatured alcohol, making sure that you don't get any on the rod itself. (Do not use anything that doesn't evaporate completely, e.g., WD-40) Remove the second using a gentle metal polish. It's important to polish both the male and female portions (I use a Q-tip on the latter). It make take several tries to remove the old corrsion, but it really makes a difference. Once the sections slide together and come apart smoothly, all you have to do is keep the ferrule clean. Never use any lubricant, including the oil from the side of your nose. Metal ferrules don't require any lubricant, they work by friction.

Jim

Andy,

I would suggest the U40 Ferrule Lube to you before you polish it with a steel wool.

It may be just what you need.


Good wrapping/fishing.

I would not use steel wool on the ferrules! Even 0000 grade is too abrasive and will scratch the metal, creating a surface to catch dirt and trap corrosion. Stay with the polish! I don't know about the U-40 product specifically, but I have never found the need for any lubricant for 35 years on my bamboo rods' ferrules. IMHO, all they do is collect dirt; the ferrule should be 100% dry for the best results.

Jim

Clean the ferrules good with solvents or polish as described above and stay away from oils, including skin oils from the side of your nose. I know...my Dad told me to use the nose oil as a lubricant too when I was a kid (this was the only oil we could afford back then), but it attracts dirt and causes the sticky problem.

If you must try some sort of lubricant, rub the male end of the ferrule with dry hand soap. Save the small pieces that you were going to throw away from the shower. Let them dry good and rub lightly on the ferrule end. This will improve things. You may need to assemble and disassemble the rod a few times to make sure both ferrule parts are covered well with the soap film. You will be surprised at how well the ferrules work with the addition of a little dry soap film.

I carry a small piece of soap in my fishing vest now for touch-ups if needed.

Joe Douglas

I notice on my hex that the ferrules seat a lot deeper with the twist technique. But I don't really know if real bamboo is up to this.

I use 0000 steel wool and then clean with denatured alcohol. OOOO steel wool will not remove anything but dirt and grease. Do not apply any lube to ferrules. I bet if you clean with denatured alcohol both male and female they will slide together.

Thanks Dave

Another ferrule problem with bamboo rods , often the male ferrule has a hairline crack in it.. check and see if that is the case with your rod. Often times the crack is so slight you miss it when you look at the ferrules.. Some of the older makers of bamboo rods are known for having ferrules split.

Tight lines,
Art