I just got a rod back from a friend I built him last year - rod has seen 2 years of solid use on party boats. I finished the cork grips sanding to 400 grit, and put a coat of U-40 Cork Sealer on there. It was perfectly smooth when he got the rod.

He gave it back becuse a guide got mangled, but teh cork was very bumpy and no longer even. IT seems like some rings which had "grain" in them swelled up or shrnk along the grain, and the entire grip seems like it's bumpylumpy - I dont know how to explain it, almost like the cork is rotting - although it is still nice and cork colored, not stained one bit - it looks like the Cork Sealer did it's job to me.

I've seen this before on other cork grips, none of my rods are like that, but I clean them with a toothbrush after each use & dont' use them a tenth of what he uses his. He said he cleaned his more than he normally does, which I know he did - but there are still scales which will not come off the grip unless I sand or "pick" them off (tehre are scales on teh guides wraps which seem like they were expoxied onto thte rod, they will NOT come off).

I'm not looking for a solution as to what to do now, but why this happened, and how to prevent this going foward. IT seems like the Cork Seal did it's job, is it cheap cork? Is it eh SW environment? Rod not cleaned properly? I make this guy a rod or 2 per year, and if it's a maintenance issue, that's great, as I'll use EVA,. If it's a function of cork being a natural material and this happens ovre time, I will make him a rod with Andy's non-natural cork and see what it looks like after 2 years.

Andy's cork will stay as it is - it's sort of similar to stabilized wood. Natural cork is a very unique material but like wood, it moves and changes when exposed to moisture and various temperatures.

I've done restoration work on many very old rods and the cork is very nearly always as you mention - lumpy and bumpy although otherwise in great shape. However, I've corrected the problem by sanding the cork smooth again and on the next go around, the cork doesn't seem to ever get as lumpy and bumpy as it did on the first go around. This has made me wonder if "pre-weathering" cork and then turning and shaping it wouldn't be a better idea. If you take lumber and allow it to dry, during which time it may warp and check, and then you plane it, you'll have something that tends to stay straight and smooth from now on, unless you really expose it to extremes in moisture and temperature. If you just use it as is, whatever you make with it will tend to warp, split, crack, etc. To some extent, cork may be similar.

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First thing that comes to mind is a better sealer. What about a minwax wood sealer in a thin coat, or wet heavy coat, then taking excess off after it soaks in a little ??Just a guess here but it sounds like water.

I read the responses, went back and checed the rod out again - the foregrip, which is constantly held is by far worse thean the butt grip. Maybe the cork compressed from him holding it. I didn't use top quality rings, I used regular "extra select" which had quite a few pits in them and wasn't eth best quality - so it would make sense if there aer pis underneath the surface of the grip that squeezing the cork could compress it.

I'm glad to hear resanding will semi-prevent this from happening in teh future.

Bill, I do not like how the other sealers look, I haven't felt a grip which has been built up with Tru-Oil or other sealants, and if the cork is in fact compressing, I do not think these would help.

Andy's cork I figured would be a better alternative - the weigh tis a factor, but I've been thinking about reaming out FC arbors and reamig the cork to fit over that. When you think about it, out of a 1 1/4" ring, you only neeed about 1/128" because that is all that is shown on teh surface, if that. Drilling the middle out and replacing with the arbor would save a ton on weight, I suspect, and wouldn't cost much at all. Something for me to think about.

It would be more work, but would result in a very nice grip. I've done that with burl cork on a few rods and from all appearances, you'd never know it was sleeved.

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I have not seen anything like you mentioned except on cork grips that were over 20 years old. I'm a bit puzzled about how this showed up on a rod that is only a year or two old.

I have several rods a few years old that I fish with regularly, i've put a thin coat of Birchwood Casey "Tru-oil" on the cork. The cork still looks like new, It will make the cork a little darker looking but it really seals all the little nooks and crannies in the cork better then standard cork seal. It holds up quite well in a salt water environment. But as always that's just the way I finish my cork.

I agree with Bill - Birchwood Casey Tru-Oil definitely works well on cork. I usually put on 12-15 coats. After each coat is dry, the Tru-Oil is taken down with fine steel wool, 400 sandpaper & very fine steel wool between coats 'til desired thickness results. It takes a little time but is well worth the effort IMO.

Stan

And we can get Andy's cork from?

Thanking you in advance.

Lamar Manufacturing - link is to the left.

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