After running the grip on a lathe to form it is there any sealer or further preperation that should take place before putting them on the blank?
It was a pleasure to meet some of the people here on this board in Charlette.

The last step I do (after 400 grit emery cloth) is "polish" it with a dryer sheet (same stuff you toss in with clothes). At medium speed the cloth will remove all excess fine hypalon "dust" and make the grip silvery - yes, the perfume will dissipate completely after a few hours.

Hi Ken,

Will the dryer sheet work ok on EVA foam?

Thanks

Hank
On The Rocks Fishing
Wells, ME.

I do the same as Ken does...but with a piece of old denim/jeans. From what I can tell with teh denim, it acts as a "buffer". Gives the grip a nice soft touch and that silvery sheen Ken is talking about.

Hank,
Yes , works as "final polish" on hypalon, EVA, cork, wood. On cork you probably want to test a piece or two as it darkens the cork slightly - to me it looks "richer" but some people like the "bright white" look. If you're working with inlays you (especially light colors inlayed in black) you ought to turn the sheet or use a new one for the transition from the black to the light colors to avoid any transfer of the black "dust". Other than those stipulations it works very well.

I showed a coule of folks at the show with a "hands on" the difference in finish - it really is pretty impressive. And the chemicals that leech out of the dryer sheets that I use (el-chapos "Kirkland brand" from Costco) are not silicone based so there's no worry there either

Ken & Billy

Thanks for the info

Hank
On The Rocks Fishing
Wells, ME.

Ken,
I learn something new every day. You clever dog where the heck did you come up with that? I am going to go out into the shop and try it right now.

Emory -
It was "revelation" I was trying to get a glossy look on an impregnated piece of rosewood handle. I went to bed to "sleep on it". Just before I went upstairs I was thinking about different buffing compounds and how buffing is done against a buffing wheel - but the handle was already installed on the rod. So I was thinking about transferring jeweller's rouge to a soft buffing cloth and doing the polish while it was on the rod (rotate the piece rather than buff against a wheel). Hmm rotation is the key and compound is the issue. I tossed some clothes into the dryer as a last step before meandering upstairs. Laid down and "poof!" hmmmm " why not use the compounds on the dryer sheet?". At speed they release from the sheet, the sheets are soft by nature and I can toss them away when done and not have to continually tear up old undershirts (or denim jeans)... So I tried it on the rosewood and got excellent results. From there it was intuitive "if it worked on wood - why not EVA/ Hypalon? As I said the only drawback is on cork - as some people prefer the whiter look (until the first fishing trip and clam snot/scales).

I can see that I am going to have to start treating you with more respect.

I was wondering about the softner sheets but didnt know what effect it would have on the hypalon. I also didnt think about the jeans either, guess I wanted to be safe right now before I tried anything, hate messing things up.
Thanks Billy and Ken for your suggestions.

Who would have thunk it ??
I wonder what my $200.00 silk shirt would do to wood, cork eva ?? Hmmmmm

Thanks Ken P.
Like Emory said "learn something new every day"

Bill,
Please post the results of your silk shirt test!! LOL!

Raymond Adams
Eventually, all things merge, and a river runs through it..

Right away Ray, and the ' check is in the mail ' ???

Ken et al.,

I find it interesting that using the anti static drier sheets work wonders on grips. It reminds me when I was working for Dupont and they came to me and ask me could I identify the active ingredints in " Bounce". It is sodium octyl sulfate. A wax like compound that would seal the grip and provide a gloss. I have two reservations about this: 1. How long will it last? 2. Don't even think about trying to "flock" it. (Ken, I doubt I could fix it after your experience of trying to train your dog to fish if you had used that stuff on it..) Billy your idea of using "old jean" might be better.

Ed Smith

Better is a relative term. Try both methods, see which one you like best. There is no abrasives in teh denim, it's teh heat & friction which "buffs" the foam. My son went from 5'5 to 6' in 2 years, I haev plenty of scrap jeans to use, and he wore then ghetto style baggy and big, so I'm not worried about my supply of material, lol/