Recently i've discovered a new mouse trap for stubborn EVA applications. For years I've been using Toulene , which smells up the shop and is expensive , not to mention the lost brain cells. Reamers make such a mess on the shop floor. and of course i'll clean it up later, at least thats what I tell the boss (wife) . I ran out of the stuff not to long ago and decided to try regular old isobutal alcohol, the cheap stuff. It worked like a charm. Just pour a little in the grip ,shake it up,so that it wets the id walls , run it down the blank over the epoxy . I have had zero problems with this application process. Just wanted to share..

Scary that people kill themselves installing foam. You could mix the alcohol with the epoxy if usin grod bond or other paste epoxies, it doe make it a bit slicker.

You only get stubborn EVA when you try to stretch it a little too much. It helps if the EVA is just a bit smaller than the diameter of the upper end of its final location.

Since using the little trick outlined by Tom a while back I've had no issues with getting EVA on to blanks. I've done it without boiling, heating or alcohol. Apply the epoxy adhesive higher up the blank, where the grip sits loose. Spin the grip to coat the inner surface with epoxy, then as you slide it down, pinch the top of the grip between thumb and forefinger (make the OK sign). Push down and the grip slides right on, on a thin cushion of air. The epoxy stays put in the grip instead of being squeegeed out. Once in place release your grip and the EVA contracts, squeezing out the cushion of air and spreading the epoxy uniformly inside. Some epoxy will be squeegeed down the blank: clean this up with the alcohol. Stretch you grip slightly to regain its original length (it will have been compressed slightly), and voila!



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/18/2008 01:22AM by Ted Morgan.

I still manage to get epoxy everywhere... I can never seem to create that airtight gap with the OK sign!

Oh, there'll still be epoxy on the blank: it's not totally airtight. It does, however, hold enough to stretch the grip a bit, and slide easily. Shoulda seen me the other night: did 3 split grips, dropped the last one and it landed on my leg. Despite liberal wipes with metho I still was picking epoxy off my leg hair today! Also, no matter how well you clean up, there'll be a little squeezeout that nails you the very next time you touch the rod to inspect alignment, etc. Usually after you've cleaned your hands and the exposed part of the blank.

Chris Beverley Wrote:
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> I still manage to get epoxy everywhere... I can
> never seem to create that airtight gap with the OK
> sign!


Thats why I do mine out side. I'm to lazy to clean up the squeeze out off of everything around my work area..........LOL

Good call Bill. I still manage to get it all over myself outside too. God sometimes 1 piece rods can be a pain! Success with the leg hair epoxy, 2 days later, showers, picking and scratching!