New on here but I've been reading/searching all day. I've built a couple of fly rods before, but it was back when I was 16, about 5 years ago. I used preformed grips for both of the fly rods. I'm getting ready to start a new fly rod here soon and I want to turn my own fly rod grip. My girlfriend's dad does woodworking and he has a lathe I can use for turning the grip. Now for my questions... I'll be using a mixture of cork, burl cork, craft foam trim rings, and the checkerboard rings from mudhole. With the wood checkerboard rings, will i still be able to turn the whole grip with sandpaper? Also after I have the grip turned, what kind of finish should I apply to the entire handle? I've read some stuff about cork sealers that I assume I could use on most of the grip, but should the 1/2" wood section I'm planning to have need a different finish applied? I'm not particularly looking for the entire handle to be shiny, just want some added protection. Thanks!

to turn a grip on a lathe you will need two things a mandrel and a chuck for the wood lathe. I got a craftsman drill chuck that was about 24 dollars and the mandrel i got was from Lamar tackle about 9 bucks. the chuck fits perfectly into the headstock of the lathe.

I built a grip much like the one you are planning to build. I used 60 grit sand paper to turn the cork and a small gouge and the scraper to turn the wood ring then used 320 grit paper to finish the whole thing. if your lady friends dad has a wood lathe he will have all of the turning tools. I didn't use any sealant on my grip but you could use the cork sealant and a clear coat for the wood.

The one thing that you have to be aware of is that all of the materials sand at very different rates and if you're not very careful, the softer materials will end up lower than the wood. Wrap you sandpaper around a piece of wood and make a sanding "block" to ensure a smooth, even result

Mike (Southgate, MI)
If I don't want to, I don't have to and nobody can make me (except my wife) cuz I'm RETIRED!!

As noted above, the materials you mentioned sand a different rates, so you need to reduce the diameter of the wood checkerboard rings while not reducing the cork too quickly or too far. I have found the a wood rasp works very well on the wood and I actually turn the wood down to very close to the ultimate diameter before I glue the grip together for the final turning. The comment about using a "block" type device is very sound as using just sandpaper will round down off the wood and lower the cork too much. Be careful so that when your done you have the nice piece your planning.

Phishin Phool

Here's something we developed along the way - we make a small sandpaper dowel by gluing a very narrow strip of sandpaper to a length of it. We sand only the piece of wood or cork insert we're after. A trick is to turn the sanding strip slightly at an angle to the trim ring, making sure to touch only the trim ring. This is just a variation of the sanding block approach. We get the various pieces very close in diameter to each other - it takes a bit of patience and a soft touch, but it's worth it.

We also use 1/2"-wide strips of paper held at about a thirty-degree angle to the whole assembly to periodically smooth the whole thing by moving it gently along the entire length of the grip.

- hope that helps.

Uncle Russ
Calico Creek Rods

Jon, I turn down handles like you are building all the time….It is pretty straight forward. Use sand paper 2 inches or wider and turn the handle down at 1500 RPM or a little faster and you will not have a problem. I turn handles down with Ivory, Buffalo Horn and Hard Wood and I never have a problem. Also when you are using your finer grit papers, you can slow it down if you like. You can leave the cork untreated if you like, I have handles that were made in early 1990’s and they are fine. But you can put polish or CA on the handle and wood too…….In my gallery you can see the difference between the CA treated grips and the ones where the cork was untreated.

Good Luck

Terry

you have received good advice. you are about to embark on a whole new adventure-Turning. it is a whole world unto itself and you may soon be turning pens, game calls, pepper mills, reel seats, etc. when you sand make sure you have something that spans the differing materials and it will help to keep them even. those checkerboards are pretty cool and make great handle accents. good luck with your project

Thank you to everyone that responded. Just the kind of information I was looking for, this place has such a wealth of fantastic information, I love it.

Jon