I am looking for suggestions on cord or twine for cord wrapped rod handles on light duty surf and boat rods. In the Rodmaker magazine article the author recommended a softer type cord for comfort. It worked well for me on freshwater rods which is what he was writing about but now with customers wanting heavier purpose rods used in harsher conditions I would like to have something firmer or longer wearing.

Does anyone here have any specific recs for cord type? Even the exact brand and size would be helpful. I want these handles to be on the money on the first go around. Thanks for any suggestions on cord you have tried and found to work well.

KEn, I havent' used any cordmyself, but I do know @#$%& has a bunch of it in various colors. The other cord people talk about is Seiners Twine. I'm going to be making a rail rod for someoneusing that as several people have recommended it for durability and comfort. THey are really comf, although at first glance they do not look it.

Hi Ken,

I am a fan of seine twine myself and most of my saltwater rods use it, particularly the longer rods. I know there are different types and I am not familiar with what's offered these days but I favor the treated/coated twine. It's black and will hold the color well and is incredibly durable. I still fish with rods that were built more then 25 years ago, of course I upgraded/updated the guides to American Tackle. Although it's not soft, it requires no treatment such as color preserver etc. Any added coating will add weight and can roughen the surface. If a cotton cord is used without a coating then it tends to hold water. It's also available in different diameters that might apply better to each specific size of rod and reduce weight a bit.

Best Regards,

Darrin Heim
American Tackle Company

the stuff from acid rod works great. Ive used it on four rods now. On two of my jig sticks I have spiralled three strands of the cord with a 1/2" wide strip of 1/16" cork tape. I like that feel the best and it looks great.
Steven

I use Tarred Seiners Twine for handles and foregrips; #60 for thicker blanks and #72 for the thinner ones. I have used a lot of different material to wrap grips over the years but have pretty well settled on this twine.

If you want colors other than basic black; look for another material. I have used nylon net cord with a varnish finish with some success. It is not as durable as Seiners Twine for foregrips used in combat rail fishing.

I wrap it just like a guide; starting and finishing the same. Get a stout pull through loop; you'll need it.

I wrap it in the same direction as the hand grasps and apply no finish whatsoever. It won't turn your hands black.

It is a very durable and attractive material. If you want to remove it for some reason, it's easy to remove.

You must use force(gloves recommended) when wrapping. You can't pull it too tight.

BTW; a simple Turkshead Knot at the ends of the wraps look pretty cool.

I hope this helps. C2

you can go to any outdoor type store(one that carries climbing gear). they will have different types of cords in different colors and sizes.

I have found quite a number of different cord sizes and colors at Hobby Lobby stores. Micheals stores probably have them as well. They have nylon cords that seem to be the perfect sizes and colors for rod handles.
Hope this helps

Dave

I have no heartburn with using Nylon cord with a finish, I'm not locked into Tarred Seiners Twine by any means. It's more durable for combat rail fishing applications.

I think that the Seiners Twine is nylon treated with tar. You could probably pass nylon through some kind of finish then wrap. It would probably be messy, so I would just apply finish after the wrap is completed.

I would say to get whatever size Nylon that you need and start wrapping.

I've had gaff, hook disgorger, rods and implement handles that have been wrapped for several years. They have faded due to sunlight exposure, but are still doing a good job.

I have wrapped with cotton which absorbs water, gets soggy and absorbs odors big time. It gets softer with age. C2

Try Home Depot and the like.

I have also used white nylon and after wrapping, tinted finish and coated. Works well.

Bill - willierods.com

Look at Port Supply/West Marine. They carry some pretty fancy lines for sailing/dinghy use. The ones that I have used were finish lines made by New England Rope. Wrapped the butt of a sturgeon rod with a 4 mm spectra composite line. Soft, tuff, looks great. I wanted something with a little more body than traditional cord to make the dia. larger. FYI the cord offered by @#$%& (is quite nice) is about 2.2mm - wraps tight easily, but not buch body. Also wrapped the handle of my net (to keep from scratching the boat) with 2 colors of 3mm NER finish line - feels great, and appears to be quite durable. Dyneema is also available - soft and repels water, but I have not used it yet. Sorry to tell you this though - they are spendy compared to what has already been mentioned. My last spool was $20 for 75', and you will be really surprised how much you actually use. But, is the buyer willing to take up the cost?