Guys I am looking at a Rainshadow RX8 XSB822.5-TC for my dad he wants something very sensitive so I hope that will do it but here is the question, it has a .392 butt and the cork grip that he wants has a .415 I.D. whats yalls take on that ? Will I have to much slack on the top end of the grip or will the Rod bond be able to take up that much slack I don't have the blank yet but I can't imagine that blank having enough tapper to cause a problem if I just put lots of rod bond and and slide the cork grip on should be less than a .100" of slack up top I think which means .050" around the blank.. What do yall think. Going to call Batson and get the O.D. 9.75" up the blank to know exactly.

Also whats yalls take on the set up the blank mentioned above 9.75 cork grip, Fuji ACS seat no fore grip and 3 double foot followed by 6 fly guides all AM Tak Titan Ring locks in a concept layout.

Should be a nice rod I hope any comments welcomed

Do not use just Rod Bond! Shim with masking tape or dry wall screen to close up almost all of the gap, the apply the epoxy.

If the gap will need to be filled what about putting a layer of epoxy on the blank and then sanding it down to .400 and then rod bonding to the epoxy I can't see where putting tape or any other kind of filler is better than epoxy let me know what yall think. What is the recommended clearance between a blank and grip when they are being fitted together?

thanks for the quick answer Phil.

Justin,
Epoxy works best when the surfaces to be glued are a snug fit. It's not really meant to fill big gaps, and epoxy weighs a TON (well, maybe not quite, but it is very heavy, and weight is the enemy of sensitivity). If you have a big gap to fill, consider using a different grip, or fill the space with arbors made of fiberglass drywall mesh. You may be able to just do a few thread wraps to fill the gap by the butt end.
I think that the contours of the ACS are uncomfortable, unless you smooth them out a little bit. Just my opinion.
George

I think we are all in agreement. Rod Bond is a great bonding agent. It is not meant for filling in gaps. A good grip fit is one that fits snug. The 2 most preferred methods have been mentioned. #1 use thread, #2 is tape. Another thing is if you try to fill a gap with any bonding agent, that material will never fill all the gaps. What happens is when the cork is used and damp and you squeeze it the cork well feel soft and spongy.

Good Wraps Bob

The recommended clearance between grip and blank is 0.00"

If you have a gap, then you will need to shim it. Just don't try to build up the blank with epoxy and sand it down. I'd order a properly sized grip before I did that. Shims work fine.

The advise you received in this thread is correct. Don't try to over-engineer things.

Justin,
One of the big issues with just using epoxy to fill gaps, is that it is very difficult to keep everything equally spaced.
i.e. if you have a large gap, it is quite likely that there will be a bunch of epoxy on one side and very little on the other, resulting in a handle that is not properly centered.

A very easy and simple thing to do, is to simply take masking tape of a nominal width. Some folks use 1/4 inch wide, some 1/2 inch wide, some 3/4 or even inch wide tape. Then, leave about 1/8th inch gaps between the layers of wraps.
When you glue up the reel seat, be sure to fully pack the gaps with epoxy. This filling with epoxy gives a very good bond, but because the relative amount of epoxy is small, there is little weight gain.
The masking tape keeps the reel seat centered and perfectly aligned.
Very simple, easy, but strong and light.

--
The other option is to use a poly arbor to fill the gap. If the gap is quite thin, it is difficult to ream the poly arbor thin enough to give a good fit to the blank. However, if you can obtain a poly arbor for the reel seat and then ream it to fit the blank, you will have the best of both worlds. The poly arbors are really the ticket to give you a good lightweight filler that gives a good bond of blank to arbor, to reel seat. Little weight gain with maximum sensitivity.

Take care
Roger

The ACS seat is meant to be used without an arbor. Get one that is slightly too small and ream to fit the blank.
Justin, you mention using a concept layout, which is for spinning rods, but it sounds like you're building a casting rod.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/18/2010 01:25AM by George Forster.

The best option is to use a different piece of cork.

But, if you can't, use thread as your shim. It's cheap, and it's way better than tape. Put a layer of D thread, then coat with finish epoxy. If that doesn't shim it enough, or doesn't shim it in the right spots, put more thread on, then more finish. When the fit is quite snug, then use rod bond to put the grip on.

Again, using a shim like this is not the way to attain better sensitivity, but it'll hold well.

if you want to keep it light, glue in reel seat arbors then ream to fit snugly. less rod bond and a lighter grip.

Bill - willierods.com

Well guys I fixed the problem I'm going to just get the RX8+ blank thats like the one I was thinking and it has a butt size big enough for the grip. Only going to make things better since it is even a more sensitive blank just like $35 more.

However I don't like the ideas of using tape as arbors for anything. I know that the reel seat I'm looking at already has a built in arbor system if it didn't I would use graphite arbors tape seems like a 1950's method to me. If I did have to shim the handle I would use thread and finish it that seems like the best idea that yall have told me.

Thanks for the help

As for the guide placement I have two rods that are very close in action and length so I will use them as templates for guide placement.

If you need a reelseat Arbor, I would use dry wall sticky tap and Rod Bond I have never had one fail in 15 years. Masking Tap well dry out and does not give blank to reelseat adhesion

Good Wraps Bob