I was asked this ?, "on a reel seat, does it really need arbors or not?, cause, if the reel seat fits really good like snug, would it be alright to just glue it on that way?" I did not know what to answer, so if anyone knows if he can just glue the reel seat without the arbors, or if he would need to use arbors, please let me know, i would not want his reel seat to come unglued. lol! but he is really interested in rod building, I told him to subscribe to RodBuilders magazine, I hope so, cause I;m gonna do the same, it will help answer alot of ?'s, thank you!

If it is snug (almost need to wiggle it into place) then there should be no need for an arbor

if it fits nice and snug - no you don't need them. They are used to take up any space between the seat and the blank.

I usually give the blank and the inside of the seat a little scoff to help adhesion. If you do and it gets a little loose you could wrap thread around the blank if needed. In large coils so the glue adheres to the blank.

Bill - willierods.com

I.M.O. The only reason to use arbors is when the reel seat doesn't fit the blank.

Creating a "water break” surface; will provide the best adhesion between blanks and handles.

Here is an article Written by Mr. O’Quinn who just may be the leading authority on working with epoxies.
[www.rodbuilding.org]

If the seat fits snugly...no arbors.

If the seat fits with just a bit of wiggle...mesh drywall tape.

If the seat has a substantial amount of wiggle...arbors.



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Better to have and not need than to need and not have.

another way to take up a "little wiggle" is with thread.

George Forster
Fort Collins, CO