Times have changed. Many years ago I did three masking tape arbors, used Resco epoxy, and they held up fine.

Fast forward forty years and I discovered you guys. Now I'm all concerned about weight and sensitivity. I'm going with full length graphite arbors. I'm starting work on the heavier outfits in my arsenal and last build had aluminum gimbal, seat, and smooth butt.

I decided to use quick bond for the arbors and some of them were reamed so much I had very little wall thickness left. One part of me feels silly for asking. Even if the line was fouled on the tip, and I only held onto the gimbal, I'm only looking for (under) 100#'s shear out of the poly arbor. Still a part of me wonders if the mechanical locking I'd get by splitting the arbor into a few parts and having some epoxy fill the gap between blank and reel seat would be better. Also, do you think one is giving up much strength by using a fast setting epoxy. I never really trusted a 5 minute for anything critical in industry/work.

Put my mind at ease guys. A beer isn't cutting it and doubt is sneaking in. Only glued up one and have three more to go cuz parts are on backorder so I have time to worry.

Russ in Hollywood, FL.

Put it this way...I've torn down broken rods with poly arbors quite a few times to save custom expensive reel seats for re-use/build replacement. I was blown away at how easy it was to remove and save the reel seats when using full length poly foam arbors. Blown away. Getting the reel seats off the rods took very very little effort. Scary easy actually. Now the total opposite is true when using a roll of fiberglass drywall material, you not only cant save the reel seat but you cant ever get it off without destroying it.

The poly foam is not flexible, and it will turn to powder when "worked" very easily. I've used many, and they worry me too!

5min rod building epoxy is super strong and it will hold and hold well. I do not think it is as flexible as slower curing epoxy's, but that's only a guess on my part.

Sorry, I didn't help any! :-)

DR

Dang Duane, just when I think I'm getting the skinny. Them titanium guides break and them foam arbors turn to dust.

I need a double makers mark please.

Russ in Hollywood, FL.

Unless you're using a gap-filling epoxy, which you're not, there is no strength gained by filling voids between arbors with epoxy. All that does is add weight.

You'll be fine, put your mind at ease. Removing something and actually having that something fail while it's still in place are two different things.

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Interesting, Tom. So if I'm using regular Rod Bond, the only purpose of the epoxy is to attach the actual arbor(or dry wall tape) to the blank and reel seat? So I don't need epoxy between my arbors? This would save considerable weight on ultra light rods and smaller fly rods! Do full length arbors over any advantages?

Just to be clear, I wasn't filling the gaps between voids/arbors, just that typically one would end up with some epoxy going from reel seat to blank around the arbor. To my line of reasoning this created a "mechanical lock"....rather than just a glue bond....and yes I understand the difference between glue and epoxy.

Comments do have me thinking about drywall mesh and how to fit/lay them up. If I wrap them impregnated with epoxy they have to be a little larger than a dry fit lay up. My mind starts thinking about laminating (epoxy) resins and fibergalss cloth strips. As y'all can tell I tend to getting carried away.

I'll be more coherent tomorrow...I promise.

Russ in Hollywood, FL.

The bond is between close fitting mating surfaces. You don't need any epoxy between the arbors.

I don't use full length arbors on most rods, but due to the very light weight of modern foam type arbors, using a full length arbor isn't really going to add much weight and it increases the surfaces involved in the mating process, although on most rods this isn't necessary. If you find it easier, just use the full length arbor, shoot for a snug fit, and rely on the epoxy to do what it does.

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The reason a seat is easy to remove with a foam arbor is because of the ease it can be worked with tools. Try putting a pair of pliers to it and twisting and you will mangle it beyond use. If it was reamed really thin it will be even stronger.

Freddwhy (Rapt-Ryte)

I use the FC arbors on Gimbals for Tuna rods. A few of the rods broke and I had to remove the gimbal to reuse it - after seeing how much heat and how hard it was to pop the gimbal off I stopped worrying abotu the supposed lack of strength of the arbors. Like DR I have seen how easy they are to pop off from a broken reel seat - again broken rods I cut the seat in half lengthwise to see how strong the bond wa, and I as able to stick a screwdrive rin and pop the arbor off the seat. That's not what happens when you fish though.

Russell, just for grins and curiosity sake, on one surf style 11 ft rod i used drywall tape and then gorilla glue. Its a foaming polyurethane. When dry(it need to turn or you get foam on one side building up) i sanded it down to fit the size 20 reel seat .
Seemed stronger to me but the twin of it i built for my son using FC arbors weighs in about the same and has held up just as well so i will not be doing it again. That is catching bull reds , spinner sharks, rays etc.
Plus sanding down gorilla glue and drywall tape is a nasty job.

Okay, I'm feeling better now. I could see how splitting a reel seat and finding it easier to pop apart might lead to the wrong conclusion. Now if one can grab a reel seat with pliers alone, and twist it right off, that is a different matter.

Lack of proper tools has me using longer arbors to help align parts. Between hand reaming with a rat tail file, and block sanding to fit, I'm not as perfect as I was with masking tape. If I'm doing something like a carbon tube and aero seat I only use a few short ones. Doing a longer slick butt and wanting to make sure gimbal and reel seat line up perfect I find it easier to go closer to full length....as in a lot of 2-3" long arbors.

Russ in Hollywood, FL.

Russell,
If you have circular files, chuck them in a variable speed drill to ream.
Then, if you are reaming arbors, wear a cloth glove on the hand that is holding the arbor. As you use the file - with the drill spinning the drill in reverse ream the arbor. As you ream it, let the arbor slip from time to time. this allows the arbor to be reamed from all sides with the file and will tend to keep the hole well centered in the arbor. The purpose of the cloth glove is to keep a good grip on the arbor, but it can slip when needed and not burn your fingers from the slipping friction.

If you have an assortment of files from small to large diameter, you can do a quick job of reaming and never have to worry about replacing anything. The files can ream many many grips and or arbors with out replacing them.

Be safe
Roger

If you build many rods I'd suggest investing in or making a set of the Flex Coat pilot bit borers. These allow you to centerbore an arbor to the correct size (or just barely undersized) in about 5 seconds.

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