Hello all, I have just started turning my own handles and have what may be a stupid question. I scrolled through a ton of all of your awesome pics of handles. Obviously the cork/woodhandle is going to have a hole in it for the madrel, how do you guys cover the whole in the last cork area/butt cap. Mudhole has the buttplugs but I think they are too small.

Thanks!

"My biggest fear in life is that when I die, my wife will sell my fishing gear for what I said I paid for it."



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/07/2012 07:08PM by Scott Backholm.

Look at these, plenty of choices.[www.mudhole.com]

thanks Jay, i was kind of wondering if people used purchased butts or made their own, thanks again.

I don't drill the wood butt all the way through negating the need for a plug, the same can be done with rubberized cork butts. Burl Cork and regular cork really make poor butt ends due to chipping, etc. I've also used plugs, made one by hand, or by hole punch when needed.

a plug cutter!!! Eureka! thanks much. I guess I could also turn a tenon in the wood and then add a factory butt cap. Many thanks.

You can also glue the butt cap you like onto the handle
turn to the shape you want
Take any dust left over and mix it with glue and fill the hole when your done with the rod
I do as the last thing in case I need the hole for some thing turning ??
Then sand to shape

Bill - willierods.com

thanks Bill, good advice!

I've used cork stoppers from ACE hardware (in the fasteners section). They come in many sizes, and can be sanded down to fit the hole. Glue them in, and sand to match the shape of the butt.

George Forster
Fort Collins, CO

no kidding. another great tip, thanks.

Scott.

I have been making my handles using individual burl cork rings. I bore the rings to the diameter of the mandrel including the the butt piece of cork.

On that piece of cork, I use a Forstner bit and drill a 3/4" flat hole about 1/8" deep so that the center of it is the same as the bore hole.(concentric)

I complete the handle - gluing, turning, oiling, .etc: on the mandrel, and ream to fit on the on the blank as usual.

After the rod is completed I epoxy a metal button in the Forstner bit hole as a butt cap.

I build mainly bass rods, and found that 3/4" is a good size for the butt cap hole.

Joanne's and other fabric stores have many metal buttons that are flat on the bottom, that are crests, designs, etc. They are rather cheap, and add a touch of class that factory rods don't have.

Regards
Bert Nagy

There are also in an auto parts store like Pep Boys Interior Panel push on black plastic buttons that can be used in the end I put them on a drill and polish the heck out of them

A coin or some thing else glued on the end Many things you can do

Bill - willierods.com

like those ideas a lot. Thanks!

As others have posted, I use a plug cutter to cut a group of plugs of the size needed for the rods being built.
I glue in the plugs, and then use my disk sander with the cross vise attachement to keep the handle square to the sanding disk to flush off the end of the plug with the rod butt cap.

Here is a cross vise mounted to a disk sander that I use when sanding butt caps to insure a perfectly suqure end on the rod with respect to the handle:

[www.rodbuilding.org]


Take care
REW



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/08/2012 04:24PM by roger wilson.

very nice,thanks!

I've found some shotgun shell brass with "Made in USA" stamped on the end. Western tack and saddle shops have conchos of various sizes that are quit decorative. These would be recessed in cork like the button or coin ideas, previously mentioned, covered with casting resin.

Now you are thinking - outside the box

Bill - willierods.com

good stuff! What is the best to attach/seal it?

I was thinking I would just 2 part epoxy ProPaste the button into the indented space made by the forstner bit. Does that make sense? Thanks!