Building a rail rod and I am looking for a source for rubber cork front grips. I thought of glueing rubber rings together but I am not sure how to handle the material. It is not soft like cork and I'm not sure what type of glue to use with the rubber material. Dose the cork rubber ream the same as cork? I have also thought of using cold shrink tube over regular cork, but I have been told that the end product is not that appealing in appearance. I am also looking for a recommendation on the front grip length?

Thank You

Use epoxy to glue the rings together (not wrap epoxy), Rod Bond is a good one. It reams a little slower then cork.

Dan,
we have a rail rod grip available it's not listed on the site but if you give me a call I can get one for you.

Regards,

Todd
866-790-7637 x-112

Regards,
Todd Vivian
Mud Hole Custom Tackle

todd@mudhole.com

dan,
a reamed cedar grip can take the punishment.
You can make your own on a lathe.
Cedar lasts well , better than rubbe/eva cork etc if you actually rest rod on the rail while cranking fish in.
Grip is good, does not slip with slime on hands but if you are concerned you can cover with a shrink tubing.
I have also used Ozite exterior carpeting cut into a long strip and wrapped like you would leather.
Grips well with wet hands; gets funky smell but it work very well.

I would suggest that you build up the blank with cork tape and cover it with cold shrink. You can cap each end with what ever you like but you don't want a hard slippery grip.

Dan Unhide your Email Address

what is a rail rod??

Email is unhidden. I welcome your email.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/12/2014 09:19PM by Dan Keck.

Mike, a Rail Rod is a fishing rod used to catch big tuna by placing the front grips on on the rail of the boat. No harness or chair used to fight the fish. You must follow the fish around the boat, so the front grip will take a beating. There are good videos on YouTube. Search cow tuna and rail rods. I would send you a link, but I don't know how to do that yet on this forum.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/12/2014 09:31PM by Dan Keck.

Watched a Show on NBC SPORTS last nite Larry Dahlburg Making a Rail rod Sponsered by Mudhole.com. He used Rubberized cork i Believe

Here is my 2 cents on rail rods. I build them and use them. I looked at rubberized cork grips as well as what Mudhole has and had it in my hands and I didn't use it, in my opinion they are just not tough enough for multiple trips as well as rubberized cork rings. In this case tougher is better but not necessarily harder. I use a 18" hypalon foregrip and use a 18" piece of cold shrink. I turn on my Jet lathe the rod once the grips are in place and inlay into the hypalon. Once I have the cold shrink in place I run fine sandpaper over it to remove the lettering on the coldshrink and this gives a sticky and a little texture to the feeling to it. Jim is right you do not want a hard slippery grip it has to stay where you put it on the rail or that tuna will pull you everywhere because you will not have control of the rod on the rail. I have 5 trips of 15 days on these rods around 10 cows and a super cow and the cold shrink only shows a little wear and will be good for this year's 15 day trip as well and on many more. When I do need to replace the foregrip I can just slice through the cold shrink and replace it without destroying anything on the rod.

Thad
Dutchman's Creek Tackle