I'm preparing to build and turn my first cork ring grip on my mini lathe. I've read on here and elsewhere about building grips and it seems like most builders favor various epoxies and Titebond. Is there any harm in using regular Elmer's Carpenter Wood Glue? I used to use it a lot for furniture making and it works extremely well in that capacity but I'm curious why I don't read more about it being used for gluing up cork rings. If anyone could let me know if there's a reason why I shouldn't use it I'm all ears.

Thanks, Gene

Titebond is a carpenters glue Titebond 11 is good but it is water resistant , where Titebond 111 is better & "" waterproof "" I think , an yes Elmer's will work , if I get cork
rings an glue them up I want the best glue & ""water proof ""

William Sidney
AK

(((

William Sidney
AK



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 05/17/2018 01:04AM by Bill Sidney.

It will work. I would opt for a waterproof carpenter's glue, however. Elmer's may or may not be waterproof. Consult the label.

Most cork grips don't live underwater so it is possible to get by with a glue that is only water resistant, but my mind rests easier if I have something from the outset that I know isn't going to let go down the road.

..............

Ok gotcha. I figured it was something along those lines. Thanks for the replies Gents - much appreciated.

If you ever lose a rod overboard and cannot retrieve it for a day or two, you'll probably be happy if you used waterproof glue. Don't ask how I know this. Also, I've had rods I've used in Canada that didn't leave the boat for a rainy week. I think waterPROOF is the wise choice.

Not much price difference between Elmers white glue not water proof : and Titebond III - which is waterproof.

A fishing rod normally lasts for a very long time. No real reason not to use Titebond III which is water proof.

Good luck

Eugene,
By the way, when I use cork for a grip and when I use titebond III for glue, I do the following:

I use threaded rod to hold the rings together with a body washer on each and a nut on each end to clamp the rings together.

But, it is much easier to ream one cork ring at a time than an entire grip.

So, I take the blank, and ream out each cork ring to be sized to fit on the particular spot on the blank - where it will eventually be located.

Then, after reaming the grip, I will take a threaded rod, that is of the largest size that will still fit into the smallest hole in the reamed out cork ring.

With this setup - I will then, glue up the rings with a nice even coating of glue on each ring. Then, I put on the body washers and nuts on each end of the threaded rod and tighten the nuts to be snug enough to insure a tight fit between each of the cork rings.

Then, since titebond III is water clean up, I will use a wet cloth to completely wipe off any squeezed out or glue drops from the glued up cork grip.

I will then, let the grip dry for 24 hours and then remove the threaded rod from the inside of the cork ring. There will still be some wet glue on the inside of the grip, so I will use the same threaded rod and use it to scrape the inside sides of the grip to remove any wet glue from the inside of the grip. Then, I will let the grip dry for another 24 hours to insure that the grip is completely dry, with no threaded rod on the inside of the grip.

After the glue has dried, I will do one more pass through the grip with the threaded rod to insure that there is no projecting glue that might scratch the blank when slipping onto the blank for final glue up.

I then take the threaded rod, and use masking tape to build up the size of the threaded rod, so that the threaded rod outside diameter matches the inner diameter of the grip. Remember, the butt end of the grip will be larger than the tip of the grip.

With the threaded rod fitting perfectly on the inside of the reamed out grip, I will then tighten the nuts on each end, slip the mandrel into position on my lathe and shape it to its desired shape.

Remove the shaped up grip and use epoxy glue to glue the finished grip to the rod blank at the correct location.

Good luck

I use TightBond II and usually seal my spey rod (DH rod) grips with a clear coat. But I usually use Burl cork rings and exotic wood end caps for my builds. It seems to still give a good grip and helps when using them in Saltwater. I use cork sealer on standard cork rings. Hope this helps you out..

Thanks for all the info. One last question, for those who use exotic wood in their grips with the cork. Since any hardwood pieces would be much harder than the cork, how do you keep from over-sanding the cork part? I'm guessing you just have to pay extra-close attention to the sections with the hardwood rings.

Sand with a flat surface hard backing for the sandpaper, if not careful the cork will sand deeper quickly.