I've been asked to repair an old Fenwick glass fly rod made in 1966-67. On one of the sections, the top male end is missing the black rubber filler cap or plug?. In the past with graphite rods I have simply used Rod Bond to fill the ferrule a short way down in order to reduce the chance of that end getting crushed. Is that acceptable for this glass rod as well? Also, the owner claims that this joint, (it's a 5 piece rod) tends to come loose while fishing, will this reduce the slippage? I had already counted on applying some rod wax on the male end but just curious if filling the ferrule might solve that problem as well. As always, thank you for your input.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/03/2019 09:48PM by Rob Grider.

You can fill it but this won't likely reduce slippage. Most likely, the sections are bottoming out and you'll need to trim about 1/8th inch from the female ferrule to allow further and more secure fitting of the two sections. This should restore the original fit.

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Is it a spigot ferrule or a tip over butt ferrule? If a spigot ferrule do as Tom states, trim the female portion. However, I suspect it is a tip over butt ferrule since with most spigot ferrules the male portion is solid fiberglass and thus doesn’t have a plug. If is is a tip over butt ferrule, you will need to trim the male part of the ferrule to tighten the fit. Some rods with tip over butt ferrules the female portion does not have a continuous internal taper to allow for wear, and thus with wear the male section bottoms out in the female section.
Norm

Thanks Tom and Norman. yes it is a tip over butt ferrule. I really appreciate your insight and suggestions.
Rob

If it is an integral tip over butt type, then you may need to trim about 1/8th in from the male section. The key is knowing where the fit it loose - up inside the ferrule at the tip of the male end, or at the bottom of the female end.

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Tom Kirkman Wrote:
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> The key is knowing where the fit it loose
> - up inside the ferrule at the tip of the male
> end, or at the bottom of the female end.
>
> .................


Tom, how does one make that differentiation ? Sorry if I'm asking a rudimentary question but is the misfitting location obvious?

Sort of. When you fit the pieces together can you see any space at the bottom of the female ferrule? If it seems snug there then most likely the tip of the male section is loose inside the female. If the male seems to bottom out before the female opening becomes snug, then the mis-fit is at the bottom. Sometimes you can waggle the rod and even feel where the fit is bad.

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thanks