Building up a new rod and decided to go with the Fuji VSS reel seat and split grips and wondered to possibly put a twist and maybe it’s too big of twist but wondered if you guys have ever had any luck painting cork.

I read one man first expoxied the cork, then sanded, primed and painted then to cover and protect he epoxied over top of the paint and he said it worked well but I wanted to see if anyone else had ideas good or bad.

I like the idea of the VSS system (admittedly I’ve yet to use it) as it seems light weight and compact. Using the hidden hood front grip thread adapter VSVSS I believe it’s called.

I like the feel of cork , so I have never went that way

William Sidney
AK

Ernie

I build faux birch bark grips from 1/8" cork rings for fly rods. Cork can be colored and sealed using wood stains such as the Minwax stain & sealers. And the cork can be finished using varnish. I use Tru-Oil.

So, while I've never tried an opaque paint on a cork rod grip, I've painted a bunch of duck decoys with cork bodies. You need a good sealer, acrylic paint, and a clear acrylic or epoxy top coat would be a very good idea.

Think the downsides are the acrylics are not as easy to refresh or repair as is the old school Tru-Oil or bare cork which can be cleaned as needed.

Bill, I have been fishing with cork handles for over 50 years and to this day I couldn't agree more with you, Love cork....

Donald, I bet your handles looked super sharp in a birch motif, that's great...Appreciate the info!!

Well I have this idea, and I'm about as green a rod builder as an unripened banana, but I was considering having RodGeeks paint me up one of their C4 blanks in 70:30 scheme, Maybe a 30% butt section done in Metallic Purple and the remaining 70% mid nd tip sections done in say a White...Thought how it might look having the grips done but Sealed to protect the white and make it easier to clean the impending dirt off the white...

Are stains in say white available im wondering from say Minwax, I wondered if the rod epoxies are clear or do they possibly yellow over time... I used a fair bit of Tru-oil on my strat and tele raw guitar necks with some amber analyne dies to give it that vintage look.... so does Tru-oil dry clear ??

Man this rod building is some addictive haha, I love it and can see how much fun I
m going to have with it and having good people like you all, or ya'll to help me along..... very grateful

Epoxies yellow with time and would not make a great covering for any white substrate that you wanted to stay white.
Since regular cork doesn't absorb anything well, its effect on the appearance of regular cork is minimal. The pits will show more contrast. Burl cork will darken and get more contrasty, I don't think it would make a good top coat/protector of a white surface.

I don;t think a gloss coat of outdoor white paint would need anything to "seal it." It would be worth a try to use a wood primer + gloss white paint on some scrap cork to see what you get. I'll be it will work. Pick at it to see if adhesion is good.

Since cork is softer than most woods which work well with paint, the grip may be more sensitive to denting. So if you plan to use the rod in a rod holder, might not be a good idea.

But given reasonable care and handling, worth a try.

Tru-Oil does not dry clear; it has a light amber color which will deepen over time with exposure to UV.

Instead of cork you could paint the PABay molded polyurethane foam grips to match anything you want.
[www.mudhole.com]
Norm

I would go with the ones which have the carbon fiber cloth for bullet proof toughness. Good idea, Norm.

Forget color on cork. In a word, it doesn't work - long term.

If you want a colored grip, go with a winn grip, a carbon fiber grip, a plastic grip or a similar material.

Best wishes

maybe flocking..an EVA preformed grip can be flocked and cured ready to mount in 2 1/2 hours if you use epoxy..

Painting and staining cork are two different processes. While staining doesn't work well because cork doesn't take stain well; it is not porous like wood. But painting does not require porosity. Steel can be successfully painted. I see no reason why a good primer/paint system will not work. For long term or short.

But, I still see the carbon fiber grips as the best option to paint.

Michael,
You do have a good point.
I have seen - paint ed cork floats on the water used to hold up fishing nets. I do not know the type pant used, or the process used during application, but it does seem to work.

Good luck

if you put paint on a hard surface the paint will not crack just wear down , but if you put it on a semi soft surface [ cork ] it will crack over time , letting the water, fish grime get under it , I do believe , could be wrong ,

William Sidney
AK

It will crack only if the surface, and therefore the paint film, is dented to provide a crack. I think people underestimate how hard cork actually is. Especially burl cork. I have cork ramps, burl, and one regular cork rod grip with the butt 2 inches covered with wrap epoxy. All have been used for many years with no dents, no cracks, structurally fine. To dent painted cork would take a pretty good blow. I'm not saying I think it the best solution, only that it is feasible and should not be dismissed as an option.

Im with norm on the poly grips.. Ill be marbling, or i should say my mother eill be marbling, (its going to be her rod) poly grips soon here.. Once she has the spare cash to order, ill order.. And relay the results...

Roger suggested other materials, theres always acrylics too.. Depends if your shooting for a high gloss finish, or matte... The problem with carbon fiber in my opinion is price.. But would make a good base im guessing..

I didnt know rod geeks did multi tone paint schemes.. Good info, i really should look through what they have to offer... Another option for painting blanks is to talk to a local body shop, if they have a spray booth, most will gladly do it for fairly cheap.. My local shop wont charge me if i prep the blank and dont mind waiting for a job that has the same color, just put the tiptop on so they can hang it, tape it off.. All they have to do is hit it quick.. Takes less then 10 sec. I havent asked about price for a custom setup however..

Ive used this stuff thats a gel stain.. Weird to work with, but it did the trick.. You jjst squirt a little on a paper towel, rub it in.. Let it soak for a little, wipe it off.. Add more jf you want it darker, wipe with water to lighten it.. Pretty cool stuff.. Cork came out looking verry antiqued.. And that was the plan.. Follow by u40 cork seal.. Works ..