Can anyone recomend a good protective coating for premium cork handles?

Tight Lines and Frisky Fish

RJF

U-40 is very popular, doesn't change the appearance appreciably, in my experience with it. See the Trondak U-40 link in the left margin.

Robert

I also use U40 Cork Seal.

Rog

U-40

Nothing. Cork has closed cells so any coating will only be on the surface. I prefer the feeling of raw cork sanded to 1200-3000 grit.

The U-40 cork seal won't change the color and makes it a bit easier to clean the cork. You may choose to re-appy it every season or two. It certainly won't hurt the cork.

...........

it also seems to keep the "mud" in place a bit longer too..lol.

Robert,
While all the above suggest U-40 Cork Seal, an alternative is Birchwood Casey’s Tru Oil. As the name implies, U-40 Cork Seal was designed for cork whereas Tru Oil was designed for wood. When you get right down to it, cork is a wood product, just the bark and not the heart-wood. All said, I prefer Cork seal for cork and Tru Oil for wood, go figure.

Mark Talmo
FISHING IS NOT AN ESCAPE FROM LIFE BUT RATHER A DEEPER IMMERSION INTO IT!!! BUILDING YOUR OWN SIMPLY ENHANCES THE EXPERIENCE.

Since cork has been used for building rod handles, the huge majority of these grips made of cork were pieces of cork glued together and then glued to a rod blank for a handle and never saw a spec of any sort of cover or finish over the cork for the entire life time of the rod and its grip. And for the vast vast majority of those folks who had such a rod, never had a single complaint about the rod grip built and used in this fashion.

Can one put something on top of the cork for some sort of finish? Of course. Is it necessary - of course not.

But, just do what makes you, as well as your customers happy with the rod grip in question.

For myself, I generally never put any finish on a nice cork grip. When I give the rod to the client, I simply suggest that on a periodic basis that they use a tooth brush or hand brush and a cleaner like dawn or simple green soap to wash down the grip to keep it clean. Other than that, just enjoy the rod.

Best wishes.

I guess I'm the exception to the rule . I use U40 and find that it does indeed darken the cork ever so slightly . Gives it a little character . Now this may be because I only use premade @#$%& cheapo grips as I dont see the value in spending over $40 for any grip . YMMV .

With respect to Roger's comment, he has lots of great experience, but I submit that U-40 does not affect feel and will make cleanup easier.

I also like the U40 cork seal.
Norm

I have a lot of cork grips rods that I have built in the last 30 years and the only problems that I have experienced is it drying out and getting a little brittle or getting dirty. I will clean with DA or acetone and apply mink oil or Kiwi neutral shoe polish in the little tin about once a year to keep it from drying out too much. I used mink oil for a while but it had an odor so started using the neutral shoe polish that does not have an odor. I apply it generously to the cork grips and let it sit for a few moment and wipe it off with a clean rag. The grip has a good feel after that and is not greasy, sticky or slippery. U40 wasn't around when I started using mink oil on cork grips back in the early 80s. I had older surf rods and boat rods from the 60s that I brought the cork back to a like new feel with mink oil. It will slightly darken the cork at first but that does not last very long.

Cork Seal for me also.

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