Cork or composit

The question is?

Cork

Good quality cork is expensive, and cork composites are cheaper but much heavier. You can reduce the weight of a cork composite grip by coring it. I have done this by reaming and glueing the composite cork rings onto 20 or 22 mm polyurethane foam arbors. This is done on a mandrel and when the the epoxy has cured turn the handle to its final shape. The foam core can be used as a tenon for the butt cap or reel seat. It’s not that difficult to do and really does help to reduce the weight. When finished just ream the grip to fit the blank. The foam core makes it very easy to ream. If doing a split grip you may need to use thin non-cored rings to cover the non-tenon end of the grip. People will also core wood handles to make them lighter.
Norm

Another way to use cork composites without adding a lot of weight is to use very little of it. On spin it can be done nicely with the Fuji DPSSD seat (size 17 for me) as the photo shows.

[www.rodbuilding.org]

This gives a rod weight of very close to blank weight + 2 oz.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 09/02/2022 07:48AM by Michael Danek.

[www.rodmakermagazine.com]

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Always insist on good quality cork. Always. If you are going to do the work, invest the time and build a custom rod, isn't it worth the extra money??? Of course it is. If you want to build a low dollar, cheaply made rod, then why bother. Just go to Walmart or the like and pick out from the aisles and aisles of "those rods"

End of rant.

Flex Coat Company
Professional Rod Building Supplies
www.flexcoat.com

Was the question "cork" or "Carbon"?

Best wishes,
Ron Schneider
Schneider's Rod Shop
Mountain Home, Arkansas
[www.schneidersrods.com]
mtnron40@yahoo.com
870-424-3381

If "display" is the main priority of a rod build, as it often is, then cork is the only choice.

Cork isn't always the best option. Its not very often that you'll see an offshore rod with cork. Its usually EVA. Very few of them are low dollar and cheaply made.

If you're looking for the lightest weight and ultimate sensitivity from a grip, the foam cored carbon fiber sleeved grips are hands down the way to go.

As far as aesthetics go, personal taste is going to determine which you find more pleasing to the eye.

If you're speaking cork versus composite cork, then as Norm mentioned, composite cork is going to weigh more. It weighing more isn't necessarily a bad thing though. It's weight behind the reel seat, which doesn't affect rod performance as much as weight ahead of the reel seat does, and if rod and reel balance is important to you, and IMO it should be on some rods, then the added weight of composite cork can be a plus.

One thing I learned from building my own cork grips, is that composite cork is much tougher than regular cork, so it will stand up to heavy duty use much better than regular cork.