I know this has been discussed before and I have done some searching but I must not be searching the correct key words or something. Anyhow, I have a small diameter tip on an ice rod and want to use a certain tip top but the tube is a touch to big. I figured I could do a wrap on the tip to fill the gap but I’m concerned about getting a good bond between the blank, the thread and the tip top. How are you ensuring you are getting a good bond for the tip top to stay in place? Are you putting your thread epoxy over it, letting it dry and then adding the tip top?
Thanks,
Dave

Dave...just regular tip glue on the thread should work just fine.

The glue will saturate the thread enough to make contact with the blank?

Interesting. And I would not trust the heat glue to saturate through the thread to secure it to the blank. I'd secure the thread first.

This is how I would approach it...

I would wrap the thread onto the rod from as close to the tip as you can get to say maybe an 1/8" or 1/4" past the length of the tip tube. Next, I'd epoxy the thread to the rod blank using as thin of an epoxy as I could to secure the thread to the rod blank yet leave the roughness of the thread intact with no raised epoxy- no bubble effect- so the tip top heat glue will have something to grab onto. Install the tip as normal. I usually scuff up the inside of the tube to give the glue a little roughness in there to I hope grab or adhere a little better. Once tip is on, then do an epoxy buildup on the exposed thread to eliminate any sharp edges of the tube end. Since it will be slightly raised up off the blank it might have more to catch or cut on so I'd smooth it off. You can even add more thread if you so choose, or a simple epoxy buildup would suffice.

That's how I see it anyways... good luck and let us know how it goes and how you approached it.

And yes I'd let the epoxy cure. That way the tips will be replaceable for years to come without redoing your thread buildup- and hoping you can get the same tip more than once.



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 09/04/2022 09:07AM by Kent Griffith.

My initial thought was to wrap enough length to make it a match the length of the guides, slip the tip top over it and maybe be done. Sounds good on paper but probably not in the real world of things. Biggest concern is making it solid. Maybe I should just use a fly rod tip top. Need to think more about this one. The tip of the rod is 1.2 mm and I would like a size 6 or larger guide due to ice build up.

Coat the thread with Permagloss.

David Luttig Wrote:
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> The glue will saturate the thread enough to make
> contact with the blank?

Hmmm....depends on how much thread you're using.
Mark Brassett's idea of using PermaGloss will work.

I have built many many many ice rods.

If there is a particular tip top on the tip of the rod, that is only somewhat larger than the rod, I simply use it.

I like to use a very bright florescent thread for tip wraps. Florescent Orange,Florescent Pink, Florescent chartreuse.

The reason that I use these colors is that here in the upper midwest, a lot of fishing is done in huts, shelters,semi permanent ice houses, mobile ice castles. Also, a lot of fishing is done after dark. Sometimes the lighting is wonderful, sometimes not.
In any event, the bright tips of small diameter ice rods make the tip movement from a light biting fish that much easier to see.

I will often have a 2 or 3 inch long tip wrap.

If the tip top tube is larger than the rod blank, I simply start the tip top wrap at the distance from the tip of the blank where I want the tip wrap to stop. Then, I wrap toward the tip. When I get to the tip, I reverse direction and go back down the rod blank the length of the tip top tube, plus 1/8th to 1/4 inch. Then, I reverse the wrap and go back up the blank to the tip of the blank. I continue the layers until the tip top tube is a nice fit on the layers of thread.

When I glue the tip top to the rod blank using hot melt glue, I do the following:

I have a 1/16th inch diameter metal rod that I have sharpened to a point. I heat the rod with my alcohol burner and also heat the glue stick to soften it. Then, I take a swipe with the heated rod, to transfer glue to the heated rod. Then, with the rod rotating on my wrapper, I will transfer some heated glue from the pointed rod to the thread wraps on the tip top of the rod. Then, I will heat the tube on the tip top and also the glue on the pointed rod and insert the glue coated pointed rod into the tip top tube to insure a nice layer of glue on the inside of the tip top. Finally, I will heat the rotating tip enough to soften the glue on the thread and also the tip top tube to soften the glue on the inside of the tip top and quickly slide the tip top onto the glue coated threads of the tip of the rod blank. I will stop the rods rotation to align the rod and finally use a craft stick to wipe any glue from the edges of the tip or excess glue on the thread on the tip.

The writing of the method takes much longer than the actual application of the thread, glue, tip top and alignment of the tip top.

Note:

In all of the ice rods that I have built - I have to say that I have never had a rod come back because the tip came loose So, yes, doing a tight thread wrap to the tip of the rod in one or more layers - will work very well and with a good application of tip top glue will have no problems in the field with the tip top of the rod.

Best wishes.

Note:
The heating of the tip top cement and its application to the thread on a rotating rod blank does a very nice job to penetrate the thread and insure a good bond of tip top to cement, to thread to rod blank.

Using your dryer apply some layers of epoxy to the tip of the blank when the epoxy cures sand down the epoxy so the tip fits snugly on the blank and epoxy in place.

David Luttig Wrote:
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> The glue will saturate the thread enough to make
> contact with the blank?


Spiral the thread that will reside under the tiptop. In other words, leave a small space or gap between the wraps.

.........

Tom Kirkman Wrote:
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>
> Spiral the thread that will reside under the
> tiptop. In other words, leave a small space or gap
> between the wraps.
>
> .........
And then just put the tip top on as usual over it or does it need to have epoxy on it first?

David,
You have received many good replies.Thread under a tip top can actually be very beneficial by leaving a threaded (as in the ridges on a screw) surface on the blank to really enhance securing the tip top to the blank. For my heavier saltwater rods, I order the tip top tube oversized enough to do just that. As Tom mentioned, I wrap the thread in an open spiral, apply a thin coat of epoxy (PG would certainly work), let it cure 24 hours, and then install the tip top with hot melt tip top adhesive. Any way one looks at it, the thread should be coated with epoxy (or PG) and cured for a MINIMUM of 12 hours prior to installing the tip top.

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

All good replies.

Alternatively, if you wrap a fly guide on as your tip top you'll never have to mess with getting the right size tube/fitting/gluing a tube tip top guide on again. Not hard to do with a little practice and/or a fixture to support the rod tip.

David Luttig Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Tom Kirkman Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> >
> > Spiral the thread that will reside under the
> > tiptop. In other words, leave a small space or
> gap
> > between the wraps.
> >
> > .........
> And then just put the tip top on as usual over it
> or does it need to have epoxy on it first?

Put the glue, hot melt or epoxy on the thread and then install the tiptop over that.

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

Thank you for all the replies. Going to do it on a test piece this week sometime to see how it turns out