I recently ordered a couple Point Blank blanks through Voodoorods.com . I'm really excited to build them but know their blank geometry is a little unique.

Do I need to do anything different when I ream my cork grips and Fuji ECS reel seat vs when I build on a rod with a more traditionally tapered butt section?

I typically use dream reamers and finish with hand reamers but their tapers will presumably remove more cork and graphite than I need and may leave some gaps depending on which direction I ream from.

Is there a different technique I can use or other equipment to ream it consistently the entire length of the grip and reel seat?



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/05/2023 06:43PM by Patrick Coco.

You can ream from both ends carefully test fitting as you go. Flex-Coat pilot, and reverse pilot bits can help get you close. I just do the former.

I hear you - the PB blanks have a non-tapered butt section.

Lynn's suggestion of the reverse pilot bit is a good one - as it will make a non-tapered hole. If the pilot hole is a bit larger than the blank, fiberglass drywall tape can take up the slack. I like the paste epoxies (like Rod Bond) for this reason because they fill spaces/gaps without flowing out.

Otherwise, my question would be....what kind of grip(s) are you wanting to use? Full-length or Split?

Some full-length, carbon fiber grips, like from American Tackle or NFC, don't necessarily need attachment along the full length of the grip. These grips are super rigid and strong if epoxied at the front and back ends; with minimal need to epoxy the full length. So, you are reaming a foam arbor that is approx. 1.5 inches long at each end of the grip. Not much taper involved....and Rod Bond will fill any gaps.

If you have a non tapered butt section on a rod, the simple thing to do - if you have a lathe is to simply use the correct sized drill bit, and use the lathe to spin the grip, while holding the drill bit stationary in the tail stock.
You will have a perfect hole through the exact center of the grip every time.

A picture of a grip that I did this way, some years ago.

[www.rodbuilding.org]

[www.rodbuilding.org]

The rod rest in the afore posted picture is one that I made years ago, when I used a full length rod lathe to turn cork rings that had been glued up on the rod along with the reel seat.

The rest provides a nice solid support for the grip being turned or being drilled.

Take care

Les Cline Wrote:
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> Otherwise, my question would be....what kind of
> grip(s) are you wanting to use? Full-length or
> Split?
>

Planning to use 3.5" cork split grip below the reel seat. No foregrip and the butt grip i assume is short enough it won't really matter.

Maybe on the 3.5" grip, I should ream from the real seat side and that way the wider end of the hole will be covered up by the seat and the smaller end will have a tighter fit where it can be seen (I prefer not to use winding checks on grips when possible).

Patrick - You will be fine using these shorter pieces of cork.

If you run the smaller taper at one end, you can always add a little dry wall tape under the larger end that will abut the reel seat.

I've also done what Lynn suggests and ream from both ends.

Roger’s idea is the best. However, I don’t have a lathe so I do exactly what Lynn suggested (ream from both ends) and I’ve not had a problem yet doing it that way.

Along with reaming from both ends, as Lynn wrote, I finish up by using light hand pressure to take down the middle while spinning the grip on the reamer. I use the thin end of the reamer to not remove further material from either end of the grip. You can readily test the bore diameter of each end of the grip against the blank’s butt. I stop at a snug fit and then do the center. There is a very small butt taper on Point Blanks so you do want to make final fitting and placement from the blank tip end.

Most of my builds are split grip with fighting butts 3.5" or less. Most are tapered blanks. I can, and always do, install them over the butt. Not a whole lot of taper involved in a short distance. Hardest part is perfectly concentric reaming and praying for a winding check to cover. Lol.

Just go from both ends with the large diameter reamer. A little at a time and test to fit. As Lynn says, a winding check will cover any gaps. I build on Point Blanks all the time and it will seem you are taking a lot of material off the grip just to make it fit. With short grips it will not be that complicated. The butt piece is pretty straight forward, just use a flat bottom bit to get the right diameter and slip it over the end. I always load the rear grip from the tip even though the butt end of the PB blank doesn't have that much taper. The only problem I have encountered using Fuji PB Blanks is back lashing on the 7'2+ lengths. They can really launch a lure and a lot of times it will accelerate very fast at the beginning of the cast. Tuning your reel for those rods is important to get good consistent cast it will be different from what you have been doing with your other rods, that has been my experience. Doesn't seem to be a problem with the 7' and under blanks.