I contemplated making hardwood hosels and trim rings for cork grips until I noticed that some of the suppliers were selling hosels "impregnated" with something to make them ...? stable, shrink and crack resistant, waterproof. Will homemade hardwood hosels and rings (walnut, cherry, mahogany, oak) finished/sealed with multiple coats of urethane or other finish be stable enough for rod building? Customizing my own from nicely figured hardwoods is very appealing to me, but I don't want a create a high-maintanence nuisance. There are some beautiful wood-trimmed grips on display in the photo gallery. Do you fish the rods or are they for display only? Are they difficult to maintain? Other concerns?

Bryan, \Try putting "wooden grips" in the search engine just above your submittal and see what comes up. Andy Dear of Lamar Reel Seats to the left may also answer some questions later if you e mail him.

Hi Bryan! We incorporate wooden trim rings and winding checks/hosels in our line of high-end rods, but we have chosen to only used stabilized wood. Unless you have a special reason for using other wood, I'd highly recommend Spencer's comment of contacting Andy Dear. We purchase all our wood thru him and it's always as good as it gets, and really very inexpensive IMO.

Stabilized wood will be impervious to the elements as well as being potentially tougher to non-traumatic bumps, etc. It finishes beautifully with only a polishing wheel and some compound, so there's no varnish to one day start peeling from friction from the hand or ??

Anyway, just my $.02 (Canadian at that...which makes it a bit less). ;)

John

Bryan,

Impregnated woods are great, but you absolutely do NOT have to have it for a durable hosel/grip component on a fishing rod.

All you need to do is properly finish the wood, and it will last for many, many years of normal use. Finishes such as Tru Oil, spar urethanes, even epoxy wood finishes, hold up very well under fishing rod 'use'. My personal favorite is Tru Oil, but I've used all of them.

As far as 'maintenance' goes, it's true that an impregnated grip will require almost none. Still, it is subject to scratches and bumps like any wood, and you'd have to buff/sand these out to 'renew' the finish. Same with just plain old finished wood, you just have to also apply a new coat of finish.

My 'oldest' rod with wood grip components is going on five years now, and it still looks great (except for a hook scratch that I put in it, sometimes I'm a bit of a klutz...). It gets fished pretty heavy, and it doesn't live in a 'tube'.

If you have some nice wood, by all means, use it.

Good Luck!

Buddy

I use gun stock finishes. As for using a wood oil I personaly would not use it because even when the oils look hard theywell seep. This seeping could contaminate your thread finishes
Good Wraps Bob

Hi Bryan,
All of the advice you have been given here is very good, although I am still a bit confused about how an oil finish on a hosel/trim ring could contaminate your thread wraps? Perhaps you could explain Bob?
Buddy is correct in his statement that you don't have to use stabilized wood to get a durable long lasting product. There are many times when you simply can't use stabilized wood, for example: About 2 years ago I purchased about 40 lbs of absolutely gorgeous Claro Walnut, and I got one sweet deal on it...why? Because the fellow who purchased it wanted to have it stabilized, and the wood wouldn't take the process. There are certain species that just won't stabilize due to oil content or tannin content or whatever. In this case you have no choice but to use a synthetic finish. There are many good ones on the market, but I prefer Birchwood Casey Tru-Oil. It's cheap, easy to apply and get good results with, and is readily available. I am also playing with an oil gunstock finish that so far seems to work really well if you prefer a matte finish. I finished a piece of Claro last week that looks simply outstanding. More and more I find myslef prefering a matte or semigloss finish rather than a plastic looking high build finish. I'll let you guys in on the product details as the experimintation progresses. In order to get good results with an unstabilized piece there a a lot of variables one has to deal with, and you have to do it properly. One must prep the surface, fill the grain, apply the finish correctly, rub out if necessary, it can potentially be very labor intensive.

There are many big advantages to stabilized wood:

1. The wood can be turned and polished in a fraction of the time it takes to turn and apply multiple coats of finish to a piece, thereby decreasing your turnaround time and your labor. There is also no chance for "finishing errors".
2. Stabilizition allows to use woods that normally wouldn't be useable, such as Spalted Woods. Spalting is when a fungus grows in a wood and renders it basically...well...rotten. Spalted Woods are generally soft and crumbly. Stabilization allows us to use these woods that are normally too soft to be useable.
3. Stabilization also increases the woods tolerance for UV exposure. I have a piece of unstabilized Osage Orange that has gone from bright yellow to a nasty grey under normal UV exposure in less than a year. However, when Osage is stabilized, it will slowly go from Yellow to sort of a yellow/amber color...and even this takes a couple of years to happen.
4. Stabilization also gives more "consistency" and usability to loose burls with extreme grain patterns that have a tendency to blow out when turning.
5. Stabilized wood is uneffected by temperature changes and will not shrink, expand or warp.
6. Stabilized wood is unaffected by moisture and/or many chemicals and will not shrink, expand, warp or rot.
7. Stabilized wood can be machined to much more consistent tolerances than normal wood.
8. With stabilized wood a high gloss can be achieved through polishing without that annoying buildup of synthetic finish to achieve a high gloss. This is a personal preference...I hate a thick buildup of glass like finish on wood. To me, it looks unnatural and just plain cheap.

Now having said that, stabilized wood is somewhat heavier than normal wood, which can work both ways for you. It can add unnecessary weight to a small delicate 2wt. OR it can be used to effectively balance a tip heavy rod

I could go on and on about the benefits of stabilized wood, but the fact is...you don't HAVE to have it for a piece of wood to be durable. I have several shotguns with wood stocks that have seen many cold wet mornings in a duckblind, and they still look very good. So yes a properly finished piece of wood will hold up for a long time. What were talking about here is the ability of a piece of wood to look good and require no maintainence for 10 years...or forever.
.
If any of you guys would like more info. on stabilized wood, or you have any questions please feel free to email me or call, I'll be happy to speak with you!

Andy Dear
Lamar Reel Seats
www.lamarreelseats.com
210-865-3256

I too use @#$%& Tru Oil, as a finish for many of my inserts/trims/ hosels. But, I do distinquish the intended final by burls and 'non-burls'. For burls I have moved to purchasing from a source (e.g., Lamar) that I know provides properly seasoned and correctly stablized (based on the properties of the wood) wood stock . I know that more accomplished wood turners probably do not have this problem, but for me the reason is they just turn better for my skill level - less checking and exploding. And, as John comments, and added advantage is I do not need to further finish.

For 'non-burls', I also think overall it is best to purchase a blank that you know has been properly seasoned. imo, seasoning is critical or the final piece is subject to cracking (for me, even before getting to finishing), especially for the thin walls often involved. For this reason, I think purchasing the wood from a reliable source is the way to go. If the species also comes in a stablized option, then the small extra cost is worth it, imo.

On occasion, I need/want to turn from a 'special' piece of green wood. Since there are lots of opinions concerning drying techniques, timings, etc. I think it best that, unless he/she is also an experienced wood turner, the rod builder visit a dedicated Web site or talk to a local wood turner. I did the latter and learned a microwave technique that works (most of the time). I think properly seasoned and finished holds up, but do provide instructions on care and maintenance to the customer.

As has been said, stabilized wood is excellent for use in handles, but does have some disadvantages, not least being the weight factor. Some of the softer more absorbent woods will increase in weight after stabilization by at least 50%.
I have been told that the shine from a sanded finish on stabilized wood will dull on prolonged exposure to water and therefore some type of finish (e.g an oil finish) is preferred.
Last but not least, stabilized woods are porous: they will absorb water like a sponge! There are spaces between the impregnated fibres that take up water by capillary action. This, however, has no effect on the stability of the stabilized wood.
My finish preference for unstabilized woods is Sutherland Welles' polymerized tung oil (preceded by polymerized tung oil sealer).
This yields a water proof finish that is extremely durable and flexible. As well it is not associated with the build up obtained with plastic finishes (varnishes, epoxies etc.).
Some resinous/oily woods cannot be stabilized effectively (e.g cocobolo). In these cases all that is required is to polish the wood.

Edan is correct in his point about stabilized wood soaking up water...although I wouldn't go so far as to say it soaks it up like a sponge! Stabilized wood is a lot like steel wool. The cell structure of the wood has been changed in such a way that water is allowed in through the open pores, but the wood is completely uneffected by it. It doesn't really soak it up either. Like steel wool there are no absorption properties to stabilized wood.

Nonstabilized wood "absorbs" and retains water, stabilized wood doesn't.

Do this: submerge a piece of stabilized wood in water for a few minutes, dry it off, then set it on the counter...the water will drain right back out!

Do this with a piece of unstabilized wood. The wood will hold the water (like a sponge) until it evaporates out...therein lyes the difference.

By the way, a nonstabilized piece of wood finished with a synthetic coating will eventually lose some of it's gloss as well. Just like your boat and car clearcoat need to be waxed and buffed from time to time, so will your wood handle.

Like I said, more and more I am preferring a satin or matte finish over the high gloss anyway, to me it looks more natural, and and not so "plastic" and fake. I once heard Richard Raffan say that "The best finish one can put a piece of wood is lots of handling and use by a person". Meaning that a wooden bowl or stair bannister that has been handled and touched a lot over the years takes on a warm, soft patina from frequent contact with human skin. The natural oils and abrasiveness of the skin gives the best finish of all!!!

Andy Dear
Lamar Reel Seats
www.lamarreelseats.com

As a woodworker myself, I understand the potential problems created as wood expands and contracts with changes in relative humidity. The stabilized woods are probably the answer for rod building. Unfortunately, I have lots of beautiful hardwood cut-offs that I just can't bear to throw away. Using them in small projects such as rings and hosels is consistent with my frugal nature. Thanks for your suggestions. Bryan

The stabilizing process has many desirable features but it has a drawback in that it changes (usually darkens) the color of the natural wood. This color change prevents me from having some wood stabilized as I can no longer reach the desired outcome.

Stan,
What wood are you experiencing this with? I have tons of wood processed "clear" and the color change has been no different than if I were to put a coat or two of wax on natural wood? In fact, in many cases it is actually more pleasing. One day I put Permagloss on a piece of Walnut, and it darkened WAY too much...I didn't like it all. The exception would be Lacy Sheoak, that one species did change a lot for the worse. I prefer the raw wood in that species with a synthetic finish, thecolor contrast is a lot better.

I am interested to know!

Andy Dear
Lamar Reel Seats
www.lamarreelseats.com

The darkening may be a result of the process used by the individual company. The wood that my father and I have had stabilized in the past turned dark. After visiting Andy, and seeing his wood, which is processed by a different company and is very clear, we have decided to use the company that Andy uses. There is a very obvious difference in the effect that it had on the wood.

As to the wood you already have, you can send it to the company yourself. Just be prepared, because the charge, while still reasonable, is based on the finished weight of the wood, which as stated is noticeably heavier than in its natural state.

Hey Tony,
When are you coming down for some more of those "South Texas Size" BBQ Sandwiches!

Andy Dear

P.S. Your presence is required on the casting deck of my skiff whenever you're ready!

I'm waiting on the word. I've even been reading up. By the way, if you eat with Andy at his and Gerald's BBQ place, all you need to order is one sandwich. I just couldn't figure out why that hostess was looking at me so funny when I ordered two.

Looking for 15" trim rings without the valve stem notch. Any help?