Cork Filler

[fritz]

The cork on my bamboo rod of 32 years is showing signs where the filler material is coming out. What shall I use to fill the nooks and crannies in the handle? thanks

[turch]

Greetings. Newbie/lurker here. A topic like this (building is my thing) is as good as any to introduce myself to this forum.

Get a hold of an old grip or new stock and grind it up (anything from sandpaper to light rasps work). Clean this material up first or you'll be applying dirt and oils too. You want a fairly fine and consistent powder. Then make a paste with a decent waterproof glue (titebond III) or even epoxy. This paste should be on the drier side but still spreadable. Give your current grip a rough up to clean it up, draw off any minor surface contaminents, and otherwise set it up for accepting your paste. Dust off the grip and then bondo away, pushing the paste into the grip. Let it dry a few days and use a very fine sandpaper to bring the grip back to where you need it.

There is a commercial product that I haven't tried yet that I'll bet is pretty decent given the merchant's reputation. I know that his cork stock is pretty much the best around. Check out Cork Pit Filler at www.lamarfishing.com.

Regards,
Turch