When building a rod is it right to block up the male end of the blank if there is a hole left when the mandrel is removed?
I've seen blanks/rods that have either been left open and others that have been filled in.
Top Conker

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I think it's just black silicone TC isn't it?
S.

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"A glint of sun has warmed the air,The flies will soon hatch out, To lure and tempt from their deep lair, The bonnie speckled trout." SKB tackle supporter. I love Furled Leaders.

I presume its the furrels we are talking about , the male end? mine has cork in it on my harrys, but some form of plug is needed to stop water getting inplus it adds extra strenth to that section of the rod were thers alot of pressure createdGaz

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Thanks Guys,
When you talk of black silicone Mr T would exterior silicone as used by window installers do the job?
I 've had a look at my Hardy rods Gaz and it does look like it's a cork plug fitted which has maybe been painted.
TC

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Used to be an angry young man, now I'm an angry old man.

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Hi TC

Lots of options here. A small piece of cork whittled slightly oversize and pushed in with a touch of glue, then sliced off flush and coloured is probably easiest. If you have some of the black sealant ( window stuff is ideal ) then use that.

Just don't put wood in there as it can swell when wet.

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Steve Parkes

www.atomsix.co.uk

info@atomsix.co.uk

Terenzio silk fly lines

Atomsix furled leaders

previously
www.zenithflyrods.co.uk

Thanks Steve,
Think I'll go the sealant way.
I was worried adding a piece of non-flexible material would affect the action of the rod, but I guess we're only talking a piece about 1/2" or so long anyway.
TC

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Used to be an angry young man, now I'm an angry old man.

You can bomb people into pieces but you cant bomb them into peace.

Hi TC, I was once talking to Renee the rod builder at Foxons, she told me they just use ordinary black silicone, the type you use in a kitchen/bathroom.
S.

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"A glint of sun has warmed the air,The flies will soon hatch out, To lure and tempt from their deep lair, The bonnie speckled trout." SKB tackle supporter. I love Furled Leaders.

As stated in a thread last week,apart from keeping the internals clean,this is purely cosmetic.a piece of ethafoam would work perfectly.There are no strength issues.

Jim

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The Fishermans Friend is the Flirty Fly,Fickle Food for Fleeting Fish.

I used to use a flexible 2-part epoxy. Dribble a bit in and stand the rod on its (now closed) end on top of a piece of plastic. Once dry, remove plastic and polish end. Purely cosmetic except for the bottom section of the rod which also keeps water out of the blank/seat.

Thanks
Rick

Rick, am I missing a step here.surely the plastic would be stuck to the Epoxy.
Now if you covered the plastic in Clingfilm/bacofoil then it would be a simple mater to tear it off.

Jim

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The Fishermans Friend is the Flirty Fly,Fickle Food for Fleeting Fish.