Cork Grip Maintanance?

[ACarbone624]

I have an older rod (10 years old) that the cork grip is starting to split so I had to wrap it. Is there any kind of maintenance that I should be doing to my rods with cork grips? Do I need to put anything on the cork itself or will it just fall apart eventually anyway?

 

[Mattman]

Keep your cork out of the sun as much as possible. I know guys that have stored their rods in a garage and they handles were in direct sunlight thru a window for good portions of the day and that really did a lot of damage to the cork.

Clean them every so often. Soap and water. Cleaners like 409, Simple Green. Mr. Clean Magic Eraser. A toothbrush. Denatured alcohol. Even sandpaper.

I coat all my custom rod cork grips with a product called U-40 Cork Seal.

Another sealer that is popular is Birchwood Casey's Tru-Oil.

 

[Ram]

Yeah, I'm not sure of how you protect rod corks, but like Mattman said, some soap, simple green, water and sandpaper have all worked for me in the past when it comes to cleaning them.

 

[shamoo]

Where can these sealers be purchased?

 

[ACarbone624]

Found it! :mrgreen:

https://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templates/product/standard-item.jsp?id=0017532316474a&navCount=0&podId=0017532&parentId=&masterpathid=&navAction=push&catalogCode=IK&rid=&parentType=&indexId=&cmCat=netcon&cm_ven=netcon&cm_cat=Google&cm_pla=U-40%20Cork%20Seal&cm_ite=netcon&rid=2146251080&hasJS=true


https://www.pyramydair.com/s/a/Birchwood_Casey_Tru_Oil_Gun_Stock_Finish_3_oz/1095

 

[Mattman]

Found it! :mrgreen:

https://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templates/product/standard-item.jsp?id=0017532316474a&navCount=0&podId=0017532&parentId=&masterpathid=&navAction=push&catalogCode=IK&rid=&parentType=&indexId=&cmCat=netcon&cm_ven=netcon&cm_cat=Google&cm_pla=U-40%20Cork%20Seal&cm_ite=netcon&rid=2146251080&hasJS=true


https://www.pyramydair.com/s/a/Birchwood_Casey_Tru_Oil_Gun_Stock_Finish_3_oz/1095

Yup...you got it.

A lot of hardware/woodworking stores, and gun shops will have the Tru Oil.

Places that sell rod building supplies will have the Cork Seal.


I've not personally used the Tru Oil...but know many builders really like it. I use the Cork Seal on all of my custom rods, including my personal ones.