How to "beef up" a rod fore grip?

[pjstevko]

I'm wondering how to "beef up" the fore grip on my PCH 801XH?

I've used this rod as my 40# setup and it's landed a 110# bft plus 5 or 6 60-70# bft and has developed a flat spot on the fore grip from laying it on the rail during the fight.

I love the rod but I'm a little concerned about damaging the blank under the fore grip if I continue to use it on the rail...

How can I fix this issue so I can continue to use the rod?

Pj

[Swami805]

I don't think you can get rid of the flat spot. You can cover the fore grip with a few layers of heat shrink tube or a single layer of cold shrink, There will still be a flat spot though, not as noticeable.

[philaroman]

make a plate that runs the entire length of the foregrip on the bottom, to distribute the pressure from the rail
something thin, strong, light and rigid, but less rigid than blank, itself...  cover over for your choice of hand-feel

[pjstevko]

I don't think you can get rid of the flat spot. You can cover the fore grip with a few layers of heat shrink tube or a single layer of cold shrink, There will still be a flat spot though, not as noticeable.

I'm not so concerned with the flat spot, I'm more concerned with the structural integrity of the blank underneath the fore grip....

[Bill B]

Maybe split some PVC pipe, taper the sides and cover with shrink tubing?  Bill

[SoCalAngler]

You could cut off the old grip and replace it with cold shrink. The stuff that they have on railrods that they sell factory built

[philaroman]

maybe, cut up a cheap telescopic no-reel pole (pref., w/ broken tip)
the lowest sections would give you a good range of diameters,
PLUS tapered, PLUS better weight & wall thickness than PVC

[JasonGotaProblem]

5 layers of cork tape?

[Swami805]

Check out cold shrink, it's pretty thick with just one layer, should be plenty to protect the blank

[oc1]

It took a lot of money, time and effort to put that flat spot on the grip.  Leave it and be proud of it.

I don't think the grip is doing much to spread the load under the blank when it is resting on the rail.  It is no worse than sitting in a chair with the reel clipped into a harness.  It seems that if something were going to explode it would have alredy happened.

[steelfish]

as far as I know proper railrods blanks or factory rods sold as railrods have a longer Stiff section from the butt to 20-25" after the reelseat so, when using the rail to fight a fish the part of the blank that is touching the rail is still stiff enough to dont bend there and crack or break, with that said, you can of course use any rod and use the rail to fight a fish but it could break on a big fish or leave ugly marks on the regular grips, because they were made to be comfortable on hands not durable fom the rail use.

as my compa Sheridan recommended, Cold Shrink wrap its been used and abused for railrods with good comments in the Westcoast, I havent used it so I cannot comment but trust on Sheridan words, so you can go for it.

if you are worry of the integrity of the blank and beefed it up there might be no many options, since cold shirk only protect the blank but dont offer more backbone or stiffness to the blank (correct me if Im wrong), so, need something to make that 1st 1/3 of the blank stronger, so as some guys have commented take out the current foregrip and put a piece of ABS or PVC tube then covering it with shrink tape, another way to do it is cut the cap on the butt and fit a broken rod blank inside the current factory blank as long as you need, but now the problem is you will have a new culprit prone to break on a big fish at the end of the reinforced section.  

[CooldadE]

If it were me I would sand flat the area that has been squashed/ deformed by fighting fish at the rail. Then ether cut a strip of grip material off of a junk or broken rod. Then contact cement the piece to the handle being repaired and wrap tight with electricians tape and let sit a while. Then remove the tape and shape the repaired grip to match the contour of the grip being repaired. After that install the cold shrink or heat shrink tubing of your choice... I know some heat shrink out there is rather thin and some is thicker and more ridged. You make your pick and pays your money....
My 2 cents...

Cool

[otownjoe]

I've used both cold shrink and heat shrink. Cold shrink is more durable but pricey. Heat shrink holds up pretty well. .most of my rods are custom made for rail fishing. From 30 lb up to 130 lb. On one rod I used cork tape covered with heat shrink.  I did this so I wouldn't have to remove and replace the guides when I decided to change from a deckhand rod to a reelseat.  I am happy with the results.

[conchydong]

I am another fan of the 3M cold shrink for your application.

[Ron Jones]

Those battle scars are well worn, wear them with pride! Until the foam har wor through, you will be fine. When it comes time to repair my favorite is thread sealed cord wrap.
The Man