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Re: Repair broken tip?
Post 19 May 2015, 20:46 • #26 
New Member
Joined: 04/15/15
Posts: 21
Location: US-IL
Hello Everybody, I'm a bit late to the party, but I thought I'd add that gunsmithing supply houses (e.g. Brownell's) sell packs of straight spring steel in assorted sizes.
If I remember correctly, the packs are not expensive.

Given all the really good advice that's been tendered in this thread, I sort of hesitate to add the following: I've talked with several quality rod maker/repairers, and they simply refuse to spice new tips on fiberglass or graphite rods....bamboo (or if you prefer cane?), yes, but not synthetics.

Finally, I'll say that although I very much sympathize with those who abhor on aesthetic grounds any rod that's been shortened, I have one fiberglass rod that had lost several inches of tip and had a new tip top attached before I got it. The rod casts beautifully! Don't know what it might have been like before its accident.

Cheers,
John


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Re: Repair broken tip?
Post 20 May 2015, 06:12 • #27 
Guide
Joined: 01/03/14
Posts: 223
Location: boston area
I have a 3pc. Wonderod that I picked up on Ebay for 5 bucks. Missing about 2 inches off the tip , so I had to put a tip on it. I am like you ,I don't know how it cast before? I love it too. I guess if I sold it I would get about 5 bucks for it also. They just wouldn't want it.


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Re: Repair broken tip?
Post 09 Jul 2015, 11:00 • #28 
Guide
Joined: 04/01/14
Posts: 277
Location: NW Lower Michigan
Based on this topic, I decided to finally repair a graphite casting rod tip that snapped just ahead of the first guide a few years ago. Don't ask how it happened. :o
Using a drill gauge set, I found that the ID at the break was between .060 and .065. I had nothing suitable so, with the tip section and micrometer in hand, I hit the spring drawers at the hardware store. Conveniently they list the diameter of the wire on the lid so the mic wasn't needed.
Found a single .063" spring for $3 which I was ready to buy when the Fishwife found the music wire rack. Three piece bundle of .062 music wire 30" long was $2.29. Figuring that the spring would be useless once I cut the end off, and that it was more expensive, I put it back and got the music wire. Fishwife seemed to think it was a bad idea to have all that extra wire left over and that I should just buy the spring and throw away the coils, even though it cost more... go figure.
I epoxied a 1" piece of wire into the joint, one end at a time. Since the break was right at the end of the thread wrap, the joint isn't even noticeable. Haven't fished it yet but it certainly was the easiest rod repair I've done. And I've got 89" of wire left over to use for something else... hopefully not another rod break.


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Re: Repair broken tip?
Post 09 Jul 2015, 11:51 • #29 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 06/23/05
Posts: 4966
Location: US-MT
Excellent! Let us know how it fishes.


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Re: Repair broken tip?
Post 09 Jul 2015, 12:08 • #30 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 09/29/06
Posts: 4413
Location: Willamette Valley, Oregon
Jimbo, I expect you will be mailing a few pieces of that wire to folks


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Re: Repair broken tip?
Post 10 Jul 2015, 21:18 • #31 
Guide
Joined: 04/01/14
Posts: 277
Location: NW Lower Michigan
Rockthief wrote:
Jimbo, I expect you will be mailing a few pieces of that wire to folks


I could probably spare a few pieces. :)


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Re: Repair broken tip?
Post 12 Jul 2015, 08:20 • #32 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 06/08/05
Posts: 3570
Location: Western PA
I run across a guy that's been fishing a rod with a spring wire repair since 1993. He had spring steel handy and didn't have to reshape an already shaped spring. It's a graphite rod with spring wire extending out 2 1/2" past the blank. The interesting detail, he fashioned the tip out of the end of the spring wire. So, the repair is he disgarded the tip and created a new one out of wire with a built-in ring top.
He's been fishing that same rod like that and says he can't tell the difference.
Also, I've been handed an Orvis 7'9" Far and Fine that was reduced to a 7'3". It fished fine. Far and fine. That guy fishes 3-5 days a week with that thing and swears by it.
I suppose I'm trying to say that a broken tip isn't the end of the world. You can make a good repair and not really notice a difference.


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Re: Repair broken tip?
Post 14 Apr 2022, 09:01 • #33 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 05/22/16
Posts: 1760
Location: SJC
Sorry to resurrect a long-dead thread :)

I received a graphite Ajing baitcasting rod in the mail from Aliexpress, a 7'6" two-piece (was thinking of using it in the kayak), but I guess during the packing step someone snapped off the last inch or so near the tip. I sent a photo to the seller, who will refund me, so there's that. Still, I think it might be fixable.





The tip section is solid. I believe the guides are all Fuji Alconite, though my intention is to use the rod in freshwater.

What do you think the best way to fix this might be ? I'm tempted to try to glue the tiptop on to the broken section, but I guess I'd have to get the broken part out of it somehow ... if it's just a matter of using a heat gun or something, I could probably try that...


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Re: Repair broken tip?
Post 14 Apr 2022, 09:21 • #34 
Master Guide
Joined: 04/12/18
Posts: 457
Heat it up gently by holding it to the side of the flame from a butane lighter and the tip-top should slide right off the broken rod section. The heat will melt epoxy and/or hot-melt glue. Carefully clean up the end of the broken rod with some fine abrasive paper and square it up. Heat up a little hot-melt glue with the lighter, put a very light coating on the rod end. Then, heat up the tip-top and slide it on.

The hardest part is forgetting it ever happened. Chances are, you'll never notice the difference in fishing a rod minus a couple of inches of the tip.


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Re: Repair broken tip?
Post 14 Apr 2022, 10:31 • #35 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 05/22/16
Posts: 1760
Location: SJC
Thanks ! The open flame burned off the glue and thread :eek, and I just used a heat gun to loosen the last bit of blank out of the tip-top. After a few passes with fine grit the tip-top slid on to the end of the rod nicely. I ordered some hot melt repair glue to finish the job. Sweet :)


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Re: Repair broken tip?
Post 14 Apr 2022, 11:45 • #36 
Administrator
Joined: 01/10/06
Posts: 7811
Location: Holly Springs, NC
5 minute epoxy is an alternative to hot melt glue. It's much easier to apply, but can still be removed with heat to make a repair.


Tom


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Re: Repair broken tip?
Post 16 Apr 2022, 10:11 • #37 
Glass Fanatic
Joined: 05/22/16
Posts: 1760
Location: SJC
Thanks Tom. I actually have some unused 5-minute epoxy lying around. Nice to have alternatives, and if I screw up, there is always the heat gun.

edit: got it out to the casting pool yesterday. Here it is with my Daiwa '21 Gekka Bijin Air TW, plus bling (85mm carbon handle and zaion knobs).



Playing around with Varivas Avani Light Game x4 in 0.4 PE / 8.5#.


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