Spigot ferrule and blank cracking.....is my rod toast?

[flntknp17]

All,

I offer a couple pictures for your opinions. This is one of my favorite rods, a Diamondback IM6 3wt 3pc. I truly love the short, light line, sliding band reel seat rods of this vintage from several companies. I am concerned though that the upper spigot ferrule on this one is beginning to show signs of stress.



As you can see....the tip section is cracked for 1/8” above the proximal end. The epoxy is cracked, the wraps are intact and not compromised, but the graphite does appear to have some damage.



The question is, what are your thoughts on stripping the current thread wrap and redoing it with a stronger thread (such as spectra) vs leaving it the way it is? I’m leaning towards stripping and rewrapping because I’m afraid that a failure would be catastrophic for an irreplaceable rod.



Any thoughts are appreciated. I do have rod making expetand tools so the process is not an issue. Just curious what people’s experience is with these tiny spigot ferrules.

Thanks!

Matt

 

[Ard]

Can you see them on the inside of the female? High intensity light and magnification have a look.

I hate to say unpleasant things especially after the fact but that looks like a case of trying to seat the male too deep. I have quite a few spigot ferrule rods and just don't seat them too hard.

 

[flntknp17]

I assumed the case was that someone had seated it too deep. I am not the first owner of the rod and can’t vouch for how it was treated before it came to live with me.

The graphite is indeed cracked, but it appears only for 1/8” or maybe even less.

Matt

 

[Ard]

OK Matt here's what I would do if I wanted to fix that, warning it isn't as simple as it sounds...………..

I'll give you 2 options, The Hard Way & The Down & Dirty Way.

The main reason I say it isn't simple is because the thread is gonna be hard to match. If you can get past that then I think you can save that rod. Here's how I would proceed:

I'd have a look at the Flex Coat (probably what they coated the ferrule wraps with) with my 10X lope to see where I could score it in a nice circumference around the blank behind the wrap.

After I had it etched I'd use the same razor to gently slice through the Flex Coat and thread in several places around the ferrule running the cuts parallel with the blank.

Now I have to get under the wrap with the edge of the razor and gently peel the wrap with the Flex Coat from the ferrule.

Once I have a bare ferrule I can see the damage clearly and can attempt to fuse the tiny cracks using a Super Glue type product. Use this sparingly so none ends up inside the ferrule.

Cracks are now essentially welded and all I need to do is to redress that ferrule but that is where finding the correct thread color comes in. Once you are zeroed in on threads that look like they may match then you need to do some very narrow test bands and them hit them with Flex Coat to see what the color will be after treated with the resin...……….

Here's the Down & Dirty Way [You could just Super Glue it carefully without stripping the wrap but you should score the cracks open ever so slightly before trying this. Again sparingly so that you don't end up with glue inside the ferrule. I would use a fine sewing needle tip to apply the cement.]

It is repairable just a pain. Now you know about what happens when someone jams a spigot ferrule, before thinking about any other used rods always look at the Sticky at the top of the Fly Rods forum here titled, Tips For Buying Used Rods'. We have covered just about anything that a person may not think to ask before hitting the Pay Now button on Pay Pal

If anyone has a better way to repair cracks like this please add your reply.

 

[Ard]

After looking again at the pictures (by the way good pictures man) I would try to score the cracks open a bit and cement without destroying the wrap.

Think of a windshield chip repair. Have you ever done the DYI kit repairs? I have, you need to open the crack just a tad so that the cement will penetrate into that area where it looks cloudy.

Very light touch with the cement and if you end up with any build on the surface don't smear it while wet.

If you cement and can't stop looking at the repaired area then you need to take some #400 emery paper to the area all the way around the wrap. This should level and cement build and scuff the whole wrap.

If you go that route then a light flex Coat will make it like new. Down side is you need a rod turner so the coat levels out and dries even.

 

[sweetandsalt]

That is a fine old Vermont built rod and worth the effort to repair. I would follow Ard's advice on removing the wrap and Zap-a-Gaping the cracks. It appears to be grey thread with black trim and if it came out a slightly different shade it would not bother me...an honorable scare of restoration. You could even use just black thread. The one thing I would add is when re-wrapping, take the thread as close to the end of the female ferrule as possible eliminating that 1/8 of an inch of bare blank for max reinforcement.

It does appear from looking at your image that the spigot itself has helical scratching marks suggesting the ferrules were repeatedly seated by aggressive twisting. That or loosening of the ferrule may have precipitated this damage. Many folks believe in twisting the ferrule tight but my preference is strait snugging only twisting the loose ferrule for alignment. I like Diamondback rods.

 

[Rip Tide]

I done that exact repair with just the superglue and it's held up for years.
Try to wedge a straight pin into the crack first to open it up slightly

 

[flntknp17]

Thank you everyone for your responses! I will fix the rod preemptively as suggested and see how it goes. I am less worried about matching the thread than I am about making sure the rod survives to catch a lot more trout. Luckily, as noted, the colors are muted.

Thanks

Matt

 

[Ard]

It'll be fine Matt,

Years ago before I posted the Tips For Buying Used sticky I had bought a Winston rod from a guy who had posted photos but none depicting any damaged areas. I had stuff going on that seemed worse than your situation so I set up my camera with Macro then sent photos to Winston.

Along with the photos I included a description of how I was planning to proceed and ask if it was a sound approach. The rod repair person responded telling me to sally forth with my plans and I fixed ferrules and several deep chips in the tip section. I was fortunate in that I had a rod rack and drying motor on hand so I just fixed it. The seller ended up sending me back $50.00 which I had told him would cover my time and materials for the repair.

Not every seller is being deceitful when they fail to disclose damage. Many people are simply sellers and haven't a clue of what to look for in the way of damage. For many it is simply an error due to not knowing the product. I think the rod will last you for the rest of your fishing life.

Ard