I just got 2 rods off of a friend of mine..both of them have filthy dirty cork handles..I'm just looking for some tips on cleaning them up really well..most of my rods are all split grips now and have no cork type material ..but he hooked me up with some nice rods free and I just wanna get them clean..I already cleaned them with soap and water with a toothbrush..they came alot cleaner than they were but I want to get them even cleaner..just looking for a good simple safe soultion without messing up the corks..when i get used rods I always clean them really well thanks..

I have had luck using baby wipes. Really. Think about what they are made to clean. And they are gentle enough not to stain the cork.

magic erasers

X2

Since you have already done a decent cleaning on them you can further the looks of the rod by purchasing a magic eraser pack at a local store. Just wet the eraser and start scrubbing. It will really help restore the the color and remove alot of dirt. Dry the cork and further protect the cork by appplying a thin water like product called U-40 cork sealant. It is about $6.00 a bottle and will last many rods. I did about 30 rods with it and still have 2/3 of the bottle left. This will help seal the cork from deterioration. You can purchase it at the Tackletrap if you are interested.

Mr. Clean Magic Eraser + U-40 cork sealant should be around $12.00 or less.

X2

Since you have already done a decent cleaning on them you can further the looks of the rod by purchasing a magic eraser pack at a local store. Just wet the eraser and start scrubbing. It will really help restore the the color and remove alot of dirt. Dry the cork and further protect the cork by appplying a thin water like product called U-40 cork sealant. It is about $6.00 a bottle and will last many rods. I did about 30 rods with it and still have 2/3 of the bottle left. This will help seal the cork from deterioration. You can purchase it at the Tackletrap if you ate interested.

Mr. Clean Magic Eraser + U-40 cork sealant should be around $12.00 or less.

x1

I use the same method clean with magic eraser allow to dry then apply one thin coat of u-40. One thin coat is all that is need.

I agree with the last two posters.  Once you apply the U-40, afterwards all you have to do is use mild detergent to clean.  That U-40 is a great investment and a little goes a long ways.

x1

I use the same method clean with magic eraser allow to dry then apply one thin coat of u-40. One thin coat is all that is need.

Echoing this.  I got this info a while back and finally did it. Man that stuff is great. It's a must if you use cork.

I just use dish washing soap and a scotch brit and be gentle....cheap and has worked for years.

(I'm probably outdated on methods)

A bottle of peroxide for under a buck and paper

Towels is all you need. Been doing this for years.

It dries fast and leaves no residue plus it kills germs.

I would suggest you soak them in soapy water however you may not wish to be called a dirty cork soaker.

And if you have any holes in your cork, fill them with Elmer's wood filler in the tube, Golden Oak color.  Let it dry, sand lightly with 220 grit and it will look and feel great.

This may at first sound odd ... but Dawn dishwashing detergent has worked great for me. If you assume that at least some (if not most) of the stuff on the cork includes human oils from simple use, Dawn is great at breaking down that stuff -- all oils in fact. I just rub some on and let it sit for say a minute or two, then use a dish scrubber sponge and boom, it looks like new. I let it dry in the sunshine for a few hours ... after that its ready to go. 

Magic Eraser, and U-40, as already mentioned, quick, cheap and makes them look new.

This may at first sound odd ... but Dawn dish-washing detergent has worked great for me. If you assume that at least some (if not most) of the stuff on the cork includes human oils from simple use, Dawn is great at breaking down that stuff -- all oils in fact. I just rub some on and let it sit for say a minute or two, then use a dish scrubber sponge and boom, it looks like new. I let it dry in the sunshine for a few hours ... after that its ready to go. 

 

If I recall correctly they use Dawn to clean crude oil off of birds and animals that were caught in oil spills.

 

I use it and a toothbrush to clean all my real cork and synthetic material rod handles.  I just wet the handle with water, dip the toothbrush in the Dawn and paint it on the handle and let it sit for a few minutes; then I wet the toothbrush in water and scrub the handle until clean, after that it's just a clean water rinse and a wipe down with a paper towel.

 

The toothbrush gets down into all the little nooks and crannies of the cork, other scrubbers I've used just get the surface; the brush is also good for cleaning the reel seat area.

I'll clean'em as Traveler stated then lightly coat them with boiled linseed oil. 

magic erasers

X 100

May be a stupid question, but with these magic erasers, do you still use soap, or just get them damp. Also, do you really need to clean them if they aren't real dirty, say used about 5 or 6 times.

Hootie

May be a stupid question, but with these magic erasers, do you still use soap, or just get them damp. Also, do you really need to clean them if they aren't real dirty, say used about 5 or 6 times.

Hootie

Just wet and clean. No soap needed.  You probably don't need to clean them yet but it wouldn't hurt anything.  U40 will keep the cleaning to a minimum.

If I recall correctly they use Dawn to clean crude oil off of birds and animals that were caught in oil spills.

 

I use it and a toothbrush to clean all my real cork and synthetic material rod handles.  I just wet the handle with water, dip the toothbrush in the Dawn and paint it on the handle and let it sit for a few minutes; then I wet the toothbrush in water and scrub the handle until clean, after that it's just a clean water rinse and a wipe down with a paper towel.

 

The toothbrush gets down into all the little nooks and crannies of the cork, other scrubbers I've used just get the surface; the brush is also good for cleaning the reel seat area.

 

I learned something new today! 

 

I have to admit that I've never used a Mr. Clean Magic Eraser on cork before.  As posted above, my tried and true way to clean rod handles was with Dawn dish washing liquid and a tooth brush.  I have tried other types of kitchen scrubbers with not much success and gave up on them.  But since others posted about the Magic Eraser I thought I'd try it just to see what they're talking about.  So today I went out and found the Magic Eraser and gave it a fair shot on my last dirty rod.

 

Well. I don't have any idea how the Eraser works, but it does work and works very well indeed.  It was faster than my method and much less messy, in fact I didn't see any sign of soap action at all, the dirt just moved from the cork to the pad and then rinsed out of the pad with just a little running tap water.  I'm impressed ! 

 

The Eraser is however not as effective on the reel seat and locking threads, I had to resort to the tooth brush and Dawn to get into the tight places; but that's OK.

 

So thanks to everyone that suggested the Magic Eraser, I just learned something new today.... 

 

Now, when the U-40 arrives from Jann's Netcraft I'll finish the project.

I just cleaned my cork handles so I could seal them with U-40. I had made some marks to measure fish by on the handle and the Mr Clean Magic Eraser even took the markings off and I had used a Sharpie to make the marks.

 

Thanks for the tip....