all three of my Abu Garcia rods have gotten sticky / tacky on the black grips over the past summers - how can I treat them so they dont peel or get worse?  any ideas?

TIA 

 

Wash in warm water using Simple Green, rinse and dry.

Tom

and if they still feel a bit tackey, lightly dust them with talcum powder or cornstarch and then wipe that off. 

Thanks to you both! Will do!

 

My Abu rods did that too. Then they started to peel. They seemed to have a thin rubberized coating that deteriorated over time.

 

I ended up giving the ones that were still useable away and tossed the rest.

You can use shrink tubing to cover them and be done.  I get mine from Mud Hole.