Hi team,

 

Are there any aftermarket rod extensions (or quick and dirty approximations) that would be considered bolt on to an existing rod?  I have a 6'6" St Croix Avid crankbait rod that I built a long while ago before I knew what my preferences were in a rod.  I built it with only a 6-8" rear grip and while the grip looks great (burl inlays and rings, A grade cork) it's too short.  In a pinch I can make it work but I'm a two hand caster and I can only get a finger or two on the bottom on a cast.  I'd like to extend it 3" or so and I think it would be a dandy rod.  I know I can tear the grip apart and rebuild it.  If I decide that I love the rod in extended form I'll do that.  But I'd like to fish it a bit with a temporary solution before I commit to ripping it up.

 

Any good temp solutions to extend a rod?

Not a solution but something to beware of . . .

I tried a temporary extension using a piece of blank as an internal sleeve pressed in tightly but without glue.  After a little use the insert seemed to get loose but it actually split the butt of the original rod under the grip.

31 minutes ago, MikeK said:

Not a solution but something to beware of . . .

I tried a temporary extension using a piece of blank as an internal sleeve pressed in tightly but without glue.  After a little use the insert seemed to get loose but it actually split the butt of the original rod under the grip.

I would have suggested the same technique but epoxied in. 

 

I used the technique to fix a rod I snapped in half. It worked but not a great solution as a repair in the middle section. It really took away lot of attributes the rod had. But for the butt section, I can't imagine it being all that bad.

I did extend the rod butt years ago by matching an aluminum bar to equal the OO & ID of the rod butt end blank. The ID end was the same length as the OD extension length. Epoxied the aluminum ID bar end into the rod blank and thread wrapped the very end of the rod blank about 1” up to prevent splitting.

Using cork rings finished the rod butt to match the original handle. Worked good and balanced. Added weight 25 years ago wasn’t a big issue. You could bore out the OD bar end to reduce weight.

Tom

Hi gents,

 

yes, I’ve extended (and repaired) plenty in my time building so I’m good on that end. I was looking for something without cutting off the ‘butt cap’ which is a hand turned cork/composite cap. If I cut that off and decide I don’t like the rod longer then I either have to fix it or have a rod that isn’t usable. I was hoping to find a solution that was minimal effort to revert back if I don’t like it. Maybe a perfect fit copper tube over the current grip.  I did that on a net handle and it works pretty well. 

Picture is worth a thousand words.

Tom

1 hour ago, WRB-2.0 said:

Picture is worth a thousand words.

Tom

A while back, I extended the handles on a couple of glass cranking rods.

Wanted to be able to two-hand cast them for better distance.

Clearly this is a mostly permanent modification. 

Short version -  I glued a short section of old, tight-fitting blank which extended a short distance up into the existing rod handle/blank.  I left enough of the end of the that exposed to glue the new/longer (butt ends from damaged rods) handles on. Worked out OK and is completely functional.

 

A-Jay

4 hours ago, A-Jay said:

A while back, I extended the handles on a couple of glass cranking rods.

..

 

Love the Lami's.

19 hours ago, A-Jay said:

A while back, I extended the handles on a couple of glass cranking rods.

Wanted to be able to two-hand cast them for better distance.

Clearly this is a mostly permanent modification. 

Short version -  I glued a short section of old, tight-fitting blank which extended a short distance up into the existing rod handle/blank.  I left enough of the end of the that exposed to glue the new/longer (butt ends from damaged rods) handles on. Worked out OK and is completely functional.

 

A-Jay

Small world the rod I extended the handle 4” was Lamiglas XC705 the model before Skeet Reese changed the color to yellow SR705. 
No longer have the rod left in Canada.
Tom

https://a.co/d/3cM1rKO

Free returns

Stuff it full of something so it doesn't go on all the way and see it it feels, then you'll know if you want the permanent fix or not

An 8 inch grip should be no problem to two hand cast, there are a bunch of crankbait rods out there with that length grip, the trick to getting the screw on extension, here is an idea from fly rods, the issue though will be the length of the extension that is needed to anchor both side when installed, a bit of ingenuity is needed due to the increased leverage over a fly rod's needs. If you keep it 1.5 inch extension you can modify this to work, from REC, cost 12 dollars. The piece on the far right of the first photo is the plug to cover the hole when you remove the fighting butt and give a finished look. I built the Lami above in the S Glass version 25+ years ago the blank is 3/8 oz. lighter and a bit livelier. The MB 705 1E blank was always available in honey, white or black. the SMB 705 1E S glass is a red brown,

It took me about 15 seconds to figure out how to make my own longer version that follows the rules of extension building, the pictures make it pretty obvious, and all might be available at your hardware store. Same basic design just make it longer both ends and use aluminum hardware to save weight.