A coworker asked if I could do an ice rod for he and his son with the Nebraska Husker colors and logo on it. The blank is way too small of a diam. for a logo, and I'm concerned placing it on the cork (Tennessee handles), the reel bands would "crush" the finish if just using clear coat. Would a couple or more coats of a clear polyurethane finish be better?

Put two coats of high build thread coating over the cork (burl works the best) and it looks like glass. Compression rings ( aka castration rings) won't even dent that finish. With regular/natural cork you might need another couple of coats as it is a lot more porous than burl cork. Consider primering (white) the grip, then Magic marble the grip in the school colors, decal over that, couple coats of finish. Way cool............. Buzz

Team colors on a wraps, Then burn the N logo in the cork handle lightly with a fine tip wood burner, either on the front top or sides of grip. That would be pretty cool??? Jaa

Cork is NOT porous! It is a closed cell structure, and as such does not absorb fluids much beyond it's surface. Otherwise it would never be used for net floats, etc.

A couple of good coats of polyurethane, gloss or dull will do the job.

I have put wrap epoxy on cork and it looks great and has held up well. If concerned about the reel seat area just stop it short of that area. An inch or so at each end, with the logo underneath, should work fine. You probably should put a coat on the cork, then the decal, then the finish coat or coats. Sounds like others have tried it with success, too. You can do an experiment on a couple of cork rings glued together to get a good idea of how hard and durable it will be.

Thanks for advice.