Hey guys, I am looking to build a heavy duty saltwater rod with tarred twine grips. I have done this before with good results appearance wise, but with 1/8" cork tape under the grip, with a lot of pressure you can dent the cork underneath and create a slight gap between the thread which then needs worked out. I bought some 1/16" cork tape to use this time with the hopes it will compress less. But my question is is there even a need for the cork tape? Can I just apply the tarred twine wrap right over the blank itself? Or without that shock absorber can the rod be damaged while in a rod holder tight lining?

Thanks1

You can wrap twine directly onto the rod blank.

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Great, thanks!

I like a single layer of electrical friction tape to keep it in place.