I picked up a GLX drop shot spinning rod (820S) a while back and I'm toying with the idea of stripping it and making it into a trout casting rod. Does anyone have any experience stripping one of these blanks? If so, when you pulled the guides off, were you able to do it without damaging the finish on the blank? If I do this, I'm going to make it a simple spiral so I'll probably be able to use the same guide positions that the guides are already wrapped on, give or take a millimeter here and there. I'll probably be able to get the stripper guide close too I would think. I'm going to use the reel seat as is, I don't think I'll miss having the trigger on the seat. Any suggestions for stripping the guides without making a mess of the blank finish...? Thanks in advance!!!!

i did this once by repositioning the hoods on the seat to hold the casting reel on the side opposit side..the fixed hood just pops out and i rotated it 180 dec. and the sliding hood is regroved on the other side so that the hood can be turned 180 and slide to hold your casting reel..also the guides will automatically be on the bottom for your spiral wrap..i left the spin butt guide on and just didn,t use it with casting reel on top..i went from reel to first runner bypassing spin butt guide..no bumper..didn,t need it..i still have this rod and can use it for spin or cast..it gets laughs too. lol..it,s may be getting a few right now. lol.

Adam, with all due respect I'm going to advise you as a Dutch uncle would. (I actually am a Dutch uncle and therefore qualified). There are plenty of sales ongoing from the sponsors and none better than mentioned in the post below. I would start from scratch on this project, as I think you would be turning what is probably already a perfectly good trout rod into something less than that. This project brings to my mind Ozzy's song: Road to Nowhere. That being said, I wish you all the luck in the world with your project and hope you succeed if you proceed. I mean no disrespect with this post, just callin' it as I see it. Have a good holiday season, Lynn

have to agree with Lynn it would be simpler to just buy new and go from there as there so many deals out there now , you could easily get a new rod blank + parts for about the same dollars you would spend in just parts and time re doing a good rod as it sits now.

The best day to be alive is always tomorrow !!
Think out side the box when all else fails !!!
Wi.

hi Adam..after further revue.lol.. i would do as Lynn and Matthew suggest because i now recall building this spin/cast version from scratch not by converting an already made rod..the reel seat was not yet attached to the rod making it much easier to modify and i could place the guides in positions to work as spin or cast..sorry for the distraction and have fun..

Thanks for the input gentlemen, I really appreciate it. I knew from the start that it would be easier to start from scratch, and I had a hunch that the blank finish alone could present issues. I may just take your advice Lynn and just use it as a trout spinning rod and a dropshot rod, then start a little search for the right blank and components for a build. I am probably going to end up putting different guides on the GLX at some point if I really can't get used to the recoils. They're just so dang noisy...

I now know why you want to redo this rod, the recoil guides. Some love them others hate them, and it seems like you do not like them. You are not alone, I have replaced recoil guides on a lot of of GLX and NRX rods. I don’t know when you got your GLX, but it seems that they change the rod finish, handle type and guide trains quite often. Many GLX rods came in a matte black natural finish,which means no finish, others were painted different colors. If yours is matte black you really do not need to worry about damaging the finish since there is no finish. If it is a colored blank the finish can be damaged and you have be very careful in removing guides and cleaning up the old epoxy finish. If you want to put new guides in the same location as the old guides then it is relatively easy, since the thread wrap will hide all imperfections. I have found that the painted finish on GLX and NRX Rods is pretty hard and durable and if very careful you can clean up the rods so the old guide locations are barely noticible. Remove the old guides by carefully applying heat from a heat gun ( or hair dryer ) on low setting for just a few seconds at a time. This will soften the epoxy. Cut the threads on top of the foot and peel the thread off. Once the guides are off, heat the epoxy residue for just a second or two and scrape it off using your finger nails, or a piece of hard wood that has an edge on it, I use a piece of split bamboo. The woodscapers,like your finger nails, will not remove the unlying finish. Unless I want to completely remove all the finish, I never use a metal blade for scraping the epoxy off, it will invariably damage the underolying paint finish. A little goo gone or goof off can clean up most of the remaining epoxy residue. On the matte finished rod you can wet sand with 1000 - 2000 grit automotive finishing sand paper. This will remove all the residue without damaging the blank.

I agree with the others in keeping it as a spinning rod. To make it a casting rod would require changing reel seats. If you don’t change the seat, I do not think you would ever be happy with this rod as a casting rod. However, if you do successfully get all the guides off it is not that much more work to cut the old seat off and add a casting reel seat of your choice.

If you want to replace the old guides I would use the Minima4 titanium Tiblack guides for a spinning rod or for a casting rod. They are very light and make a very suitable substitute for the recoil guides. Hope this helps.
Norm

Thanks for your input Norm, I really appreciate it!

M blank is gold which is why I was wondering about the finish being damaged. If I do ever change the guides, I really love the SS Alconite's on my Tatula rods so I'd probably go with those. I have Minima's on a rod and don't particularly care for them, but I can't put my finger on why that is... I do have another rod or two that I'll be using you guide stripping suggestions for though, thanks!

I'm all in on changing the guides, you might be able to lighten it up a bit. If not, it'll still look better, I am one of those who does not care for Recoils. ( Minima 4's are hard to beat, but I'll never @#$%& about Fuji's, unless I can't get one I want.)

The Minima4s are really nice on ultralight, light and mag light action rods like your drop shot rods. With that said, it is really hard to beat the Fuji KR guides they are great guides. Try the new Fuji corrosion control guides, in either CC or BC finishes, they are really nice and are the same price as the other Alconite KR guides..
The Loomis GLX and NRX Rods have a pretty hard finish and are relatively easier to strip down when compared to many less expensive rod brands. If I remember correctly the Diawa Tatula spin rods used Fuji Y guides in a NGC setup. Could easily replace the recoil guides with the equivalent Fuji NGC guides, by putting them in the same location. However, I should warn you that the entire set of recoil guides (or Minima 4 guides) weigh less than the single Fuji Y guide.stripper.
Norm

Norm, that's exactly the conundrum I am facing. I think if I use straight mono or fluoro I'll be fine with the recoils. But if I use braid and a leader, well...

Adam,
I have used 10 lb. braid tied to 10 lb. fluorocarbon with no ill effects using #3 Alps ceramic guides.

Spencer, what I mean was the sound that the guides make with braid running through them, that goes right through me...

Adam,
Just imagine that the sound is a Chello in concert at the Rock a Feller Center in New York city. Go fishing and enjoy the concert.

Recoils look like they belong on a mousetrap.

I'm more of an acoustic bass guy myself Roger, though if the line slapped and snapped the way a good bass sounds when it's being played by a pro, I'd have bigger problems than the Recoils I think...

lol I'm not a fan of the sound of braid going through guides either. Of course there are baits that pretty much require the angler use braid to be successful. Other than those baits, give me the Simon and Garfunkel sound of silence.

I don't have an issue with the sound through conventional guides, but the Recoils are so loud in comparison. When I use it, especially out on the east coast of Canada, it's very likely going to find use throwing light inline spinners for native trout. I'll be using some like Yo-Zuri Hybrid, mono, or fluoro so it shouldn't be very noisy at all. I have a couple other rods that will serve well as dedicated dropshot rods so I won't be forced to go braid with a leader on the GLX.

I do agree that virtually any guide with a ceramic style ring will be much quieter with braid than any of the non ringed guides like the Minimas or the Recoils.

Good luck

Thanks Roger, hopefully I won't need any...