I am a rookie building my first rod so bare with me-----I have a very slim blank I'm working with and need to know what size winding checks to order. I plan on using the black rubber WCs from Mudhole which come in a variety of sizes but nothing really close to the diameter of my blank. Because I do not have my reel seat and handle I can't give an exact measurement of where the winding checks will go, I can only estimate, The areas where they will be installed measure: .37--.35--&.33. The sizes available close to those sizes is .300 & 375. So my question is will a .300 rubber check stretch for the .33 and .35 locations???

Thanks in Advance!!

Ed,

Most all of the Vendors will check a winding check size for you before shipping. In my experience the rubber winding checks will stretch a little to fit the blank. If you talk with the vendor on the phone they will need to know how far up from the butt of the blank you will be positioning the reel seat, grips etc and then they can mark the blank with a china pencil and select the correct size for the winding check. If you are ordering from Mudhole you can add your requests in the comments box provided on their web page. After reading your post in a little more detail, I see you haven't selected a reel seat or grip yet. This makes it more difficult to size a winding check; but most blanks don't taper a lot on the butt area. If by chance you end up with a winding check that is too large you can always add some thread wraps under the winding check before epoxying it into place.

Don Campbell
don@sensorfishingrods.com

Thanks Don

Hi Ed,

The other thing you can do is order both sizes.

Take care,

Chris

The rubber will stretch 5/100 of an inch no problem.

I was very disappointed the one time I used those. 12-18 months, they got hard and cracked. Doesn't affect performance, just looks bad.

Don’t get the rubber ones get the vinyl ones. They stretch and last forever. The rubber one break down after a short time.
Norm

How will the rubber ones be with finish over them? I ask because I've already made the order.

UV light breaks down the rubber winding checks and in my opinion they just do not last. Covering them with epoxy will help some and they will last longer. Mudhole has two listings one for rubber winding checks and the other for rubber/vinyl winding checks. If you bought the rubber/vinyl checks you are fine. If you bought the rubber ones, send me an email with your address and I will send you a couple from my stock, no charge. Hope this helps.
Norm

Yeah,
I have some of the old brown checks, don't think they are rubber at all as they are shiny and very light weight, got to be 40 years old probably. Look like new, only have the very small ice rod, or huge saltwater ones left.