What’s up guys, first post here. Did a little research about the Winn grips and seems most posts are about installing split grips. I am thinking of putting the longer rear Winn grip on my next build. Rod has a butt of .73 and the biggest winn grips have a .50 ID. Do they require reaming or can you lube them up and slide them down like EVA? They aren't cheap, and don't want to screw it up too bad.

Also any reviews? How is the longevity? Thanks guys

you have to ream them to fit the blank as you would any other grip

I have been told by another builder that he had trouble with the surface getting distorted when he tried forcing them over a blank that was too big for the grip's hole. So I think it best to have the parts sized so they dry fit easily before gluing. I've used only shorter ones and have had no problems with parts sized as I mention above. They are offered in very long lengths, so I expect a note to Winn's would be productive.

Chris,
Due to the type grip - ream the grip to size before installing. The finish of the grip does not like to be stretched. It only takes a few moments to ream the grip to size, so ream, glue and install and you will be good to go.

Be safe

Yes, ream them. I have had a lot of people try the Winn grips and they love them. Many have had me retro fit all of their old rods with Winn grips because they like them so much. Since the Winn grips have come out my use of cork has dropped dramatically. They have not be around very long as fishing grips, so it is difficult to tell at this time how long they will last, but so far so good. No replacements over the past three or four years. There are still people who prefer cork, and others that like the carbon fiber grips. So different people have different likes and dislikes.
Norm

Thanks everyone. Will ream them out and take it slow. Still pretty new to rod building, so doing a bit of research to keep my screw ups to a minimum.

My buddy has the Winn grips on one of his rods, and they feel great, but that is on a bass rod. I’ll be putting them on an offshore bottom fishing rod. Let’s see how they do. The natural cork Winn grips with an alps reel seat will look sharp!

I think Tour Star has some videos showing the installation of their version of long grip.

Hey all - just a few notes on installing the longer Winn grips.

Agree with the rest - ream them so you can just dry fit into place. One thing to avoid is forcing them down the blank. If you try to force the longer Winn grips down the blank (like you may with traditional eva) you will run the risk of having the WinnDry Polymer (that is wrapped around an eva base) buckle. Meaning - some areas of the polymer may separate from the eva - and looks like buckle or bubble in the grip.

Doesn't always happen, but it is a risk that is also easily avoidable by reaming so it just barely dry fits into place. Anyway, just a few things we found useful when working with the longer Winn grips.

The longer versions really do look nice too - browse the Winn selection here if interested:
[www.mudhole.com]

Thanks

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