Redressing an old friend

Ever had a fishing rod that had just the right action but is falling apart after years of use and abuse? Such is the case with my Berkley Lightning Rod. I have had it for over 20 years and had a lot of mojo build up on it and hated to part with it. Besides that I have been shopping around for something similar or even better but I had to fork out 4X as much for something that came close to it. So I said the heck with those new rods and did an overhaul and improvement job on it. And this is what I did:

1) Added some cork to the grip to fill in rough spots that were hurting my palm after a full day of fishing. This made the handle smooth and fit to my palm much better.

2) Replaced all the guides with a set of smaller diameter guides. This besides redressing the wraps allowed me to reduce the weight on the rod tip and therefore increased the sensitivity of the rod.

So now it's drying on the homemade rod rack  and will be ready for some testing this weekend in Silly Valley. I'll let you guys know if it affected the casting distance or not as soon as I try this out.

Before I even read the thread I started thinking about rebuilding my 7' berkley Hot Rod.  Same scenario...mojo galore, beat and old but still no equivalent on the market today.  I bought a new fenwick that felt like it had decent action but completely sucked for working crankbaits.  The old rod needs a rebuild...........I'll drop it off at your pad this weekend 

Before I even read the thread I started thinking about rebuilding my 7' berkley Hot Rod.  Same scenario...mojo galore, beat and old but still no equivalent on the market today.  I bought a new fenwick that felt like it had decent action but completely sucked for working crankbaits.  The old rod needs a rebuild...........I'll drop it off at your pad this weekend 

Something to do with sentimental values. I do completely relate to that. And You can drop it off anytime!

I had some bargain rods that had rusted guides or guides in the wrong spot, but had also caught a few fish for me so compa did a little rod surgery for me. he's kind of hard to pay, you have to tell him that you just saw a big bass jump, and when he's distracted put some senko and gas money in his wallet.  also, you have to wait for him to get bass elbow, pneumonia, and it's snowing outside so he doesn't go fishing instead of fix up your rods,  , then when they are done you can only get your rods if you go fishing with him, but it's worth it! 

 

Did those Senkos have hooks in them? 

Tested the rod out today and I like it!  Sensitivity increase quite a bit and the casting distance suffered minimally. I might to the second rod as well when I get some time.

Cool little project compa. Hopefully the rod didn't lose any mojo!
Thanks for the pics+info,
PK

If it did lose some mojo, it'll get it back soon enough with the pre-spawn coming. Got to give it some bendo this afternoon:

Sweet rebuild job!..... you did the smart thing! i just broke bread for some new poles.....and took the old ones, along w/reels to the trash can.    They were too old and shot from the grip up!.....flaking when flexed(not good)
that pic looks like worse conditions than being up here in the SanPabloBay waters..nasty wind!
now i got me something to do when i'm 55!...rebuild my old 2008 poles! thanks for the idea.