# shaping hypalon?



## rhale (Mar 13, 2006)

How would I go about shaping hypalon grips on a finished rod? Can it be done? I just finished a 700XH calstar and the rear grip diameter is so large it wont fit in some of my rod holders. I also want to take some off the foregrip to cut down weight. Thanks


----------



## pg542 (Oct 9, 2006)

Unless it's a special purpose rod, a blank/rod of that line class may be better served with a slick butt grip setup. Much easier to get them out of a rodholder while line is screaming off and repeated in an out of a rodholder/rocket launcher can beat up foam fairly quickly........Hypalon can be some tough stuff to shape but can sanded into a more desirable diameter and/or taper. EVA foam is much easier to work, however probably not as durable as Hypalon. Since it's already glued-up, you'll have to shape on the blank/rod. Normally this is done by turning in a lathe or a strong power wrapper. Renzetti or Custom Power Wrap (lathe) are the only ones I know of that are suitable for foam shaping without overloading the motor. The short answer is yes, it can be done, but only by a turning method stong enough to do it. You might try doing some hand finishing/shaping. Get some drywall sanding screen of 2 or 3 different grits. Start with the most agressive and do the rough shaping, then finish it out using progressively finer grits on down into emory cloth of say 150 grit or so. Be careful to protect the blank/reelseat from sanding. Hypalon is tough stuff so handwork will be slow.. You possibly could try a stationary belt sander and (very) carefully roll the grips on the sander. Never seen that done but you never know. Any powered method of sanding/shaping shouldn't be allowed to get (friction) hot, as your screen or sanding media can get clogged quickly. Drywall screen usually sheds the sanding dust fairly well, but only if you don't let it get too hot., If you know someone who has lathe, possibly you could chuck up with some rollers and shape that way, just don't spin too fast and watch out for "out of balance" since the guides are already on,,,,Good luck,Jim


----------



## rhale (Mar 13, 2006)

http://www.mudhole.com/s.nl?it=A&id=22795&sc=2&category=1

Will this work? I have seen people use it for eva but not hypalon. I dont know anyone with a lathe and I am trying to avoid spending that much $$$ just to fix one rod. Thanks


----------



## pg542 (Oct 9, 2006)

I think you might be a little short on power for Hypalon. Eve and cork will shape much easier and don't seem to drag the motor down so much. I have the Custom Power Wrap lathe and essentially it's a standard power wrapper with a 3jaw chuck that has a reduction drive through more pulleys and belts to give more torque. I give up a little high speed but it more than makes up for it in torque. There is also a provision for reversing direction and toolrest and tailstock available for it. .....The American Tackle and Pac bay are both great wrappers if you go for the upgrade chuck. However I really couldn't say if they would have enough torque to do the job. I know how much stress hypalon puts on my machine and since wanted a lathe anyway, I bought a wood lathe and don't do turning on my wrapper any more. It's much easier to do all of your shaping for your grips before you glue them up. You can even use a drill press with a mandrel to hold your material(cork,eva,hyp.) and do all the shaping/turning before hand....... I'm in eastern Harris county(suburban Houston) if you ever come up this way, bring it with you,,,,,Jim


----------



## rhale (Mar 13, 2006)

Thanks alot Jim, I appreciate the offer. 
I do shape all my grips before installing them but I did not realize how large the butt diameter was on the 700 XH so I did not account for it and the fact that I had to use 1/2" ID hypalon because I could not find any Grey with 11/16 or larger. Boy that was a long push....
I am going to check around and try to find a cheap wood lathe of some sort and go from there. Thanks again, Ronnie


----------



## pg542 (Oct 9, 2006)

Check out Harbor Freight. The have some really inexpensive ones. Probably work okay for occasional use. I mean it is harbor freight after all. lol. Just be thinking about ways to keep the rod stable while turning as you don't want the tip to start wagging like a dog's tail at high speed. You'll snap a blank in a hurry. I realize a 700 calstar is a beefstick but you will be stressing it in ways it was never designed for while it is turning. There are some wierd torsionals at work there. lol. You probably already know about reaming to size. Reaming to near blank diameter can help alot when slipping the into place and will keep them from swelling so large after placing them on fat blanks. Most reamers capable of working hypalon stop at about .500. I think Batson has a Dream Reamer that is .650 max. I took an inexpensive close out blank not much different that the 700 ( alot cheaper) and used some of flex-coats abrasive replacement tape for reamers on this blank. I now have "1" reamer that will go from about 5/16" to 1.1" and it works well on hypalon. .......Maybe you just need bigger rodholders???? lol,,,good luck Jim


----------



## rhale (Mar 13, 2006)

Thats a great idea for making your own reamer. I have some old offshore rods laying around and that sounds like a great use for them... The largest reamer I had at the time only opened it up a little.
When I get the lathe I will also use the old rods to experiment with before I try it on the new rod.
I just checked out Harbor freight online and they have a few under 200 so I will make a trip to the store this weekend and hopefully find one that will work.

It would be much cheaper to buy a Renzetti than replace the 26 rod holders on my boat and the 17 on my truck. lol.. Thanks for the ideas.


----------



## pg542 (Oct 9, 2006)

......so I guess rodholder reamers are a bit over the top then.......


----------



## rhale (Mar 13, 2006)

Ask and you shall recieve...... I made a call to my friend who owns a machine shop and what do you know, he has an older lathe that he does not use anymore and he gave it to me...
After pulling a few muscles getting it in to my shop I am set up and running for shaping grips and what ever else..

I have already shaped on 3 rods and now I just need to order some mandrels and I wont have to stick the whole finished rod in it...


----------



## pg542 (Oct 9, 2006)

Outstanding!!! You can make your own mandrels with that machine. I'm not sure what the stock is called , but I'll bet your machinist does. Precision round stock is available of various fractional (1/4, 5/16, 3/8 etc.) diameters and work great for mandrels. You could even put a 60 degree bevel on one end for use in a live tailstock. You scored big there. Congrats,,,,Jim


----------

