Wonder Rod issues and questions

[Baron]

Hello all I have questions regarding a new acquisition. Its a 7'9' Wonder Rod Super Whacker....... well maybe not a super whacker. I want to Re-wrap all the guides as the silk windings are sloppy and frayed. It should be very straight forward as the guides are still in nice shape.
So here are my questions:
1) it is a stiff fiberglas rod, seems like even power top to bottom and I think it will be nice for bluefish and other 4-8 lb fish. It feels like it should handle a Medalist 1495 1/2 or other heavy reel loaded with 8 or 9 wt line. Thoughts?
2) it is lightly cracked on both sides above the upper ferrule. Shall I install a spline or just cut it back past there and reinstall the ferrule?
I like fiber glass and so I feel it will be worth the work to have this as my "heavy" rod.

Best!
Baron

Below is the crack. It extends 2" up from the ferrule on the left.

 

[Baron]

Hey, Some one answer. otherwise I'll only have me to blame

 

[Bamboozle]

Any idea of the model #?

FWIW - I'd be leery of putting too much time & effort into a rod with cracks at the ferrule.

Inserting a stent can help but maybe not. Over-sleeving won't accomplish anything unless you sleeve completely cover the cracks which means the part inside the ferrule, then you will need a larger ferrule which will totally gum up the works.

Cutting the blank may effect the action undesirably and when you cut the blank, the ferrule won't fit because the rod section diameters will have changed due to being cut off. Trying to overcome that by taking blank down on one side and building it up on the other may be another disaster.

If it was me, I'd fish it as is or with minimal touch up, see if you like it and if you do, search for better example to fish as is or refurbish.

 

[RLeep2]

I know nothing about rod repair or rebuilding. I would say though, if it were me, one of the primary determinants I'd use as to how much time/$ I was willing to put into it would be rod model and/or age.

With Shakespeare stuff (as well as many other long time name mass market brands liker Pflueger, Garcia and even Fenwick and Cortland, etc.) there can be a pretty sharp quality cutoff between the newer and older stuff. Sort of a before and after big box/Wal Mart thing. Not all of it certainly, but enough to matter in many cases.

How old is the rod?

 

[PennKev]

Baron wrote:
it is lightly cracked on both sides above the upper ferrule.

The ferrule is a stiff spot and it is likely creating a high stress area on either end.

Those cracks could have been there for a couple decade of use and they aren't going to give out anytime soon, or the rod could blow the next time any modest amount of stress is applied. I dunno. You could always string the rod up with heavy line, tie it off to something solid and see if you can put weight on it without it giving. Also, putting a plug in the blank or over sleeve might just stiffen the area and transfer the stress to a point farther down the blank. I dunno.

In regard to re-wrapping, I suggest buying new snake guides if you go ahead with a re-wrap. Modern snakes, even cheap Pac-Bay's have much better chrome coatings than most older guides. Re-wrapping a rod is enough work that its worth a couple bucks to know the guides are up to future use.

I enjoy restoring older rods but there's a point where it may not be worth the effort. You gotta decide if your time is well spent on this project. you could spend the same time on a brand new rod build and not be worrying about a blank that already shows signs of failure.

 

[Baron]

Well you all kind of Pooh Poohed this poor rod. It’s an earlier model. It makes sense to strap it down and flex it and see if it moves at all. I’m glad I have you all to bounce questions off of as in the long run its a great help. I’m gonna set it aside and rethink it another time. Maybe it can be made into a crappie jigging rod latter. Or make an ice fishing rod out of the tip.
Thanks all.

 

[springer1]

The early model Wonderods were some of the first examples of non-solid glass rods and had (believe it or not but it's true) a light balsa core. Release agents were not yet perfected for manufacturing so each rod was made on it own light balsa mandrel which remained. Compared to solid glass rods, these were very lightweight. These rods had fiberglass strands all running lengthwise.... the spiral external appearance was due to the cellophane wrap that was used in the production process to squeeze out excess resin. These rods can develop lengthwise cracks over time.

Later Wonderods were hollow and called "Doublebilt". They were made on mandrels that were later removed, and first had an inner layer of glass wound around the mandrel, this layer providing improved hoop strength. The outer fiberglass layer ran lengthwise, and again, the spiral appearance of the blank was due to the cellophane wrap that was used in the production process to squeeze out excess resin and is not indicative of strand direction.

If your model is an earlier version and showing significant cracks, then it might be better to find a better example on e*ay or wherever. Many of the 7'9" models are not "stiff" at all.

 

[springer1]

BTW, some of those early models did not have thread wraps, rather wraps of the same clear fiberglass strands & resin the blank was made from ... having a "flat dental floss" appearance. These wraps were then painted and have a different appearance than thread wraps. Sometimes an early Wonderod for sale looks like the wraps are worn & ugly, but in reality they are seriously durable and simply in need of a repaint.

 

[Baron]

Bingo. That is what these wraps are and the do look strong. Except for the tip-top they are all solid. It is a heavy rod. With my 1495 it balances 4” ahead of the grip.