I have a reel seat I would like to remove.  It was glued with epoxy (Devcon 5 minute I think) and the blank was built up in several places with masking tape.  Can I just heat the reel seat to break down the glue?  Any danger or thoughts on how best to do this?  (James Hecht)

Slow heat will do. Just try not to ruin the finish on the seat. I just removed a seat from a fiberglass rod that had built up masking taper underneath. Worked fine. I might assume that the seat is metal? That would be even easier.  (Bob Maulucci)

I'm kinda red-faced. 

I attached a reelseat to the rod I'm working on and noticed that it is (the reelseat) off a little bit from plumb.  Any ideas of what I should do?  I think I've got a couple of options: 

1. live with it
2. remove the reel seat (any ideas how?  It was glued with epoxy) and remount it.  (Todd Talsma)

Here is a tip that might help.

I don't glue the reel seat till I have the guides on the rod and some finish on the wraps. In most cases, the rod is varnished before gluing the reel seat. It is generally the last thing I do before polishing the rod The reel seat is assembled and ready to glue, a reel is inserted in the seat and lined up with the guides on the butt section sighting through the space between the reel body and the line on the spool. I just set the whole assembly aside checking it several times before the glue sets up.

As for removing the seat, I have seen a seat removed by dipping  in boiling water.  Don't know about bamboo, I do know it works on Gr-----.  (Tony Spezio)

I have removed a reel seat (I had the same problem that you do) by using my heat gun and carefully going over the wood insert.  It takes a long time, but it does work.  You also have to be careful not to scorch the insert in the process.  (Dennis Haftel)

Why not just heat the cane in front of the reel seat, and induce enough twist to counter the out of plumb reel seat, thereby rendering it plumb? The grip will cover the twist anyway, and in that area there's not enough stress to amount to anything.  (Martin-Darrell)

How do I remove a reel seat glued on with Gorilla Glue?

I need to remove the reel seat as the butt end and of the cork grip is loose and I want to get some more glue under it.  (Pete Van Schaack)

You can inject it with epoxy, No need to remove the handle.  (Gary Nicholson)

I saw somewhere that Gorilla glue takes some 600 degrees to soften. I had to change a ferrule glued on with it and ended up cutting it to get it off.

Not the glue to use for removable parts.  (Chad Wigham)

If it truly is glued on with Gorilla Glue you have problems. I talked to the people at Gorilla Glue a couple of years ago and remember them saying that the glue will let go at somewhere around 550 degrees. While my memory is far from perfect I do know that it is an awful lot of heat to make the glue fail. I dare say that you will have to cut the seat off in small pieces.  (Steve Shelton)

So I am in the process of refinishing my first bamboo rod (an HI Spinner).

I took all the necessary measurements, removed the pin from the butt cap. Placed it in ziplocked baggie, dunked in boiling water...AND....the reel seat won't come off, tried and tried and tried. All the cork finally came off from the heat but the reel seat is still there it hasn’t budged....

What am I missing, What should I do?!?!?!  (Evan ???)

Water boils at 212 degrees at sea level. Chances are the glue holding it is much higher temp or the reel seat is pinned. If it is not pinned then use a heat gun and a pair of gloves. Heat it up with out burning and start tugging.  Sometimes getting it hot then cooling it in ice water will break the hold of the glue.  (Adam Vigil)

Sometimes they used resorcinol to glue everything on with. I have seen rods by H-I and South Bend where the cane, the ferrules, the cork and the reel seat were all glued on with it. The only remedy for that is to heat the bakelite until it softens then take  it off in chunks with a pair of pliers, kinda tough on the insert, but they were pretty crappy anyway. If you must reproduce it, you can get black nylon in rounds from MSC or McMaster-Carr.  (John Channer)

Anybody ever try to get a Heddon Pyralin seat off?  I'm guessing they're glued on, and would probably get destroyed in an attempt to take the seat off.  (Greg Kuntz)

Yes, they are glued to a light wood barrel and in turn that barrel is glued to the turned down blank. The uplocking South Bends with the hooded cap next to the grip and a hooded cap on the bottom with the knurled plastic end cap that you turn to move the bottom hood upward are the worst. The hooded cap next to the cork has a HIDDEN pin inside of it. Don't ask how I discovered that one.  (Will Price)

I have restored many rods and sometimes it is best to just live with the reelseat the way it is.

Of course if the reelseat is unusable the safest bet is to carefully sand or grind it off. The safest way to do this is to use a stationary disk sander or belt sander. You must kep a steady hand and be careful to only grind the seat. Try to work it loose just before it is ground through.

This method avoids soaking and heating which could start delamination.

If you are going to use the original seat, you can install the new cork handle with the reel seat on.  (Don Sargent)

You are correct about delamination if you are not careful. But if you are able to work the reel seat off using your method and not grind it all the way through, then it probably was the heat from sanding or grinding that got the glue to let loose.

A little constant heat and patience can save a reel seat.  (Adam Vigil)

I Just started refinishing an HI Spinner that a friend gave me.  I did finally get the reel seat off by the way.  (Evan ???)

How did you get it off?  (Hal Manas)

Boiled in water, then ice water then I pulled it then boiled water then ice water. By the end it slid off without any pressure. By the end the reel seat was so hot it was mushy in my hand. Now I have another problem. The entire butt end which was under the reel seat is delaminated. What do I do?!?  (Evan ???)

When I encounter delamination, I carefully spread the strips and hold them apart with flat toothpicks. Then I moisten the whole delaminated area and carefully spread Gorilla Glue into the strips. I then remove the toothpicks and bind the area by hand with strong thread. The Gorilla Glue will spread by foaming and will usually make a repair that is stronger than the original glue.

This is a touchy business because you don't want the delamination to move any farther than it already is. So don't spread the strips apart very much. I use an artists pallet knife to spread the Gorilla Glue because the blade is thin and it has no sharp edge to dig in.  (Don Sargent)

You might want to try an old worn out soft bristled toothbrush. Would probably be easier than the artists knife.  (Will Price)

Sometimes using a duck wing quill feather helps to inject glue into tight places.  (Bill Fink)

I forgot to mention that since your original reel seat got mushy, Channel-lock makes some nice looking reel seats that are not too much like the original, but don't stand out like sore thumbs either. The come in flat black as well as other colors and the thinner model often blends in with the look of a vintage rod. They are available from Netcraft in Maumee, Ohio.  (Don Sargent)