There are lots of reasons that two sections of your rod can get stuck together. Increased exposure to saltwater, heat, or water in general can cause one section to expand, even in just a few hours on the water. A grain of sand or dirt will also have the same effect. If you’re a serious enough angler, it’s bound to happen to you at some point. Here are a few ways to deal with a stuck joint.
Pull Hard
This will probably going to be your first instinct anyway. If you can’t get it apart in front of you, try putting the rod against the back of your thighs. This will give you more pulling power and will steady your grip on the rod. A lot of anglers keep rubber gloves or pads in their tackle boxes for this very reason. Be careful not to pull too hard or in the wrong direction, as you might twist the rod and break it.
Pull Hard With a Friend
Sounds simple enough, but sometimes all you need is a good old fashioned tug of war between you and a friend. Be sure to avoid the line guides, as they will break easily if your hand slips. Instead of grabbing one side each, you should each put one hand on the other side of the rod so that you are each pulling in both directions.
Heat and Cold
If pulling doesn’t work, your situation just got a little more serious. In a classic attempt to be scientific, many anglers heat up the female section of the rod joint in an attempt to expand it and slide the male section out. This method has worked for some, but it might not be quite enough for your rod.
Lubricant
If you spray WD-40 on the section and leave it to seep into the joint for a few minutes, you may be able to slide it right off. This is the least risky way to separate a stuck rod joint, but doesn’t necessarily have a high rate of success.
Cold Temperature
Instead of heating one section and cooling the other, some anglers say that cooling down both sections of a rod will loosen the joint. You can accomplish this by leaving the rod outside overnight, or if you’re in a rush try placing a bag of ice around the joint and then giving the two sections a good pull.
In the end…
Once you do get your rod unstuck, be sure to clean out both the male and female thoroughly and apply some wax or oil to the section. Most store bought rods come with ferrule wax, but a little grease or oil from somewhere will do the job just fine.
amberjack.com
