How to replace a broken guide on your fishing rod

So you're out fishing, and you notice one of the guides on your fishing rod is either damaged or broken.  Or maybe the guide insert is flapping around the line between the other guides (which you hear every cast) and maybe it's not even there anymore.  This is one scenario you don't want to have happen, especially when you're out hunting for that big trophy.  Believe it or not, a damaged guide can rub against your line every time you cast or each time you reel in a fish. Pretty soon, probably when you're fighting the big one, your line will just go slack from snapping due to the damage and fraying it has caused.

What do you do?  Well, don't throw that rod away or put it deep in the corner of the garage behind the tennis rackets...with a few tools and the right setup, you can easily replace any of your fishing rod guides.

Preventing damage to rods

Ok, I know accidents happen and guides can be bent, damaged or broken off fairly easy.  But the methods of storage and transportation are without a doubt where most guides on your fishing rods are damaged. When you get up early in the morning, barely awake, and you throw all your rods in the back of the truck before heading to the water...guides get broken.  When you get home from a long day on the water and are worn out from catching so many fish, you grab the rods out of the back of your truck and throw them in the corner of your garage...guides get broken.  One way to eliminate most of these accidents is to take care of your equipment! Instead of just throwing rods in the back of your truck, try building a rod rack for the back of your truck (just don't go through a drive-thru on the way home).

6 PVC Rod holders attached to toolbox

As far as storing them in your garage, build a simple rod rack to protect your rods and reels in between your days on the water.  I have seen several different designs and methods to safely storing your rods in the garage and intend to build my own soon...so check back for which method I build and my review. Whether on the boat or in my kayak, I try to keep everything clean and organized.  This makes my setup safer and helps to protect my equipment from damage in those unexpected moments that we all face while on the water.  

Rod holders attached on Kayak

There are several ways to protect your equipment from damage, but I know there are those times when equipment gets damaged by accident or from years of use...so that leads me to my next solution for replacing the guide.

Where to start

So first off, you'll want to make a trip to your local sporting goods store or the nearest rod building supplies store (One in the Houston area that I use for all my rod building needs is Fishing Tackle Unlimited).  You'll need to find a guide similar to the broken or damaged guide you will be replacing. Make sure the guide is for the right style of rod (casting, spinning or fly) as well as matching up the size.  Also, if you want to match the design of the rod, get the different thread colors making sure the thread size matches up.  Size 'C' thread will make it easy to wrap most guides and doesn't make that big of a difference if you just want to get your rod fishing again.

Replacing the guide

First, you'll need a rod wrapping station along with all the tools. I'm not going to go into details now for all the tools and equipment you need but for most starters, it is easiest to purchase a wrapping station.  If you go this route to purchase, you can check out the selection at Fishing Tackle Unlimited or Mud Hole.  A more adventurous route would be to build your own if you can spend a few hours in the wood shop.

The Rod Wrapping Station

Replacing a guide on your rod is fairly simple and can be performed in only a matter of about 15 minutes if you already have all the tools, supplies and parts.  Here are the steps to do so:

1. Remove the existing guide:  First, you'll want to take a sharp razor blade to carefully cut away the threads of the existing guide that you wish to replace. During this step, be careful to not cut too deep and damage the rod blank.
2. Clean guide seat surface:  After you remove the guide, clean the old residue that may still be on the rod blank to give yourself a clean surface to apply the new guide wrap.  You can do this by running the razor blade lightly across the surface.
3. Attach guide: Using a thin piece of masking tape, attach the guide in the same location as the previous guide was seated.  Set up your thread to begin wrapping the guide to the rod blank.  Start the thread wrap on the rod blank and slowly work the wrap onto the guide foot.  Be careful as you start wrapping on the guide foot that the threads do not overlap. (Most guides today have a tapered foot to allow thread to easily transition onto the foot.  If you have an older guide, or the guide is not well tapered, you can file down the edge to create a taper).  As your thread wrap progresses onto the footing, you can remove the masking tape and complete the thread wrap and finish it off as it reaches the guide.
4. Apply Epoxy: For a guide replacement, I typically apply one thick layer of two part finishing epoxy.  While applying the epoxy, keep the rod rotating by hand to allow the epoxy to level out evenly.  When you are finished applying the epoxy, you can place the rod on a slow roller to let it continue to turn and finish drying.  Let it turn over-night and it will be ready to fish in the morning.

Finished guide

There you have it, simple and easy steps to replacing your own rod guides.  Just as a small warning, if you start doing these small repairs to your rods...you might as well go all in and build your own rod from scratch.  It is a great challenge to finish your first rod and and even greater feeling when you land your first fish and every fish there after!

Check out the below video that briefly covers the above steps!

Keep your Tail Dirty, and Fish On!

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