Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

Hi there,
I have read that 3/16 shrink wrap of polyolefin is the proper stuff. The question is, where to get (eg: can anyone find some stuff on digikey/mouser?) and how much and where should it be used. Should I wrap it around both sides of the rods? Just one? Etc... Any help would be appreciated.

Not sure of your location...I found the proper shrink tubing at Ace Hardware. They had it in bulk so it was easy to just snip off a couple of 3 or 4 foot pieces.

The big box places only have shrink tube in short lengths, conveniently packaged to be useless for our purposes. Not sure if Mouser of Newark will have bulk or larger lengths. Try a hardware store or electrical supply store....

so what do you cover with it? Do you just run the tubing over the entire length (including the bend) of the rod?

Yes - I covered the smooth part of the rods thread to thread with the shrink tubing. Had to clean them first to remove all of the tape residue.

Newark has it in long lengths. I have some from there that measures 22" but I can't recall if it was cut down for storage.

Does seem like we're talking about two things--old rods (with the hairpin bend at one end) and new rods--threaded at both ends.

New rods are usually wrapped with masking tape at the factory, in a spiral pattern with minimum overlap. Old-style rods typically have a thin strip of vinyl electrical tape running down the center between the two rod halves.

Using shrink tubing on an old-style rod may cause interference with the truss rod groove in the neck--they're a pretty tight fit. An old rod that rattles is usually loose, as tensioning it pushes it against the walls of the groove where it grabs on tight.

So, if it's an old rod we're talking about (with the bend), simply pull it and put a 1/8" wide strip of vinyl electrical tape down the middle, sandwiching it between the rod halves..

Good catch Paul - I had taken notice of Jimmy's reference to "both sides of the rod".

Yes, talking about the old rods here.