Cleaning, yes that’s right, you have paid a substantial amount of money on your pole and therefore cleaning it is a good idea to help prolong the life of it. We anglers are a messy bunch with Groundbait, fish slime, maggot guts etc etc on our hands which leads to it getting on the sections, and inside too! After EVERY fishing trip, get the pole out and lay it on a safe surface, now clean it with a cloth, water and washing up liquid, make sure all the slime, etc is off the pole. Whilst cleaning each section look inside to check for any dirt that is inside the pole and remove by giving the pole a shower. Yes, I admit I take my pole and give it a shower. I get the shower head and put it so that the water goes inside the pole washing away all the dirt and grime inside the pole. There is nothing worst for the pole angler than to hear the horrible crunching of dirt between the sections as you put them together. This not only leaves deep scratches on the pole, but it wears the joints down very quickly. Now get rid of the remaining water by putting a cloth inside each section of the pole and shake it down the pole. When you have given the pole a shower let it dry all the excess water off for a few hours. It is not easy putting a dry cloth into a section lower then the 5th so just let the 4th and smaller air dry. – BE CAREFUL WHEN DOING THIS TO NOT HIT THE SECTION ON THE GROUND OR CEILING. Before putting the pole away give the joints a small amount of furniture polish (Bee’s wax) to help prevent the joints from sticking. If you have no polish than use a candle and rub it on the joints.

What are joint aligners and joint savers?

You may hear a lot about these but if you don’t know what they are then you are about to find out in my guide. Joint aligners (right) are a cone shaped pieces of plastic or hard foam, these are fitted inside the main sections that are used for unshipping. The most common ones are the 4th, 5th and 6th sections.
They stop you from “crashing” the joints which means you put the sections together at an angle leading to possibility of damaging the joints. With these plastic cones in you are much less unlikely to crash the joints and this will help with extending the life of your pole. They only cost around £2 each so for the 3 sections a measly total of £6 is very little to pay for a little extra life out of your investment.

Joint savers – As the name suggests this “save” on joint wear. There are two different types of saver.

The first one is in the form of a liquid carbon painted (left picture) onto the sections to prevent the wear excessive wear of your pole. This is the most expensive way of “saving” your joints but is worth the money if you have a pole that needs a little TLC after a couple years usage. Simply reapply when you see necessary.  Full instructions on use are provided. Be careful not to breath this stuff in and use in a well ventilated area as it stinks!

The second type is in the form of plastic sleeves (right); simply shrunk onto the joints and helps keep the joints in perfect condition. It also helps to keep the joint aligners in place. I have had these on the 4th, 5th and 6th sections of my pole since I bought it. Some will disagree with this and say its better to wait at least a year but I see no reason to wait as long as you follow the instructions provided. Price is roughly £3 and this is enough for several applications. Again replace as needed but a pack will last a long while.

My 4th, 5th and 6th sections with both Joint aligners and joint savers on (Click above for larger picture)

Other good ideas

The blue cap on the end of this section is a good idea for the last section of your pole whilst fishing. Available in several sizes and only costing around £1 will fit most poles and will protect the section when shipping back through hedges or hard ground. This will also double up as a replacement end cap keeping all the sections inside the butt section during transport.

Pole Rollers -

You cannot fish without one for several reasons simply because it makes it really easy to ship the pole in and out. They also help prevent the pole from touching the ground which means no dirt is entering the pole sections and also prevents dog walkers, joggers, cyclists from walking/riding over it. If they can see it, they will not hit it!...most of the time.

Storing top kits with elastic through 3 sections
You know the story, you have just learnt how to elasticate your new pole through the guide above, but you have a new problem you want help with; How to store the top kit if its a top 3 telescopic kit or a top 2 tele + 1 take apart section. Have no fear my fellow readers, Lee is here to help!
There is a VERY simple solution to both problems, so here is how you do it!
Telescopic top 3's:

Well this is VERY easy and only requires a little task. When packing down the top kits just keep pulling the elastic out as you pack the sections inside the 3rd leaving the elastic hanging outside of the pole, this will not come to any harm. This will prevent the elastic from jamming inside the pole causing damage to the elastic and/or pole. In most cases you will still be able to pack the kit in the pole, if not then a top kit tube will protect the kit in your holdall. Remember that you can only push the sections back down to the bung, do not force it any further!
If your first section keeps falling back into the second section and is a pain to get out again you can do a couple of things. Firstly wrap an elastic band round the top section to prevent it falling in, or see if your local garden centre has some clips that are used for attaching cane sticks to plants, remember these shouldn't have to be forced on, just clip on!

Telescopic top 2 plus a 3rd section

This really isn't as hard as it looks, leaving the elastic scraping against the carbon does the elastic no good and it will soon need replacing. Okay so ordinary elastic is cheaper, but what if you have installed some Hydro or Bungee elastic, NOT so cheap!

These are elastic protectors available from your local tackle shop called Doobry's. These can be bought for about £2.50 and are commercially available under the brand Milo. They are the shape of a horse shoe and just fit inside the each section with the elastic in the groove of the doobry.

 
There you have it a doobry installed!
You won't be able to get this back into your pole so a rod tube is the best place for your top kits now!

Alternatives for the take apart kit

There is also ANOTHER commercially available product called the top tube, marketed by Preston innovations. Sold for around £5 each from any good tackle shop. They will each hold ONE top 3 take apart kit without the need for a doobry. As you can see on the picture there is a litle divider built into the tube to protect the elastic. BRILLIANT!