Our take on the APC Ring

21 inside diameters in 0.5 mm steps, seven anodised colours and a weight measured in tenths of a gram. This is the check you reach for first when a build calls for a fit as close as possible to the blank. Keep several sizes ready on the bench.

From 7 to 17 mm in 0.5 mm steps

• Material: anodised aluminium, made by Rodbuilders’ Republic
• 21 inside diameters, from 7.0 mm to 17.0 mm in 0.5 mm steps
• Outside diameter always 3 mm larger than the inside diameter, giving a 1.5 mm shoulder
• Weight between 0.14 g and 0.33 g depending on size
• 7 colours: Or, Argent, Bronze, Black, Deep Sea, Jungle Green, Titanium Chrome
• Uses: closing a reel seat thread, grip to blank junction, butt finishing, separating two handle components
• Freshwater and saltwater

At the bench

The right diameter rather than the closest one

With a winding check, the difficulty lies in the measurement far more than in the fitting. A tapered blank changes section every centimetre, and a check that is too wide leaves a visible gap while one that is too tight refuses to slide down. The 0.5 mm steps of the APC Ring let you land on the right size almost every time, with no sanding and no thread wrap to make up the difference. Measure with callipers at the exact position where the check will sit, then take the next size up.

Three positions come up again and again on a build:

• Between a reel seat and a grip, to hide the joint and close the thread cleanly
• At the end of an EVA or cork grip, where the blank takes over
• As the finish on a rod butt, on its own or stacked with a second check in a different colour

Seven colours to sign off a handle

Anodising colours the part, but it also hardens the surface and protects the aluminium from oxidation, including after saltwater sessions. Understated shades such as Argent, Black and Titanium Chrome work with almost every reel seat and guide on the market. Deep Sea, Jungle Green and Bronze act more as an accent, echoing the wrapping thread or the colour of the blank. Nothing stops you stacking two checks of adjacent sizes to create a contrasting band, a discreet detail on a hand built rod.