Bagues BWC 16

Our take

A check that cleanly closes a size 16 thread, with 15 inner diameters in the catalogue, solves a good part of the finishing headaches on a handle. You pick the size just above your blank and fit it in two minutes instead of spending an hour with the reamer. The 12 colours also let you echo the shade of the reel seat or the wrapping thread.

17 mm outer diameter, 15 inner diameters

• Rodbuilders' Republic aluminium winding check
• Outer diameter: 17 mm
• Inner diameter from 8 to 15 mm, in 0.5 mm steps
• Height: 2.5 mm
• Weight: 0.19 g to 0.62 g depending on size
• 12 colours: Matt Black, Gloss Black, Silver, Gold, Bronze, Champagne, Titanium Chrome, Red, Purple, Cobalt Blue, Deep Sea, Jungle Green
• Uses: closing a size 16 thread, handle transition on a split grip
• Made in Korea

Where to fit a BWC 16 on your build

Closing a size 16 thread with no visible gap

The 17 mm outer diameter butts against the thread of a size 16 reel seat and hides the transition zone between the reel seat body and the blank. That is the primary job of a winding check: removing the visual step and protecting the joint from knocks and water ingress. Since that outer dimension is the same across the range, the choice comes down to the inner diameter. Measure the blank exactly where the check will sit, then take the next size up. With 0.5 mm steps the remaining gap stays small and is taken up by a wrap or a dab of glue.

Split grips and handle transitions

On a split grip build, the BWC 16 closes the end of the fore or rear grip, where the EVA or cork stops and the blank takes over. Nothing stops you fitting several on the same handle to carry a colour theme from one end of the build to the other.

• Between a reel seat and an EVA or cork grip
• At the tip end of a fore grip
• Closing a rear grip, ahead of the butt
• As a decorative accent, paired with a coloured wrap

At 2.5 mm high and under a gram, it does not alter the balance of the rod, including on ultra light builds where every tenth counts. For a clean result, a small wrap of wrapping thread laid just ahead of the check, then coated, takes up any slight play and locks everything in place. If your reel seat is not a size 16, the rest of the winding check range covers the other diameters.