hi slinky,yeah they r cork alright.alan tani had to chisel his out.took all day he said.selleys cant give me a solvent unless they know the glue.sent an email to abu,no reply yet.ican take a photo but dont know how to post it.cork is meant to be dry ,not very good.tried graphite powder,u bewdy,about 6 pulls at 7lb drag,s--t itself.cals same result.its got to come out.to my knowledge they were the ist b/c with lever drag' i,ll take aphoto to morrow and get someone to help me.kind regards wallace