as a amendment too this I did have another idea for dealing with badly chipped speedia handles (without replacing them) ,probably more a temporary non invasive remedy ,till it can be properly replaced ,and prevent further chipping or breaking up.
I was getting moving some stuff in my shed about and one of the items was my old oscilloscope I used when I fixed Tv's and video's ,(I had two a digital hameg and a old analogue one ) its old fashioned analogue type with dials and toggle switches and round porthole screen ,well it was a toggle switch that got me thinking ,i'd fitted them with colour coded covers .and that's what struck me .ha haaa! I thought ,that might just be a simple answer for my chipped speedia handle .
the ones on my old scope ,was a little degraded ,and not the ideal colour for this application.the covers are a rubber boot that slips over the switch arm and screws too its threaded base ,they come in a multitude of colours and sizes ,the 12mm ones being closest to a slim speedia mk4 handle.
So I did a search on a well known auction site (amazon would be another place) ,and found some yellowish ones ,but they was from hong kong / china ,so I had too wait their arrival
(ok I got bored waiting and ,flipped the offending handle ,and had too undo that to show this) ,they come with a fitted threaded ring that will need removing (they're impressed ,so can be pulled away.
you need too leave the skirt on ,to fit snugly .this won't interfere with use.simply push it over the offending handle ,its a tight fit but they will stretch to fit
it'll go on.
push all the way down ,the skirt will go over the cup at the base (its wider so still allows handle to turn unhindered.
They come in packs of five or 10's so you can make both handles matching
and to remove ,simply peal up the skirt and lift off.
they're surprisingly good for grip ,make for a easy to add temporary cover /repair to keep the reel usable or can be ideal if its raining and the handles get wet and slippery or even as a winter cover as they'll be warmer to touch than the cold hard plastic ,another benefit is they increase the handle dia to make them more comfortable too use .
I try to be funny... but sometimes I merely look it! Steve