A coreless roll of paper is formed by winding a web of paper around an elongated mandrel to form a roll of convolutely wound paper. The mandrel is formed from flexible and elastic material, and after the roll is wound, the mandrel is pulled longitudinally and withdrawn from the roll of paper to form a coreless roll.Alternatively, the mandrel can be pressurized to expand the mandrel radially before or during the winding of the web around the mandrel. After the roll is wound, the pressure in the mandrel is relieved so that the mandrel contracts radially, and the mandrel is withdrawn from the roll.A novel clasp is used to grasp and extract a tubular mandrel from the roll. The clasp includes a rigid shaft which is adapted to be inserted into a tubular mandrel. A plurality of clamping blocks are spaced radially outwardly from the shaft and are spaced circumferentially around the shaft. A plurality of actuators are engageable with the clamping blocks to move the clamping blocks radially inwardly toward the shaft whereby a mandrel can be clamped between the clamping blocks and the shaft.