Shafts get sticky and bumpy. Just like tires on a car wear down. The shaft is a tool. Like a sharp chisel. The chisel needs to be sharpened to work as intended. Your shaft needs to be sanded/polished to achieve optimum performance. A 1200 grit will remove imperceptible amounts of wood. I have a Josh shaft which is 30 yrs. old. I have sanded it as needed. It is essentially the same diameter as when first purchased. I was a tool and die guy. I know how to measure to .00001". So I know what I'm saying here.
Again, the shaft is a tool to get a job done. It is not a painting to be viewed and never touched. If you do wear it down buy another one!
The smoother the shaft the smoother the stroke. Simple physics.
Wow.... It takes people thousands and thousands of posts to come up with a classic like this.
And you did it in only 26.......Bravo.:grin:
Holy Schnickies