Changing a cue's weight

Usually a big screwdriver or allen key will turn the bolt.

Any change in weight by bolt installation/ removal will alter the balance point, so don't toss that bolt! You might find a completely different hunk o' wood after the change...

I'm not an expert on Schon cues, but

I seem to recall that Schon's use the weight bolt as a structural part of the butt section of the cue. You should definitely have a compentent cue maker or cue repair person do the work.

some info

I used to have a lot of trouble removing Meucci weight bolts, and my experience is limited to those.

I ended up finding the perfect "tool" for the job, which can
be made using common items.

I don't know the name of the "brace" that I used, but it
is like a very small, maybe 3 inch, L-shaped corner brace.

The end of this fits PERFECTLY into the slot in a Meucci weight bolt. I then put the other end of the brace in a vise grip, which I put on the floor, and hold in place between my feet. This is oriented such that the other end of the brace is pointing upward. I then hold the butt with two hands, and insert the upward pointing brace end into the weight bolt slot. It does take some strength, even using two hands to rotate the butt, but I
have never had a problem removing a bolt. I feel best holding the butt and the far end near where the "tool" is. I don't know if a butt could ever crack, but I feel better with a very tight grip, and even thought about wrapping an inner tube around that area, but never did.

The corner brace actually bent significantly on one tough bolt, but it did not bend (twist) the extreme end, which remains seated in the weight bolt slot.

I will post a picture of the brace if anyone (even one) is interested.

I have also never damaged a cue, or even left a mark on the weight bolt.

Rocket354 said:

I have a schon but it's slightly too heavy for me. I think most schons have weight bolts in them, is that right?

Anyways, from what I understand I take off the bumper and if there's a weight bolt I can remove it. My question: is this something I can/should do myself, or would I be better off just finding some local cuemaker and giving him 10 bucks to do it?

To give an idea of my knowhow, I look at the screw/bolt in the bumper and I don't even know what tool I'd need. So yeah, not much experience, although I am a competent person overall so I assume with a little instruction I should be able to do it no problem.

Click to expand...

Assuming it has a weight bolt, you might find that removing it makes the cue too light since the bolts come in different weights.

You should check to see if there are lighter weight bolts that can be insterted if that is the case.


If you GOOGLE "schon weight bolts" you will get a number of hits for vendors that carry them for schon cues so at least some of their models use bolts.

Regards,
Jim

whitey2 said:

I used to have a lot of trouble removing Meucci weight bolts, and my experience is limited to those.

I ended up finding the perfect "tool" for the job, which can
be made using common items.

I don't know the name of the "brace" that I used, but it
is like a very small, maybe 3 inch, L-shaped corner brace.
The end of this fits PERFECTLY into the slot in a Meucci weight bolt. I then put the other end of the brace in a vise grip, which I put on the floor, and hold in place between my feet. This is oriented such that the other end of the brace is pointing upward. I then hold the butt with two hands, and insert the upward pointing brace end into the weight bolt slot. It does take some strength, even using two hands to rotate the butt, but I
have never had a problem removing a bolt. I feel best holding the butt and the far end near where the "tool" is. I don't know if a butt could ever crack, but I feel better with a very tight grip, and even thought about wrapping an inner tube around that area, but never did.

The corner brace actually bent significantly on one tough bolt, but it did not bend (twist) the extreme end, which remains seated in the weight bolt slot.

I will post a picture of the brace if anyone (even one) is interested.

I have also never damaged a cue, or even left a mark on the weight bolt.

Click to expand...

Are you referring to a hex wrench (or hex key or Allen wrench as they are often called)??

I have an old 20 oz. Meucci that I would like to remove the bolt on but can't get it to budge.

Thanks,
Jim

Good luck with that!

A Friend and I both have Schon's, and the weight bolts are glued in. i have contacted schon about this. and they said that they do glue them in deliberately. to void off any complaints about the screws coming loose, or noises from the butt section.

I personally have tried to remove it using a chisel in a vice, with no luck. i had to stop in fear of doing damage to the cue.

Other cue makers have told me that if you heat the screw with a soldering iron til its about 100 degrees or so, the glue will soften and allow you to thread the screw out.

But i never did it. i just adapted to the cues weight, and never thought about it again, until you brought this up. Thanks LOL

Good Luck Again!

Steve

If you goto schon's website they have a form for you to fill out and instructions on how to send it out. when i spoke with them, they said it should only take a few days, have them take the screw out and send you back the cue without a screw in it. have them send you the replacement screw out!

FYI - The Meucci weight bolts were also glued in, which is why they are/were difficult to remove. I believe the key is to have "something" that is a perfectly rectangular in cross-section, and thus fits the slot perfectly as well.

both schons, and in regards to whitey2 meucci's, while not many...have in the past used weight bolts to afix the butt cap to the butt sleeve on thier cues. also, both eboxy thier weight bolts into place, its not a big deal with meucci's cause they have a crap warrenty, but performing this yourself with a schon, will void the warrenty.

here is a thread where i detailed my process of changing the weight on a meucci that had the weight bolt glued in. i hop eits of assistance to you though i really would recomend sending the cue back to schon for the adjustment.

http://forums.azbilliards.com/showthread.php?t=86449

Support your local cue maker !!!

Give the man the $10 or whatever and put it in the hands of someone who knows what they're doing. They've done it a 100 times and have a pretty good idea what could go wrong & how to avoid it. Besides, if you don't support him now, he may not be there when you really do need him.

100 degrees won't do it. At least double that. If it were 100 degrees, on a warm day in Arizona, weight bolts would be falling out left & right. It is 200+ degrees though.

Seriously, after all you've read in this thread, do you want to take a chance on even marring the finish when a CM can do it in about 5 mins. and do it right. If he's been around awhile, he's probably got a selection of varied wght. bolts in stock to make sure you're at the right weight when you leave his shop.

Good Luck, KJ

PS. There were/are some cues that use the wght. bolt in conjunction with the bonding agent to secure the butt-cap. It's recommended that some type of wght. bolt be used on those cues or any cue for that matter. Aluminum bolts are used to get a cue to it's minimum wght. while providing additional support for the butt-cap.

a question

It seems we have a lot of knowledgeable folks here!

OK, heres a question. I bought a vintage Meucci Sneaky Pete (M-1) a while back, and the package arrived with not only the triangular box dented, but the (cheap) hard case was broken, and the cue was bouncing around loose.

The weight bolt was loose, and I tightened it. I still could feel and hear a rattle, and I discovered that there was yet another thinner bolt, located in the middle of the butt.

Is this "extra" bolt there for reasons other than weight and balance purposes?

The cue hits very well, and I love it as it is now with both bolts tight, but I have always been curious about why the second bolt was there. Many thanks in advance, for any information.

First of all let me say that I have no experience with Schon cues, or with weight bolts that are glued in. The common hex head weight bolt requires a T-handled hex wrench and some muscle. I would say that you have to turn it 50 times at least. The good news is that USUALLY you can achieve your target weight if it's within 3/4 oz or so. If you're unlucky and you want the cue to be lighter and it has the lightest weight bolt installed sometimes you can use an aluminum weight bolt, or none at all. A cuemaker would be best but anyone who competently services cues at a poolroom should be able to guide you through it. Good luck...Tom

I have had two Schons....The first one had a tiny screw that holds the rubber bumper on. You have to first remove that. Then the bolt was glued in and I had my friend just touch the head of the bolt with a hot soldering iron and it came right loose...But the bolt had a slot head and I needed a big screw driver to remove it....The trouble was I could not find a bolt anywhere which had a tiny hole in thru the top of the bolt to screw the rubber bumper back on with. So I called Evan Clarke at Schon and he would not sell me any weight bolts. He said I had to send it back to him....He said he would have it right back in a few days....It took 5 weeks and a lot of e-mails and phone calls to get it back....
The last Schon I had had the same system..I removed the tiny screw from the bumper and with a large screw driver was able to remove the bolt. With a lot of straining of course....BUT...Can not get a bolt replacement with a hole thru middle for screw to hold the bumper....I went to a hardware store and found a bolt that would fit and just pushed the bumper back in... with out the screw thru it..It will stay that way....
No way will I ever send it to Schon again...
Bottom line is I would talk to my pro shop expert and see if he can do it....Will save you a headache........

Not all weight bolts are the same diameter and threadings. Your local cue maker may not have one fitting it in stock. Of all the weight bolts I've taken out, I've never had trouble with them. I simple hex key or allen wrench, whichever you prefer to call it, and a few twists later- its out! Glue has never stopped me, or caused issues when it was removed.

I'm surprised anyone would glue in a weight bolt TBH. There are other ways to secure it without gluing in something thats designed to be adjustable.

tool

here is a link for the tool required to remove them.


http://www.seyberts.com/phpBB2/showthread.php?t=1950

Since the weight bolt is glued into a Schon, would that make it harder to install a Limbsaver onto the cue?

Well, i have seen and been told so that if you want to get new weight bolts you can get them on Ebay, a friend of mine bought the set which included 4 different weight screws. with the allen wrench included. the screws do not use the screwdriver set up.

also if you want to go lighter, i have been told you can goto the hardware store and buy the crews that hold the toilet seat onto the bowl. its the same thread. you just have to have the end tapped to fit the little screw that holds on the bumper.

Good Luck
Steve

Toilet seat bolts ???? That's hilarious !!!

Look, if you guys need Schon wght. bolts just ask me. I could stand to sell a few. Actually, the bolts I make for my own cues are identical to Schon's. 3/8 x 16, under-cut shoulder, reduced head diameter & cntr. drilled w/8 x 32 screw hole for the bumper. Slot head configuration.

$3 to $5 ea. depending on length. In stock, aluminum also. Thanx, KJ

johntaggz88 said:

Since the weight bolt is glued into a Schon, would that make it harder to install a Limbsaver onto the cue?

Click to expand...

No, the Limbsaver attaches to the weight bolt in place of the bumper.