Joint pins, do they misalign over time?

B

Bluejuice

Registered
So I have been playing with a players cue with a jacoby ultra in 5/16x18 (brass insert) for the past year.

Screwing in the shaft has never been smooth and always made creaking sounds, but was dead straight when fully attached brand new.

Fast forward about a year, same sounds but now the cue doesn't roll straight. It's nothing major at all, doesn't affect my playing whatsoever, but I do find it displeasing that a cue that in total costed me around $350 doesn't roll straight after a year.

I know it's not much compared to the beautiful customs and high end mezz and preds, but it is a substantial amount to me, and I don't think it's too unreasonable to expect it to stay straight.

I've sighted down both the shaft and the butt, both are straight but when I screw them in together, when sighting it down the shaft looks abit skewed.

Is it just the fact that it is a cheap production cue that I can't expect much longevity out of? Did the creaky screwing mess with the joint alignment over time? Or is it likely that the cue was skewed to begin with and only got noticeable recently? And lastly, is there any way to remedy this without spending much?

Thanks in advance for any help u guys can give me. Cheers
 
Newsheriffintwn

Newsheriffintwn

Newsheriff Custom Cues
Gold Member
Silver Member
Bluejuice said:
So I have been playing with a players cue with a jacoby ultra in 5/16x18 (brass insert) for the past year.

Screwing in the shaft has never been smooth and always made creaking sounds, but was dead straight when fully attached brand new.

Fast forward about a year, same sounds but now the cue doesn't roll straight. It's nothing major at all, doesn't affect my playing whatsoever, but I do find it displeasing that a cue that in total costed me around $350 doesn't roll straight after a year.

I know it's not much compared to the beautiful customs and high end mezz and preds, but it is a substantial amount to me, and I don't think it's too unreasonable to expect it to stay straight.

I've sighted down both the shaft and the butt, both are straight but when I screw them in together, when sighting it down the shaft looks abit skewed.

Is it just the fact that it is a cheap production cue that I can't expect much longevity out of? Did the creaky screwing mess with the joint alignment over time? Or is it likely that the cue was skewed to begin with and only got noticeable recently? And lastly, is there any way to remedy this without spending much?

Thanks in advance for any help u guys can give me. Cheers
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From what you describe it sounds like the cue needs to be refaced (the butt and shaft). Over time dirt and crude can build up and cause the joint to mis align. This is something best left to a competent cue maker or repair guy to do. If the parts roll straight apart before assembly and the pin is not bent, should take care of the issue.
 
B

Bluejuice

Registered
Newsheriffintwn said:
From what you describe it sounds like the cue needs to be refaced (the butt and shaft). Over time dirt and crude can build up and cause the joint to mis align. This is something best left to a competent cue maker or repair guy to do. If the parts roll straight apart before assembly and the pin is not bent, should take care of the issue.
Click to expand...
Problem is in my area there are no cue makers and those that do cue maintenance work usually charge prices that are only justified if done on expensive customs or high end productions. I am currently saving up for a custom cue myself and am planning to have the shaft joint converted to radial. Is there anyway to prevent this problem from happening to new cues?
 
whammo57

whammo57

Kim Walker
Silver Member
Bluejuice said:
Problem is in my area there are no cue makers and those that do cue maintenance work usually charge prices that are only justified if done on expensive customs or high end productions. I am currently saving up for a custom cue myself and am planning to have the shaft joint converted to radial. Is there anyway to prevent this problem from happening to new cues?
Click to expand...

A radial pin won't buy anything .......

Kim
 
B

Bluejuice

Registered
Not exactly trying to buy anything with a radial pin, it's just that the cue maker I'm gonno go with said the pin he prefers to make his cues with is the radial pin, so that's what I've decided to go with.
 
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Coos Cues

Coos Cues

Coos Cues
Bluejuice said:
So I have been playing with a players cue with a jacoby ultra in 5/16x18 (brass insert) for the past year.

Screwing in the shaft has never been smooth and always made creaking sounds, but was dead straight when fully attached brand new.

Fast forward about a year, same sounds but now the cue doesn't roll straight. It's nothing major at all, doesn't affect my playing whatsoever, but I do find it displeasing that a cue that in total costed me around $350 doesn't roll straight after a year.

I know it's not much compared to the beautiful customs and high end mezz and preds, but it is a substantial amount to me, and I don't think it's too unreasonable to expect it to stay straight.

I've sighted down both the shaft and the butt, both are straight but when I screw them in together, when sighting it down the shaft looks abit skewed.

Is it just the fact that it is a cheap production cue that I can't expect much longevity out of? Did the creaky screwing mess with the joint alignment over time? Or is it likely that the cue was skewed to begin with and only got noticeable recently? And lastly, is there any way to remedy this without spending much?

Thanks in advance for any help u guys can give me. Cheers
Click to expand...

Weren't you just banned in the main forum yesterday?
 
B

Bluejuice

Registered
Deruki said:
Weren't you just banned in the main forum yesterday?
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Yeah, posted one wrong post on the main forum instead of product talk asking about a cue. Couldn't figure out how to remove it from my phone. I just come to this forum whenever I can't find answers, need help and want some advice. Guess that's too much to ask huh
 
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Michael Webb

Michael Webb

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Bluejuice said:
Problem is in my area there are no cue makers and those that do cue maintenance work usually charge prices that are only justified if done on expensive customs or high end productions. I am currently saving up for a custom cue myself and am planning to have the shaft joint converted to radial. Is there anyway to prevent this problem from happening to new cues?
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Respectfully, repair prices are usually not set on the price of your cue. As already mentioned, I think your joint facings need to be re-faced. It doesn't take long. No matter what kind of cue you have or get, if the joint facings get dirty, it creates issues.
I hope this helps.
 
B

Bluejuice

Registered
Michael Webb said:
Respectfully, repair prices are usually not set on the price of your cue. As already mentioned, I think your joint facings need to be re-faced. It doesn't take long. No matter what kind of cue you have or get, if the joint facings get dirty, it creates issues.
I hope this helps.
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Yes, it certainly was helpful, appreciate it ��. But is there a way to stop the facings from getting dirty? Or is it just a matter of time?
 
Michael Webb

Michael Webb

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Bluejuice said:
Yes, it certainly was helpful, appreciate it ��. But is there a way to stop the facings from getting dirty? Or is it just a matter of time?
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The biggest problem is defining the cause.
Dirt= humidity, dust, chalk dust in your case from not wiping your tip off with a dry napkin before you put your cue away. Joint protectors help but not necessary if you dry wipe the joint facings when you break your cue down to put it away.
The above, you have control of. Not perfect but it can be helpful. If the inside of your pool case is already dirty.
DING DING DING that's a real contributor.
 
T

Tom1234

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Michael Webb said:
Anytime Blue. Don't hesitate if you have questions.
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A tip of the hat to you Michael, your advice really helps. Over the last few years I’ve been on AZBilliards, I’ve received many good tips from all the experienced cue men on this site. Your responses to questions have been the best in my opinion. Keep up the good work.
 
tsp&b

tsp&b

Well-known member
Silver Member
Bluejuice said:
Problem is in my area there are no cue makers and those that do cue maintenance work usually charge prices that are only justified if done on expensive customs or high end productions. I am currently saving up for a custom cue myself and am planning to have the shaft joint converted to radial. Is there anyway to prevent this problem from happening to new cues?
Click to expand...

Okay, so let me see if I understand your position correctly... You asked a question, you were given the correct answer (Have the joint surfaces refaced by a qualified Cue repair person.) and you don't want to follow that advise because it cost money to have it done properly. Is that your position??? :eek:
 
Sheldon

Sheldon

dontneednostinkintitle
Silver Member
Bluejuice said:
Problem is in my area there are no cue makers and those that do cue maintenance work usually charge prices that are only justified if done on expensive customs or high end productions. I am currently saving up for a custom cue myself and am planning to have the shaft joint converted to radial. Is there anyway to prevent this problem from happening to new cues?
Click to expand...
You could use joint protectors. Keep them on there anytime the cue is apart, and you should eliminate the issue. Maybe wipe the joint faces once in a while with a clean cloth and some alcohol.
Facing the joints should be a very inexpensive thing, it literally takes only a few minutes. You could probably afford to send it to someone if they don't gouge for this.
 
Kim Bye

Kim Bye

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Players and Poison joint collars tends to move alot, they also crack very easily, low quality materials...
 
B

Bluejuice

Registered
tsp&b said:
Okay, so let me see if I understand your position correctly... You asked a question, you were given the correct answer (Have the joint surfaces refaced by a qualified Cue repair person.) and you don't want to follow that advise because it cost money to have it done properly. Is that your position??? :eek:
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Sorry, I don't think I explained my position very clearly, that's on me. There's no cue maker here, but there is one guy who does repair work, but because he's the only one who does such services, his service fees can get pretty steep which is understandable since most of his clients are collectors who would throw 5 grand for a cue at the drop of a hat. My cue isn't really expensive, so doing repair work doesn't make alot of sense when you can get a new similarly priced lower tier production cue butt for a price similar to the repair costs.

I'd be more than glad to pay the repair fees if that was my only option (which I have learnt that that is indeed the case), so I came here to ask if there was any DIY solution (which have learnt is not an option unless I want to cause some serious permanent damage).

And lastly I wanted to know if there was a reason that is well known for causing problems similar to mine and if there was any sure fire way to prevent it so I wouldn't have to deal with issues like this in the future, but I guess things like this aren't the rarest of occurances and can happen even with the proper precautions.

Once again, I'm sorry if it seemed that I was trolling or not willing to take the advice of the skilled professionals here. I'm very grateful for any input you guys could give me, and it's nice to know that there are good people here willing to lend a helping hand to a stranger on the internet. 👍
 
B

Bluejuice

Registered
UPDATE: if anyone's still looking and is willing to give some advice,

I've determined that it is indeed the shaft and not the butt. Other shafts appear perfectly straight when screwed in but not mine. Since I've already received advice on dirty facings, I won't go there. But if it's the insert that got misaligned, what can I do in the future to prevent it from happening again? Correct me if I'm wrong but I don't think that that's something bound to happen to most cues (I can already guess that it's gonno take a cue maker or repairman to fix it, so I won't go there)

What led me to believe it could possibly be the insert is just before I tighten the last turn, I shined a light through the facings before they touched each other and halfway through the final turn, I observed that one side was touching the butt face before the other side. I'm by no means an expert so I'm not sure if my makeshift test means anything.

I don't think I abuse my cues, in fact I treat them with a lot of care. Is there any other reason this could happen other than abuse? I don't want to think it's a manufacturing defect, but the insert and the pin never had a buttery smooth marriage (not sure if this is common when pairing different brand butts and shafts) , not sure if that contributes to anything but that's the only thing I can think of. (this is all under the assumption that it is the insert and not the facing)

Now, I am aware that I can ask the guy who does repairs in my area about it and he'll probably be able to help me out, but I do think there is more value in asking the many people here in this forum who have a vast wealth of experience and know-how in what goes on in a cue as opposed to one guy.

Thanks in advance for any help and advice anyone would be willing to give me
 
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