Best way to clean and maintain a wood shaft

I address lam and reg shafts the same -- see posts in lam. Sil Kleen has grit in it, and it seriously cleans shafts. If you love your cue, no sandpaper. You just do not need it. I cannot say too much good about finishing with Cue Silk. Since I began using it 20 -- 25 years ago, I have never had to use powder and that is in muggy, muggy Mississippi.

Butts get Cue Polishing Compound x Unique Products, Inc. -- be sure to protect your wrap by taping or wrapping. You cannot do this too much -- the more you do it, the deeper the shine, the more depth given the grain.

Clean table and clean hands before playing, and clean chalk from tip and clean cue by wiping down before casing.

Is a Qwiz too abrasive?

If you live close to the cue maker, take it back. Otherwise, leave the shaft alone.

Put tape over wrap next to wood. Wrap rags on wrap next to wood. The polish is great but if it gets into wrap it is difficult to remove. Better it does not get in.

You Are More Of The Problem Right Now Than You Are A Solution.

I meticulously maintain my cues’ shafts. The only wax I now use is Renaisance and it is excellent,
however I still prefer a wax made by Craftsmen cues in Birmingham, England which is hard to get.

You mentioned the issue of chalk discoloration on your cue shafts. This is obviously caused by you
and so how come you aren’t paying more attention to the very cause of the problem rather than
than correcting it which you’ve been doing and I might add will continue to do in the future?

Two things come to mind immediately. Your brand of chalk and your technique for applying it to the
cue tip. The brand of chalk is less important. You could buy some expensive designer chalk that is
touted to let you take lots of shots before having to chalk again. So if you chalk less, the discoloration
should happen more slowly and in turn, you’d have to clean the shafts less often. That’s true but you
still are dealing with the problem on a different frequency. It is a dumb idea and totally unnecessary.

The brand of chalk does not matter one iota, unless it is just old and flakes or is just known to be really
a cheap, crappy brand. But typically any pool hall chalk still in good cube condition or established brand
suffices. As Dr. Dave has confirmed time and time again, all chalks work the same when applied correctly.

So you need to visit his website and read the chalking section two times. The first time you’ll likely just
browse it quickly searching for the test findings and conclusions. Do your self a favor after doing that &
go back and read it again paying close attention to chalking techniques. IMO, 7 players out of 10 chalk
wrong. Only about 30% of the players I observe chalk properly. You can just examine the cube of chalk
they are using and it will reveal and confirm this. Pool chalk is not supposed to have a hole or core from
being applied to a cue tip. Twisting, turning and even squeaking a cube of chalk on your cue tip is not the
correct way to apply chalk. And all of that excess chalk winds up on you bridge hand and shafts building
up gradually and Voila......your shafts look and feel like crap.

I have been playing pool for six decades and not one cue I’ve owned, nor any of the cues in my collection
right now, have ever had any chalk discoloration....EVER. Chalk buildup is the result of the player applying
chalk to their cue’s shafts incorrectly. I don’t mind brushing chalk on my cue tips every shot and I’ve made
this part of my same pre-shot routine for every shot I take. And if I for some reason I forgot, then I always
apply chalk on the very next shot because something seems out of place. My pre-shot routine is rehearsed
to be the same way on every shot and so if I don’t maintain that routine all the time, I immediately feel that
something isn’t right. You just feel that when you assume your stance after having applied chalk the same
way for thousands & thousands of times. If your shafts are discoloring, you are incorrectly applying chalk.

So the starting point is to change how your apply chalk to your cue tips. Again, read what Dr. Dave explained.
Then you can ponder the brand chalk you’re using. Know what? Apply it right & the problem just might go away.

Matt B.

Thanks for the tips on maintaining the entire cue. I have used the McDermott shaft cleaning kit for years now and I like the results, but was kinda wondering what you all did with the rest of the cue, now I know. I have a Runde 4 pt. with African Blackwood and BEM that needs some cleaning and polishing. It looks great as is, but thanks to you guys I think it will look even better.

PoolFan101 said:

Sorry for such a post but with the advice on the Lam shaft thread I am begining to wonder if I have been going about the clean and care of my Wood shafts all wrong. I usually about a month or so give my Shaft a go over to remove the chalk and what have you . I found the advice from a thread here from a few years ago by doing this -

1- Magic Eraser lightly damp with Alchol
2- let dry about 15 minutes
3- lightly go over shaft with 1500 grit sandpaper to raise grain on wood
4- burnish with Parchment paper ( makes ferrule nice and shiny also )
5-finish with a wood wax such as Johnson paste wax and let dry and then buff to a nice sheen gloss

I only do this if the shaft is getting to blue, Most of the time I wipe it off with a dampen Alcohol rag and then dry and wax . What is your guy's methos for shaft maintence on wood shafts , also do you use anything on the Butt of the cue. I use a Guitar polish that makes them really shine. Thanks

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Unless you are mad at the shaft, never get sand paper near it

CESSNA10 said:

Unless you are mad at the shaft, never get sand paper near it

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To be fair it would take about 13 lifetimes to ruin a shaft with 1500 grit sandpaper.

To clean I do:

1. Magic eraser with soapy water (water! Oh no, the humanity!)
2. Dry well
3. Sand with 1500
4. Burnish with wool cloth

Done.

I don't use any kind of wax or sealer, as that seems to trap chalk and dirt in the pores more than it protects it. Also I prefer the feel of a bare wood shaft.

As many have said here- NO sandpaper of any grit whatsoever on the shaft- the only time it should be used at all on a shaft is as part of a shaft dent removal process- that is a separate discussion from this thread. Even 1500 or 2000 grit sandpaper WILL remove some wood from a shaft- and NOT evenly without a lathe application.

I agree with the poster on chalk use as well- follow his advice!

I use 91% rubbing alcohol on a clean cotton cloth after EACH playing session on my wood shafts - followed by a microfiber cloth burnish- all that is ever needed- I use a billiard glove. That 91%alcohol is almost impossible to find now BC of Covid. 70% has too much water content. You will have to go online and pay a small fortune for 91% right now.

Clean billiard cloth, clean pool balls, clean hands, clean billiard glove if you use one ALL go a long way too!

On the cue butt, I prefer Original Beeswax spray for cleaning the butt, followed by an application of PRS- Paul Reed Smith- guitar polish with a soft cotton cloth and microfiber cloth final polish- brings out the wood finish beautifully. As someone else here said- keep the polishes off the wraps if you have a wrapped cue- either linen or leather.

I own a dozen high end customs and production cues, I use one cue each week for a week at a time- just because I like cues and how each of mine play- and I clean the shafts after every single session and the cue butt at the end of each week for three month storage.

I just like taking care of my stuff- maybe too much for most- mostly because I had nothing as a youngster.

Once your cuemaker has delivered your cue, you don't need any chemicals, wax, etc.

You chalk properly, and you rub the shaft with your hands, nothing else. If, over time, it gets a bit too glossy, take a very damp paper towel, and wipe the shaft down, then rub with a soft cloth. Nothing else. No sandpaper, no alcohol, no mineral spirits, no magic eraser, no nothing. Your hands do what is good for the shaft.

All the best,
WW

Well, with apologies to the purists:

I chalk the way I've chalked for 50 years, so changing my chalking technique is not going to happen And I do tend to get some bluing around the first few inches of the shaft after a few hours of play.

The product I use before play for preventing that is Renaissance Wax and then, after play, wiping the shaft down with a slightly moist paper towel and occasionally reapplying a bit more wax. If after play the bluing is not coming off I use a slightly damp MC eraser, quickly dry it, and if necessary use a bit of 3000 sandpaper and then reapply some wax. Then I'm good to go.

I know, I know. Burn him at the stake

Lou Figueroa

CESSNA10 said:

Unless you are mad at the shaft, never get sand paper near it

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Yeah, the only time you might need something that aggressive is if you're fixing up an old dinged up used cue. Sandpaper or sanding films fall well within the realm of cue repair, but definitely not in the realm of routine cue maintenance.

My snooker cue is 14 years old. As good as new.

Firstly. Climate! Where do you live and moisture levels.

I live in a dry cool climate. Everything preserves.

Secondly. perspiration: l personally never have sweaty hands.

Anyways, I’ve never put anything on my cue. I just wipe it with a hand towel once in a while. About every second month or so I rub it ‘lightly’ with very fine steel wool.

That’s it. No products. No coatings. Still like new.

Not to mention wiping chalk off of tip before putting into case after playing so chalk will not line your shaft sleeve.

I usually clean my cue shafts after I am done playing for the night or before I play again on a different night by using magic eraser with a slight amount of water- damp, then dry immediately with a paper towel then burnish with a piece of leather made by a cue case maker. I clean the butt with a damp rag then dry with a dry towel.

Also, every 6 months I use smooth stroke papers (red, white and blue) which are made of plastic with the finest amount of grit I have ever seen and lightly use each after cleaning as above but without burnishing. Then after using the cue stroke papers, I will apply cue silk.