Shaftwood--How much is unusable?

peterskw

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I saw a thread once (and can't find it now) that a cuemaker only used about 20% of the shaftwood that they bought--the rest did not meet their standards. I can't even remember the cuemaker.

I wonder how many cuemakers have this high standard? Or maybe most of the shaftwood bought is high quality? Any info would be appreciated.

Thanks, KP
 

MVPCues

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
It depends on both the cuemakers standards and the source where it is purchased. If the source doesn't cull/grade and sells them cheaper, then the number could be as low as 20%. If the source grades and culls and sells better starting quality at a higher price, then something like 50% is probably more typical.
 

peterskw

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
It depends on both the cuemakers standards and the source where it is purchased. If the source doesn't cull/grade and sells them cheaper, then the number could be as low as 20%. If the source grades and culls and sells better starting quality at a higher price, then something like 50% is probably more typical.


Thanks for the info!!
 

whammo57

Kim Walker
Silver Member
It depends on both the cuemakers standards and the source where it is purchased. If the source doesn't cull/grade and sells them cheaper, then the number could be as low as 20%. If the source grades and culls and sells better starting quality at a higher price, then something like 50% is probably more typical.

If I only got 20% out of the cue blanks I bought............ I sure as hell would look for another supplier.

Kim
 

CuesDirectly

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I saw a thread once (and can't find it now) that a cuemaker only used about 20% of the shaftwood that they bought--the rest did not meet their standards. I can't even remember the cuemaker.

I wonder how many cuemakers have this high standard? Or maybe most of the shaftwood bought is high quality? Any info would be appreciated.

Thanks, KP[/QUOte
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If you start with a log and work thru it, you may be lucky to get one out of five.

If on the other hand, (yes I have all my digits on both hands) one buys top quality shafts that are already sorted and he throws out four of five? There would be a problem at the suppliers front door real quick.

There is no set number on this one, too many variables.
 

Bob Jewett

AZB Osmium Member
Staff member
Gold Member
Silver Member
I saw a thread once (and can't find it now) that a cuemaker only used about 20% of the shaftwood that they bought--the rest did not meet their standards. I can't even remember the cuemaker.

I wonder how many cuemakers have this high standard? Or maybe most of the shaftwood bought is high quality? Any info would be appreciated.

Thanks, KP
I've been told that some shafts are discarded for purely cosmetic reasons, such as dark streaks (from minerals?) because customers want perfectly clear, white shafts.

Contrast this with snooker players who mostly prefer a lot of visible grain in "chevrons".
 

desi2960

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
When I started

I was told it is acceptable, regular standards, that if you buy shafts from a dealer that sells shaft stock, that 10% would be unusable.
And that doesn't count sugar marks.
 

rhinobywilhite

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
sugar marks are the bane of cue makers.

Customers do not like them but many times they play perfectly fine and can be slightly heavier.

I only state this from personal experience and it may not hold true for all cue makers.
 

peterskw

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Thanks for all the answers. I have learned a lot.

The reason I was asking is that I was curious how much of the "bad" shaftwood is used by cuemakers. A friend, who knows a lot, says about 50% of the shafts used by custom cuemakers are poor quality. I don't believe that but, I understand there is some bad shaftwood out there.
 

Johnny Rosato

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
A friend of mine that "knows everything" says bad shaft wood is why laminated shafts were created!
 

spktur

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
One of the best shafts I have ever had came from Bill Mcdaniel's cull bin, it had a mineral mark just behind the a little bit. I couldn't care less and it was perfectly straight grain and very tight grained and played great
 

peppersauce

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I've been told that some shafts are discarded for purely cosmetic reasons, such as dark streaks (from minerals?) because customers want perfectly clear, white shafts.

Contrast this with snooker players who mostly prefer a lot of visible grain in "chevrons".

I’ve had shafts with eyes, curl, sugar marks, dark wood, etc. All played fine. I prefer a little something different in the shaft. To me it adds some character. Plain Snow White shafts are boring to me, but I can see why a lot of people like them.
 

logical

Loose Rack
Silver Member
I think 80% of the statistics quoted in this thread are missing 50% of the information necessary to make it of 10% value.

How many bad apples are in a bushel?

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk
 

Island Drive

Otto/Dads College Roommate/Cleveland Browns
Silver Member
I saw a thread once (and can't find it now) that a cuemaker only used about 20% of the shaftwood that they bought--the rest did not meet their standards. I can't even remember the cuemaker.

I wonder how many cuemakers have this high standard? Or maybe most of the shaftwood bought is high quality? Any info would be appreciated.

Thanks, KP


Finding good woods can't be any easier than 50 years ago. How much mediocre wood is used/cut and sold when it shouldn't be.... is always in play. You'll have much better luck at a dating site finding what you want before the test drive, than a cue stick. A cue hit feel/desire is ''immediate''.

This question about shaft wood, was talked about allot in the sixties and seventies and it was common to hear pool players/cue makers ''complain'' about Bad Wood.

Bob Meucci changed things with his shafts, then super slick, low nap 80/20 billiard cloth started showing up, and Bob had Thee best players using his equipment for free, a pool players dream, beginning of ld shafts.

The old players used to talk about the grain, the sound and feel of the hit from one shaft to another. At times you'd see a shaft with burl in the grain.

When you had thick cloth, a 13.5 mm shaft cut from a tree that was first borne' in the 1800's you had the ''graphite'' kryptonite in your day.

Good players always talked about the ''hit'' of the cue and that alone changed the PRICE a ton.
Whomever had that cue was looked up too somewhat, because they Did have an advantage with the play conditions, that could be brutally tough in the beginning years of Brunswick tables.

A perfect grain 13.5 mm shaft on nappy cloth, would and did get the same results, as a carbon fibre shaft on a worn 80/20 cloth of today.
 
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