13mm shafts

Muttonchops

Muttonchops

Banned
That's way too fat for me. But it seems like that is what everything comes with. I know you can't turn it down too fast it might go south. No one want's to play with a baseball bat?
What percentage of "players" use a 13mm shaft?
So why sell it that way if you know it's gonna need service after the sale?
I just slowly sand the shaft's down by hand with sand paper until I get it down to something I can play with. I don't know what else to do?
 
chops

i hear a lot that people want thinner and thinner shafts, but is seems like the cues i build with a 12 1/2 mm or smaller shafts don't sell. i believe the thicker the shaft the more accurate i play, and the smaller the shaft the more english i can get on the ball. 13 mm is the break even point, for me, as far as size goes.
 
The cues I build come with a 13mm shaft. But lately ive been asked for 12-12.5 mm shafts with a euro/snooker taper?! So unless asked my cues come with 13mm.
 
I love how a custom cue builder will take years and years to shave the shaft from it's square, to round, and then all the shaving cuts and hangings down to the final and finished taper and all...you know, several years at least...

And the, the buyer says, to his local cue doc, hey bud...Can you take this down from a 13mm...down to a 12...or 11.75... and the local cue doc says hey, I can have it done in a couple days...

What are your thoughts on this...should local cue doc's, cut down cue shaft sizes without any fear of warpage...or is it standard practice to knock down a shaft and have no fear, or hanging time...???

Shouldn't there be thought behind how thin the ferrule will be...and the possible warpage of the shaft...

Anyhow, just wondering...about the professional thoughts behind this idea...
 
jwe711 said:
I love how a custom cue builder will take years and years to shave the shaft from it's square, to round, and then all the shaving cuts and hangings down to the final and finished taper and all...you know, several years at least...

And the, the buyer says, to his local cue doc, hey bud...Can you take this down from a 13mm...down to a 12...or 11.75... and the local cue doc says hey, I can have it done in a couple days...

What are your thoughts on this...should local cue doc's, cut down cue shaft sizes without any fear of warpage...or is it standard practice to knock down a shaft and have no fear, or hanging time...???

Shouldn't there be thought behind how thin the ferrule will be...and the possible warpage of the shaft...

Anyhow, just wondering...about the professional thoughts behind this idea...
Click to expand...

Loooong ago I would have taken a shaft down quickly, but not now. I wont take a shaft from 13mm down to 12mm in anything less that 2 weeks. If you put that much time into cutting and developing your shaft taper the last thing Im going to do is risk warping it because someone is in a hurry.
An emergency on your part doesn't constitute an emergency on my part. :wave2:
 
perfect example

i just received an email on a cue i made for a customer, he wanted a 12 1/2 mm shaft. i hate to take a perfectly good old growth 13 mm shaft and cut it down to 12 1/2, but i let this customer talk me into doing just that. now he gets the cue and decides its not the cue for him, and wants to return it, as after he puts it under a microscope he finds just too many flaws for his liking. i have a no questions ask refund policy on my cues, so if for any reason you don't like the cue just return for a full refund.
BUT now i have, in my opinion, ruined a great shaft !!!!! i have only been doing this for 15 or so years. maybe someday i will learn.
 
Seems to me that you should offer a refund on your cues in original/as ordered condition. I would have to let the customer know up front that if they opt to have something turned down, the refund may not apply to that part.
 
SC02GTP said:
Seems to me that you should offer a refund on your cues in original/as ordered condition. I would have to let the customer know up front that if they opt to have something turned down, the refund may not apply to that part.
Click to expand...

Great piece of advice here!
If a person wants a slimmer shaft they would be wise to invest in a generic shaft like Predator or OB with a common joint that will fit several cues and keep the original shafts,that way if they sell the cue it will appeal to a much wider costumer and they will have a shaft they are comfortable with for their new cue.;)
 
jwe711 said:
I love how a custom cue builder will take years and years to shave the shaft from it's square, to round, and then all the shaving cuts and hangings down to the final and finished taper and all...you know, several years at least...

And the, the buyer says, to his local cue doc, hey bud...Can you take this down from a 13mm...down to a 12...or 11.75... and the local cue doc says hey, I can have it done in a couple days...

What are your thoughts on this...should local cue doc's, cut down cue shaft sizes without any fear of warpage...or is it standard practice to knock down a shaft and have no fear, or hanging time...???

Shouldn't there be thought behind how thin the ferrule will be...and the possible warpage of the shaft...

Anyhow, just wondering...about the professional thoughts behind this idea...
Click to expand...

Taking weeks, months, years to do a turn-down is nuts.
Good shaft wood is seasoned all the way through, not just on the surface.
If it was going to move you would have seen it already.
I don't do many T/Ds lately since I've shown Sey how to do them (in house).
When I was doing them and I did several 1,000 for Sey, it took me 20 mins ea. start to finish.
I've never heard of one warping from my efforts.
You can take all the time you need. I've got other things to do.

As to shaft diameter, 13mm is the standard for a reason.
More people play with that dia. than anything else.
It's a good starting point and no manufacturer is going to offer 20 different shaft diameters.
If you want it turned down, have it done or order your new cue with whatever dia. you want.

KJ
 
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Muttonchops said:
That's way too fat for me. But it seems like that is what everything comes with. I know you can't turn it down too fast it might go south. No one want's to play with a baseball bat?
What percentage of "players" use a 13mm shaft?
So why sell it that way if you know it's gonna need service after the sale?
I just slowly sand the shaft's down by hand with sand paper until I get it down to something I can play with. I don't know what else to do?
Click to expand...

i used to like thinner than 13mm. for a while i stuck with shafts that were in the 12.5mm neighborhood. now that i'm older and i'm focusing more on doing things right instead of trying to get by by spinning the CB out of tricky situations i prefer 13mm shafts. honestly i was wanting to get a OB xl or a predator fat shaftbc they're a little bigger than 13mm. it's just so much easier to control the CB and pocket long straight in shots if i use a thicker shaft.
 
desi2960 said:
i just received an email on a cue i made for a customer, he wanted a 12 1/2 mm shaft. i hate to take a perfectly good old growth 13 mm shaft and cut it down to 12 1/2, but i let this customer talk me into doing just that. now he gets the cue and decides its not the cue for him, and wants to return it, as after he puts it under a microscope he finds just too many flaws for his liking. i have a no questions ask refund policy on my cues, so if for any reason you don't like the cue just return for a full refund.
BUT now i have, in my opinion, ruined a great shaft !!!!! i have only been doing this for 15 or so years. maybe someday i will learn.
Click to expand...

i sold a cue years ago with a f'n fantastic shaft. the shaft hit so damn good!!! the guy i sold it to immediately took the shaft down. then he said it was too whippy and sold it to the next guy. it's a damn shame
 
Thanks for all the advice guys, I guess I'm just an old dog that doesn't want to learn new tricks?
Anyway, both of mine have two shafts. I've only "doctored" with my player shaft with both cues. So now what, a sealer, or just keep burnishing the shaft with leather? thanks Karl
 
Any time a T/D is done, sealer should be applied immediately upon completion.
The T/D removes the orig. sealer with the sanding-dust thereby exposing bare unprotected wood.
Most any wood will be subject to moving if left unprotected and subjected to humidity swings.
I would suggest that you have the shaft sealed ASAP. Wax alone is not enough.
Wax on bare wood will eventually darken the wood and may soften the fibre structure.
Sealer is your first defense in protecting the wood, the wax goes on top of that sealer.

KJ
 
KJ Cues said:
Any time a T/D is done, sealer should be applied immediately upon completion.
The T/D removes the orig. sealer with the sanding-dust thereby exposing bare unprotected wood.
Most any wood will be subject to moving if left unprotected and subjected to humidity swings.
I would suggest that you have the shaft sealed ASAP. Wax alone is not enough.
Wax on bare wood will eventually darken the wood and may soften the fibre structure.
Sealer is your first defense in protecting the wood, the wax goes on top of that sealer.

KJ
Click to expand...

What sort of sealer can I get in the RP...I know a couple or cue makers in Angeles City, but I don't know if those use sealer or not?
 
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