Any suggestions on applying a finish on cue?
- Thread starter junior
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I did something similar to what you might want to do, I think, I had a sneaky pete that I bought for like $30 a while back and just as a little project for myself what I did was get some sand paper (rough and smooth grit) and sanded the clear coat off then I got some wood stain and applied it with a sponge brush and then I brushed on a new clear coat (polyurethane). If the cue cost some serious money then maybe you should let a cue maker repair it, but if not its a good way to kill some time. And after I finished the cue it actually looked better, I used a walnut stain and I think that gave the cue a more exotic and older look. So if the cue isn't worth much maybe you can go to a paint/hardware store and explain what you want to do and they could show you what you need.
junior said:
I assume you don't have spray equipment. That's OK - spray cans work well on cues.
The easiest do-it-yourself finish job is Deft Clear spray. Here's what I do: Clean the cue with rubbing alcohol to remove grease and dirt. Then sand the butt and the first foot of the shaft with 220 dry to remove any dings. Then to 320 and 400 dry. You can then use 600 lightly if you want. Spray with 3 or 4 light coats of Deft Clear. Deft is a lacquer based clear coat, so it goes on thin dries fast and it's easy to spray. Let it dry for 3 or 4 days, then sand lightly with 600 wet, then 1000 wet, then hand rub it with polishing compund. I also use McGuires glaze or a wax.
Deft is not as durable as polyurethane. You can also spray the cue with spray can polyurethane if you are pretty good at painting, but it's more problematic. You have to spray it enough so it flows out but not so much that it runs. If you spray additional coats with incorrect drying time, or too thick, there's a chance of air bubbles being trapped (looks bad). Polyurethane will last longer than Deft, but they should both be fine for a break cue.
You have to be careful around the joint area, not to sand the joint edges at all on the butt or shaft, or you will round them over. Also, plastic sands at a different rate than wood - I would work around plastic collars as much as possible. I don't use Deft on the plastic parts. I mask them off and sand down the edges of the clear to level afterwards.
Chris
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b-jammin
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junior said:
You can also buy some clear spray lacquer which dries quicker than polyurethane and is harder plus it doesn't amber the wood like polyurethane.
Just make sure that if you take the finish down to bare wood that you seal it with some sanding sealer, oil based or water based doesn't matter, I prefer oil based because I can thin it if I need to. JMHO. B