If anyone cares, the carbide tube I got quoted on, .870" OD, .625" ID, and .250" long costs $30 each ( I ordered 4 pieces ). 3 to 4 weeks turnaround.
Carbide tube?
- Thread starter Cue Crazy
- Start date
Why the need?
What is the advantage of sanding to size versus simply turning to size?
What is the advantage of sanding to size versus simply turning to size?
Canadian cue said:
CC, sanding takes away less of the material and smoothens out any rough areas caused by turning.Ideally I cut til I'm 5-10thou of an inch from my target size then smooth sand it from there. I could turn cut slow and it'll be smooth with less sanding required and be less than 0.005" from my target but I'll be a nervous wreck after that
Mayb with CNC it would be quite accurate but still the need for sanding is there so the size allowance is for that.
hadjcues said:Good for you bud... Haven'tfound the need yet for carbide, my hard steel's still holding up pretty well. I guess when you do a ton of repairs it's necessary... that's why I keep myself in seclusion in my cue laboratory
Still tryin' to figure out how to make shaft turning a little more fun...
automatic shutoffs on each side so you can go do something else. Grainger has them, pressure shut offs.
I can see the logic behind this method and judging by its popularity lots of makers must use them.Thank you for the response hadjcues.
mandrels
Hi Greg, I make mandrels for differant size joints and pin pitches.
I build mine a little differantly than most guys do. I had a guy up east tell me he uses carbide that's only 1/4" long. This will work for a short time, and wear out, by being to small. When it wears, it gets small fast. I build mine 1" long, so you have more sanding surface, and the wear factor dosen't come into play for a long, long time. These will last for years. Short ones wear very fast because you have only a 1/4" or so of carbide surface.
Give me a call if you like and I'll give you a price. You can buy carbide seleves fairly cheap, but the grinding for hours, is where the cost is. bad stuff to be around, [carbide dust].
830-232-5991
blud
Cue Crazy said:
Hi Greg, I make mandrels for differant size joints and pin pitches.
I build mine a little differantly than most guys do. I had a guy up east tell me he uses carbide that's only 1/4" long. This will work for a short time, and wear out, by being to small. When it wears, it gets small fast. I build mine 1" long, so you have more sanding surface, and the wear factor dosen't come into play for a long, long time. These will last for years. Short ones wear very fast because you have only a 1/4" or so of carbide surface.
Give me a call if you like and I'll give you a price. You can buy carbide seleves fairly cheap, but the grinding for hours, is where the cost is. bad stuff to be around, [carbide dust].
830-232-5991
blud
Michael Webb said:
Mike, I have auto shut-off so no problem with doing something else. Just comes a time where you prolly did all you have to do while turning shafts and you get stuck staring at it the rest 'til you finish the whole lot
Nice to see Blud show up from time to time...
If anyone cared, Tom at www.TNScues.com makes sanding mandrels.
$400 for pre-finish and post-finish set.
$400 for pre-finish and post-finish set.
JoeyInCali said:
That's who Blud was talking about with short carbide. The carbide wears well as long as you don't put them in a rod sander. I know Tom, great guy, fair priced and those suckers are straight. Tom is becoming a great asset to cuemakers with the products he's doing. Just don't use his email, he seldom reads it between his work and family, Call the number and leave a message.
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Thanks for everyones imput, Pretty sure One of the guys I know of is a toolmaker, so He might work with carbide, and be able to grind the sleeves for me. Think I am just going to sleeve a set, and show It to a few people I know. Hopefully one of them can do it, If not I'll find someone near by. I have not even put the word out on this to them yet, so who knows, I may be suprised how much they can help with it. It will help to have something in hand to show them when I explain it to them, so Figure I'll try to do one set just to see how It goes, then decide which way I want to go for sure. I get all kinds of joint sizes through the repair side, and would like several sets eventually, not just for the cues I'm building. That many sets would add up quick, just for the sleeves alone. It's a hard call, because I'm in desperate need of another lathe also, otherwise I would probably just let someone else make them all, and save Myself the hassle. I'm sure I still will, atleast some of them.
I will say for what It would cost in labor & material, that It sounds well worth while to have someone like Tom or blud make them, I'm just one of those from the hard knocks, and always have to learn the hard way first . also If one Of the guys I know can help, I can barter on the labor with them, so have to atleast check in on It to see first, and get their opinion on what they can do.
I will update you all later about how I make out with them.
Thanks to everyone, been a big help.
Greg
I will say for what It would cost in labor & material, that It sounds well worth while to have someone like Tom or blud make them, I'm just one of those from the hard knocks, and always have to learn the hard way first
. also If one Of the guys I know can help, I can barter on the labor with them, so have to atleast check in on It to see first, and get their opinion on what they can do. I will update you all later about how I make out with them.
Thanks to everyone, been a big help.
Greg
Is the carbide portion of the mandrel tapered to match the cue and the shaft or is it straight? When using them, do you typically use a sanding block to back up the sandpaper? If so, I would imagine the sandpaper would rest on only one small area of a non-tapered mandrel, instead of evenly distributed over its entire surface. Is this an issue?
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iusedtoberich said:
They are tapered. The ones I have, I had them tapered .010 along one inch.
carbides
Hey DDD, I, had my first set of mandrles built about 25 yeras ago. I think I was the first cuemaker to us these. Not sure, but I, have built many a set and told lots of friends about them and how to do them.
The ones only 1/4" long do work, but not for long. At that time, you had to send the butt back to the maker for a new shaft to be FITTED. This is why we now have carbide mandrles.
My next set I'm going to build are going to be made of ceramic. These will also out last the carbide, 10 to 1. Cermic is real hard. I have cermic bearings in my spindles, on my mills.
Think about this, at 1/4" long for the shafts carbide, if it wears being only a 1/4' long, it leaves it smaller than the original size when it wears.The same goes for the butt carbide, it would be larger than the original size.
This is what I told the guy [who has been recomended by someone else], and he looked at me real funny. I told him if he was a cuemaker, he would build them at least 1" so you get much life out of them, because re-sizing was out of the question, and not the way it should be done. I had ask the same guy a few month's ago, for a price on building 24 sets for me, because I was busy with my wife. With his answer of 1/4" he lost me quick. I went ahead and built them over the next couple weeks.
With my method, there's not need to replace anytime soon. They just last for about 8,000 sandings. By that time you should be able to buy new ones.
Mandrles only 1/4" long are NOT THE WAY TO GO.To short and last not so long.
Better to pay a little more and not have to worry about them getting smaller too soon.
GRINDING,
I also grind mine to about .007 per inch. This way it's not to quick of an incline at either joint. It looks and has a very smooth transformation line, going either way, up or down, on the cue. Another words,it's got good straight lines with the flow of the butt and shaft.
Pricing depends on what pin you use, and also what size your finished mandrles are?
Normally two sets run about $850.00. One set for wood sanding, [ which is the smaller set], the other set is for finish build up for painting, [which is the large set].
You furnish the pins. This way there's not mistakes on what you want.
I build them with a tenon about 1" long on the ends, x .600, and the carbide 1' long and the dia., to your joint size.
blud
hadjcues said:Mike, I have auto shut-off so no problem with doing something else. Just comes a time where you prolly did all you have to do while turning shafts and you get stuck staring at it the rest 'til you finish the whole lot
Nice to see Blud show up from time to time...
Hey DDD, I, had my first set of mandrles built about 25 yeras ago. I think I was the first cuemaker to us these. Not sure, but I, have built many a set and told lots of friends about them and how to do them.
The ones only 1/4" long do work, but not for long. At that time, you had to send the butt back to the maker for a new shaft to be FITTED. This is why we now have carbide mandrles.
My next set I'm going to build are going to be made of ceramic. These will also out last the carbide, 10 to 1. Cermic is real hard. I have cermic bearings in my spindles, on my mills.
Think about this, at 1/4" long for the shafts carbide, if it wears being only a 1/4' long, it leaves it smaller than the original size when it wears.The same goes for the butt carbide, it would be larger than the original size.
This is what I told the guy [who has been recomended by someone else], and he looked at me real funny. I told him if he was a cuemaker, he would build them at least 1" so you get much life out of them, because re-sizing was out of the question, and not the way it should be done. I had ask the same guy a few month's ago, for a price on building 24 sets for me, because I was busy with my wife. With his answer of 1/4" he lost me quick. I went ahead and built them over the next couple weeks.
With my method, there's not need to replace anytime soon. They just last for about 8,000 sandings. By that time you should be able to buy new ones.
Mandrles only 1/4" long are NOT THE WAY TO GO.To short and last not so long.
Better to pay a little more and not have to worry about them getting smaller too soon.
GRINDING,
I also grind mine to about .007 per inch. This way it's not to quick of an incline at either joint. It looks and has a very smooth transformation line, going either way, up or down, on the cue. Another words,it's got good straight lines with the flow of the butt and shaft.
Pricing depends on what pin you use, and also what size your finished mandrles are?
Normally two sets run about $850.00. One set for wood sanding, [ which is the smaller set], the other set is for finish build up for painting, [which is the large set].
You furnish the pins. This way there's not mistakes on what you want.
I build them with a tenon about 1" long on the ends, x .600, and the carbide 1' long and the dia., to your joint size.
blud
tom
Being a cuemaker, [he is not], and having been making tools, jigs, and fixtures for cuemakers for over 25 years, I just know what we need. 1/4" inchers won't cut the mustard, in my book.
Why have carbide mandrels and not be able to use them in a dowel sander? Most guys can't start out with dowel sanders, but they get one later on.
The sets I build you can use with or without a dowel sander. And they last a long, long time.
I, can be reached at either place listed below.
poolcues@hctc.net or 830-232-5991
Tools built by a cuemaker for a cuemaker.
{this is another way in which I support my family}.Cues, cue machinery, ball cleaners, jigs and fixtures.
blud
No question about it Tom is a very nice guy. I just disagree with his construction methods, on mandrles.Michael Webb said:
Being a cuemaker, [he is not], and having been making tools, jigs, and fixtures for cuemakers for over 25 years, I just know what we need. 1/4" inchers won't cut the mustard, in my book.
Why have carbide mandrels and not be able to use them in a dowel sander? Most guys can't start out with dowel sanders, but they get one later on.
The sets I build you can use with or without a dowel sander. And they last a long, long time.
I, can be reached at either place listed below.
poolcues@hctc.net or 830-232-5991
Tools built by a cuemaker for a cuemaker.
{this is another way in which I support my family}.Cues, cue machinery, ball cleaners, jigs and fixtures.
blud
I made mine one inch also and it's what I prefer. The sleeves that I sent out were also one inch. Tom does what he feels is right, Different strokes for different folks. Tom also builds a great cue, his work is clean and straight, He is a very good cuemaker and machinist. He chooses to offer hardware to the industry. You would be impressed to know how many cuemakers use his products.
Tap, tap, tap Mike.Michael Webb said:
He sure has some nice looking cues on his site. Makes most of his own parts too? and the shop 
, If I had that shop, I could move a bed & 9 footer in there, and If I hardly ever left the place, it would be just fine with Me. Unfortunatly don't think the boss lady would let me .
, If I had that shop, I could move a bed & 9 footer in there, and If I hardly ever left the place, it would be just fine with Me. Unfortunatly don't think the boss lady would let me .