Checking a cue's straightness

Cirzoke

Cirzoke

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
What process is the best to check the straighness of a cue? Do you roll it on the table or on the rails? Sometimes I find that when rolled on a pool table, I find a small gap between the cue and the table cloth, the gap oftentimes move approximately 1 inch when rolled. But when I roll it on the rails and on a lathe, everything seems to be perfect. Any thoughts?

Thanks,

Tim
 
Cirzoke said:
What process is the best to check the straighness of a cue? Do you roll it on the table or on the rails? Sometimes I find that when rolled on a pool table, I find a small gap between the cue and the table cloth, the gap oftentimes move approximately 1 inch when rolled. But when I roll it on the rails and on a lathe, everything seems to be perfect. Any thoughts?

Thanks,

Tim
Click to expand...


The cue could be straight but the clear coat on the shaft might be a little uneven causing a small taper in the roll. It won't effect the play of the cue. I have the same problem with my cue.




Posted from Azbilliards.com App for Android
 
Andrewjoseph said:
The cue could be straight but the clear coat on the shaft might be a little uneven causing a small taper in the roll. It won't effect the play of the cue. I have the same problem with my cue.




Posted from Azbilliards.com App for Android
Click to expand...

Thanks for the reply Andrew.

I get what you mean, but would you consider this cue to be straight if the clear coat is somewhat uneven?

Any other thoughts on methods to check a cue's straightness?

Thanks.
 
Try doing what I used to do.
When I was away from my lathe, and in the pool hall, I would take the cue apart and place the butt end on the table surface, and the forearm on the rail cushion. I would then roll the butt back and forth, watching for any wobble, especially in the pin.
To check the shaft I would simply hold it between my thumb and forefinger, turn myself until I could see a line of ambient light running down the shaft, then slowly rotate the shaft, looking for any bends in that line of light. :smile:
 
99% of cue owners don't have a lathe to chuck up the cue in the test it for straightness.

Ask your self .......... how can a cue owner test a cue for straightness,

What method do cue owners use.


They roll it on a table. If they see it wobble, of course, they feel that it is warped, misaligned, needs the joint refaced, the finish is not concentric, or some other mysterious BS like taper roll.

If it wobbles it is perceived to be less than perfect and not worth the price..... at any price.

Just try to sell a cue in a pool hall after the prospective buyer rolls it on a table and it wobbles.

If I make a cue and it wobbles on the table when I roll it.......... it is not worth selling. I don't give it a reason or a special name for the problem to make people believe it's really ok.

I fix it or trash it.


Kim
 
whammo57 said:
99% of cue owners don't have a lathe to chuck up the cue in the test it for straightness.

Ask your self .......... how can a cue owner test a cue for straightness,

What method do cue owners use.


They roll it on a table. If they see it wobble, of course, they feel that it is warped, misaligned, needs the joint refaced, the finish is not concentric, or some other mysterious BS like taper roll.

If it wobbles it is perceived to be less than perfect and not worth the price..... at any price.

Just try to sell a cue in a pool hall after the prospective buyer rolls it on a table and it wobbles.

If I make a cue and it wobbles on the table when I roll it.......... it is not worth selling. I don't give it a reason or a special name for the problem to make people believe it's really ok.

I fix it or trash it.


Kim
Click to expand...
I like this answer. No BS. It's either straight or not. Case closed.
I've seen many cue deals go bad after the cue is rolled and its got a little wobble.
 
I have been making cues for 26 years and I find only a few that have not moved. When they are final cut they are dead straight but through time most shaft move. So how long is the cue maker going to stand behind them?
 
gulyassy said:
I have been making cues for 26 years and I find only a few that have not moved. When they are final cut they are dead straight but through time most shaft move. So how long is the cue maker going to stand behind them?
Click to expand...

I haven't been building cues as long as you have so I have not seen any of mine that still don't roll straight.

I have seen very few, if any, that I have re tipped or worked on that did not have a little wobble to them. I think after a year and some play time no shafts are actually perfectly straight and perfectly round.


Soooo.... how long do you stand behind your work???

I have had a few owners that have tortured their cues in a hot car here in GA. They messed up the finish a little but they still roll straight.

You really don't have control on how a cue owner treats a cue.

Kim
 
whammo57 said:
I haven't been building cues as long as you have so I have not seen any of mine that still don't roll straight.

I have seen very few, if any, that I have re tipped or worked on that did not have a little wobble to them. I think after a year and some play time no shafts are actually perfectly straight and perfectly round.


Soooo.... how long do you stand behind your work???

I have had a few owners that have tortured their cues in a hot car here in GA. They messed up the finish a little but they still roll straight.

You really don't have control on how a cue owner treats a cue.

Kim
Click to expand...

how long have you been building cues?
 
Cue sold=straight

Cue bought=wobble

If I make a cue and it wobbles on the table when I roll it.......... it is not worth selling. I don't give it a reason or a special name for the problem to make people believe it's really ok.

I fix it or trash it.
Click to expand...

You just gave it a special name, "wobble".

Wood moves. There is no way to stop that. Anybody who claims to have found a way to stop it is confused. It can only be reduced.

Perhaps in a museum vault...with perfectly controlled climate...and zero light....but then as soon as the cue is removed to be observed that goes out the window and it will move.

Wood will also degrade over time. There is no way to stop that either. It can only be minimized.

It will move and it will degrade. For certain.

.

.
 
Wood is wood, more times than not, it's gonna move. Some days it may look perfectly straight, and others it won't. My favorite shaft does this, and i would'nt sell, or trade it for nothing. There's not a maker alive, or dead, that has all perfectly straight cues in the field.

By this, if it does'nt roll perfectly straight "logic":rolleyes:, 75% of SW's, and a whole slew of other superb playing monsters, should be trashed, as worthless.:rolleyes: To me, that's just retarded.:cool:

A cues playability has very lil to do with how perfect it rolls on a table. As long as the business end rolls nice and smooth, you're good to go in terms of it being a player. Assuming of course, it hits good.:cool:

I've seen many high end cues, where the only thing making them roll perfect, was the finish......:embarrassed2: True story.

Ask yourself a simple question, would i rather have a cue that appears perfectly straight, but plays like crap, or a cue that has some variance, but plays like god? Of course both would be best, but imo, you're selling yourself short by overlooking cues with minor rolls in them. Some of the best playing cues in the world have a lil roll in them somewhere.

One last thought, many a cue that rolls funny on a table, spins true in a lathe, and not all cues that appear true on a table, spin true in a lathe.
 
there is more than just the straightness of the shaft or butt that determines the roll of a joined cue. Take a tight fitting shaft. If the male and female parts are not within a few thousands of center it cannot roll straight like the one that is center in both the pin and threads. Most cues male and female parts are not center, this is due to lack of proper tools and technique. Bill Schick instructed me when I was learning at his shop that every part must be within 2 thousands to work properly but I get it within 1 thousand and my cues always will roll straight tight fit or not.
 
Whether a shaft is "perfectly" straight or not does not mean diddly to me. If it is warped like a noodle then that is another. I never even look at my shafts nor do I roll them on the table or the rail. I find the one that I like the most based on playing with it then I play pool. I am concerned if the butt section of a cue warps or if the joint is not faced properly those issues are a much greater concern to me.
 
I guess I am picky with my cue. I like straight because it represents something that was built correctly to last a life time.
 
Like whammo's trying to point out...

Even if it's "normal" for wood to develop a wobble,
Even if it's "minor" or "only in part of the cue" or "doesn't affect how it plays"...
Even if "lots of high end cues have it"...

If I have a choice between a wobbly stick and no wobble, I will always pick the one without wobble.

And assuming there's no gun to my head, I will always have a choice. If that means I'm excluding some southwests or other heavily hyped cues that grant the player mythical powers and quadruple in value every hour... then so be it. I don't want that tiny bit of doubt in the back of my head while I'm shooting.
 
I don't like rolling the cue on a table. What I do to check straightness is hold the cue by the butt and rest the tip on the table or in the air, then while sighting down the length of the cue, I turn it and watch the tip to see if it stays straight.
 
Cirzoke said:
Quote:

Originally Posted by Andrewjoseph

The cue could be straight but the clear coat on the shaft might be a little uneven causing a small taper in the roll. It won't effect the play of the cue. I have the same problem with my cue.




Posted from Azbilliards.com App for Android

Thanks for the reply Andrew.

I get what you mean, but would you consider this cue to be straight if the clear coat is somewhat uneven?

Any other thoughts on methods to check a cue's straightness?

Thanks.
Click to expand...

Yes the cue is still straight. Its the clear coat on the straight cue that creates the illusion of it being warped. It will still play straight though


Posted from Azbilliards.com App for Android
 
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