Cue Cleaning tips and Products.

Noodle

Noodle

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So I realized today that I don't really clean my cue. I do wipe it down with a towel and all but nothing more. It still glides fine for me but I think I might want to step it up a bit.

I am going to be purchasing a 314/2 shaft soon and want to make sure I get into good habits for cleaning.

I have used a Qwiz before but have never actually purchased cleaners or burnishers/polishers.

Does anyone have any good threads or links for proper cleaning techniques and products? Can I just use slightly damp towel with rubbing alcohol and a leather burnisher like predator recommends?

I don't use talc or stuff like that so my cue doesn't seem to get too dirty too often. I probably don't need to actually use wax or anything that "advanced" for cleaning and sealing as far as I can tell.

Thanks guys.
 
Cleaning a dirty shaft - Mr. Clean Magic Eraser, wet with alcohol. Alcohol will evaporate quicker and not raise the grain like water will.

You can also use ammonia to clean.

As far as your store bought billiard specific creme cleaner with grit in it, you can also use Vim. Small bottle of Vim equals a life time supply.

I could also mention the Q Silk being a ladies hair care product but it is just a quick fix at the hall that its not much worth it.

Q Wax or a good car wax like Mothers as long as it has carnuba.

Use a generous helping of wax on the shaft, rub it in and burnish with a piece of leather. Some guys like to use a brown paper bag to burnish and thats OK too.

Just keep your shaft clean in the first place with a towel after playing.

You can wax your shaft weekly or when ever you feel you need to slick it up. As long as the shaft is clean, you can keep building up the wax on it.

Some guys like to use a fine grit sand paper on the shaft.
Thats ok as long as you don't get in the habit of over sanding.

Even with a fine grit, you are taking a bit of wood off. You might not realize it but over time you will end up with an hour glass figure under the ferrule. Because that is where you will stop sanding.

If you do bare the wood, you need to seal it again with a sanding sealer.

There are many out there but the one I like the best is sold by Chris Hightower who also makes cue lathes and sell other supplies.

I use his shaft sealer, Normally with a sealer, you would want to sand after applying but I don't sand. Burnish and wax over top. Do that and you will have a serious lasting smooth shaft that will be maintenance free for a long time. A bottle of that is also a life time supply. It lasts me a long time and I use it regularly in the shop for customers.

I also keep a few packs of alcohol swabs in my case. You can buy a box at the pharmacy cheap. You can use a couple at the hall for a quick fix to clean and wipe with a towel. Also great for removing chalk dust from the ferrule.

Amazingly enuff you will see players walking around with blue ferrules who have no idea how to clean them or with what.
I have gotten quite a few free beer just by cleaning a few ferrules for people.

And free beer makes Terry a very happy player.
 
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To keep your shaft looking new, if it's new and clean, give it a couple of coats of Butcher's Bowling Alley Wax. Then, after each playing session, just wipe it down with a dry piece of Magic Eraser. Give it a coat of wax about every two months - Butcher's is a cleaning wax. That should do it. If you're cleaning a dirty shaft, then use Magic Eraser wet slightly with alcohol. If you raise the grain, use some micro-burnishing film. Follow up with a couple of coats of wax. Keep it simple and don't use a bunch of different stuff. Magic Eraser is the best and simplest. I'm a clean freak about my cues, and this is the procedure I use.
 
To clean the butt I found a bottle of Formbys build up remover in Wal Mart. Its in a plastic bottle and the liquid is green with a nice winter green smell. The first time I used it I was amazed on how it brought back the original shine. I no longer wax the butt as the Formbys makes it shine better. As long as your finish is good this stuff will make it pop.I found a link to it.
http://www.formbys.com/products/buildup_remover/
 
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thanks for the tips to start with guys. I guess I'm just a little nervous to screw up my cue since I have never really cleaned or waxed it before. Although I could start practicing on my $40 2 piece sneaky pete cue I use for breaking.

I'm definitely going to stick with alcohol here so as not to damage the shaft. Is there a difference between denatured alcohol and 99% isopropyl alcohol?
 
Having just gotten back to the game after 21 yrs I find that there is a bunch of products that weren't available back in the day.
I have found and use a product named Q- clean. I find it cleans both ferrule and shaft without any abrasives.
Just a soft cloth is all I use -- I will say that I like my shaft clean and well polished :grin: and clean it more often than not after every session.
Clean the shaft and leave a haze on it for a few minutes then burnish with a piece of leather- leaving it like silk.
What I like is there is No abrasion, no steel wool or scotch brites. Which by the way is what is on a magic eraser-- It may be miniscule abrasion but if you don't have to, why do it. Just a thought
 
After getting my new McDermott around a year ago, I made the pledge that I would do everything that I could to keep it clean, so I bought a towel that goes on my bag, and after every use I wipe the chalk of the shaft and tip before putting them back into my case. And even then after a year of playing my shaft started showing some signs of usage (some light bluing), so a few weeks ago I was searching on seyberts and found a cue cleaning kit made by Q-clean. It comes with everything that is needed to get your shaft looking and feeling brand new, and is very easy to use. I would recommend it to everyone that owns a pool cue that they want to keep looking nice and new.

http://www.seyberts.com/products/Q_Cleans_Kit-1955-277.html
 
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