Cue Repair Lathe - Made mostly from hobby CNC and 3D printed parts.

J

JSCBP

New member
Ok, so you probably saw my other thread where I got myself in trouble with the collar that got stuck on a shaft due to using the wrong adhesive... anyways, I figure I might as well introduce myself and share some pictures of my project. You'll probably see me here quite a bit asking questions as I figure things out.

I've had a love for pool for many years, and considering I'm a sucker for learning new hobbies and going down their respective rabbit holes, why not get into cue repair and hopefully cue making? My background already includes tech, hot rods, and woodworking. I will research and experiment to no end LOL. I'm already learning the shortcomings of this machine, but it's performing better than I had imagined. And as everyone on here regarding DIY machines says, you'll end up buying a dedicated machine if you get serious. I already have that plan in the works, just need to finish building a new bench in the shop and save up the cash.

Also, I must give credit to @SSDiver2112 for the inspiration. I found his tread on here where he used a piece of extruded aluminum and some parts sourced from online retailers was proof that good results can be had. He's also been awesome at replying to my PM's during my journey and offering advice. (thanks dude!).

The 3D printed parts are a mixture of another 3D printed cue lathe project I found on youtube, a few of them were modified, and the rest my own design using Fusion360. I would say it would be 20/10/70 percent, in that order. The beam and carriage assembly is a 1500mm 4080 C-Beam used commonly for hobby CNC (IE OpenBuilds). The through hole on the headstock is 19mm, so big enough I can put the better part of a shaft through it. The powersupply, motor controller, headstock, chuck, tool post, and other hardware were mostly sourced via retailers such as Amazon or Ebay. I have not added up the cost to build this thing, decided not to do that about halfway through the project due to my wife potentially finding out (haha, J/K). But yeah, I would say in hindsight, speaking cost alone, probably should have just put this money towards a Cuesmith or something.

The control panel has forward/reverse controls, speed control, a power percentage readout, and a tachometer. It will in steps from about 35rpm to 1900 rpm via the PWM controller. I'm also able to slide the headstock back and forth and reposition the tail stock so I can use it for shaft cleaning.

Anyways, on to the photos.

Feel free to ask any questions regarding my project. I know I will be asking you all stuff as I get into more trouble and expand my skillset!

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Here's a few of the most recent tips. Not perfect, but I'm starting to get better.
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Also, as a bonus, for the sake of showing how much I love the game... Here's a pic of the kegerator I built for when I'm actually enjoying the game! (Built the collar out of maple, double walled with 2" insulation between the walls, all corners are mitered with oak splines tying it together with a little contrast to boot.
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I thought the same thing about just investing the money into a real lathe might’ve been better but What I learned from my DIY lathe build was invaluable.

Your tips look better than many other first time tips I’ve seen so keep it up.

Your lathe looks great. As long as you’re controlling the run out you should be able to do a lot with it.

Mine was great for tips, but it was a definite fail for ferrules. It’s a great finish lathe now though. My Mid America lathe has done me well for doing the more precise work.
 
Nice work. I also liked building different things for cue work. I noticed the motor is kinda small,any plans to upgrade yet. Or does this just look small from the pics
 
SSDiver2112 said:
I thought the same thing about just investing the money into a real lathe might’ve been better but What I learned from my DIY lathe build was invaluable.

Your tips look better than many other first time tips I’ve seen so keep it up.

Your lathe looks great. As long as you’re controlling the run out you should be able to do a lot with it.

Mine was great for tips, but it was a definite fail for ferrules. It’s a great finish lathe now though. My Mid America lathe has done me well for doing the more precise work.
Click to expand...
Thanks for the kind words. I'm hoping that this will be able to do ferrules. That's the next step in my journey, I just need to order some materials. I've been meaning to check the runout at the headstock with my dial indicator, just haven't done that yet. I think that it shouldn't be an issue since I can keep the work right at the chuck like a "real lathe".

My biggest issue right now is chatter, but lighter passes have been getting me by in the meantime. I think that dialing in tool sharpness, positioning, and interference (tightness) on the carriage assembly will fix a lot of it. I don't have unrealistic expectations though, considering that many of the parts are 3D printed. When I get to the point of considering the plastic parts, I might try ASA (instead of PETG like I'm using). I have a new 3D printer on the way that is enclosed and should be able to print ASA and ABS. I also can increase the infill density, regardless of the material used.
 
chuckpilegis said:
Nice work. I also liked building different things for cue work. I noticed the motor is kinda small,any plans to upgrade yet. Or does this just look small from the pics
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Thanks. It is small, you are correct. I don't have a plan to upgrade it yet, havent ran into any issues where it was a weak point, but also I have limited seat time. I'm still taking baby passes with it on everything that I do, partly due to being cautious, but mostly due to the chatter I mentioned just a minute ago in another reply. When I start getting more aggressive with my cuts, I'll know if it has limitations.

With that said, the motor that's on there is 24V DC. If I were to replace it, I'd have to think hard about how much I want to alter it. The power supply is obviously 24V DC, so I would have to change that if I deviated. The PWM controller is rated for up to 48VDC, so that's the next cap. Anything about that would probably be AC anyways. So depending how far I got would be a domino effect of rewiring, and printing new parts to accommodate the changes. Not against it by any means, but I still want to invest in some heavier duty purpose built equipment eventually. Gotta know when to throw in the towel. LOL
 
I'd guess that some of your chatter is due to the round rails on the carriage. You would likely see improvement by redesigning the cross slide to use size 12 profile rails.

In all honesty, your lathe, as is, probably isn't any worse than the mid America I've used.. getting rigidity out of a twenty pound lathe is pretty difficult.
 
DeeDeeCues said:
I'd guess that some of your chatter is due to the round rails on the carriage. You would likely see improvement by redesigning the cross slide to use size 12 profile rails.

In all honesty, your lathe, as is, probably isn't any worse than the mid America I've used.. getting rigidity out of a twenty pound lathe is pretty difficult.
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You're right, the carriage has give in the delrin wheels moving it back and forth. They are what allow the back and forth movement along the x-axis by riding in the v-slots, and are adjusted with a cammed nut/bolt. You mentioned round rails being the issue though... which is interesting, because I was thinking of giving these a shot. ( https://a.co/d/9L8sFfI ). Or would you think square guide rails would be better? Feel free to drop a link of what you have in mind!

The fact you said that my lathe appeared to comparable to mid-americe was interesting, and I'll take that as a compliment! I've got an extra c-beam and could probably justify purchasing some different rails, and spending some time in Fusion coming up with a new method of attaching and moving the cross slide along the x-axis.
 
JSCBP said:
You're right, the carriage has give in the delrin wheels moving it back and forth. They are what allow the back and forth movement along the x-axis by riding in the v-slots, and are adjusted with a cammed nut/bolt. You mentioned round rails being the issue though... which is interesting, because I was thinking of giving these a shot. ( https://a.co/d/9L8sFfI ). Or would you think square guide rails would be better? Feel free to drop a link of what you have in mind!

The fact you said that my lathe appeared to comparable to mid-americe was interesting, and I'll take that as a compliment! I've got an extra c-beam and could probably justify purchasing some different rails, and spending some time in Fusion coming up with a new method of attaching and moving the cross slide along the x-axis.
Click to expand...

I would stay away from round rails, even mounted ones. The round carriages just don't have the minimal backlash that profile rails do. Something like these: https://www.amazon.com/ReliaBot-Lin...1-1-spons&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9hdGY&th=1

If you do design for these, it is suggested to have a reference edge on one side that you can push the rail to. Tighten down that rail, then 'float' the other rail in using the components that tie the two together. You can get wide rail that has a decent amount of rigidity about the x-axis of the rail, but having two spread as far apart as possible will add to the stiffness.

I did not intend to say that the rails are the only issue, apologies for any confusion. The rails may add to the problem.

If you decide to tweak any of your designs, you can easily model in space to add metal angle or bars to add rigidity. You could also the basic outer shape as a thin-ish 3d print and fill the voids with epoxy mixed with tile grout, which will give great rigidity and damping.

Finally, if you have large areas that would use an infill, you would be better off creating an internal matrix of structure aligned to counteract your predicted bending forces. Look at how airplane wings are built, they have spars the entire length of the wing and ribs perpendicular to the wing box. Bridges are the same.

PLA is a very stiff material and very good in compression. Adding aluminum plate or angle, bolted and epoxied to the outer sides of the the item will give a lot of tensile strength (CF would also work).

Feel free to PM me if you want to discuss more in private.
 
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