Cue shaft dings

[tpdtom]

I do not wrap the shaft in a moist cloth...the key here is to apply moisture to the smallest area as possible to avoid raising as little grain as possible.


Take a terry cloth wash cloth, and just dampen the corner, squeeze out any excess water. Locate the ding, and place the dampened corner of the wash cloth over it. Now take a hot clothes iron, and place the tip of it over the dampened corner of the wash cloth. The absolute second you hear the wash cloth sizzle, remove the heat and the wash cloth...wipe down with a clean dry absorbent cloth, like a micro fiber towel, to remove any excess moisture left on the shaft. Remember to place no pressure on the shaft while steaming out the ding, as you can cause a warp to develop this way. You are just lightly placing the tip of the iron on the wash cloth corner is all.

If the ding is a small one, this will usually do the trick with one application...sometimes, you may have to repeat the process on deeper dings.

Once the ding is out, you need to deal with the raised grain on the shaft created by the moisture/steam. You can use a super fine grit sandpaper, or I often just use my Q-Whiz...you want to just get the raised grain area smooth again. Once you have completed that, simply burnish with a leather burnisher, or, I have often used a wax-free brown paper grocery bag for burnishing. Your shaft will be as good as new.


I have been using this technique for more years than I can think about, for not only my shafts, but my league team's shafts as well...never had a complaint, or a shaft warp...and the dings are gone. It works great, and with a little practice, can be done quite quickly.

Lisa

Lisa's method is almost identical to mine, except I steam the dent for about 7-8 seconds directly from the teakettle. It's easy to lose track of the exact location of the ding so map that out carefully while the water is boiling. After steaming I dry the shaft with a microfiber towel. Next I use 1000 grit sandpaper until smooth. The next step is 1500 grit to polish, and finally I use a piece of tan smooth leather until hot to burnish. It always turns out nicely...Tom

 

[TXsouthpaw]

Take a pan with a lip around the edge. fill it half full of distilled water. Place a sheet of tinfoil on/around the top of the pan, wrapping it under the lip of the pan, a tight seal is important. take a needle and poke a hole in the middle of the tinfoil. Boil the water. When boiling, a small stream of steam will shoot out of the hole. put the offending ding on your shaft right in the stream of steam it will pull the dings out when the wood swells, finish with burnishing, waxing, sealing, etc.
********NOTE Do NOT let the steam get too close to the ferrule area, it could cause the tenon to swell and pop your ferrule up a little.

now thats a new one to me.

 

[softshot]

I learned the hard way DO NOT USE WATER to fix a ding on a laminated shaft....it cost me $200 to learn that lesson.

however if you have a real shaft.. first clean your shaft really well...( I'm a big fan of the magic eraser) then you can take half a paper towel or a paper dinner napkin fold it into a strip about an inch wide.. soak it in water squeeze the hell out of it until it quits dripping.. and wrap it tight around the area of the shaft with the ding.. let it sit for 5 minutes or so .. unwrap it ( but keep it handy)... then burnish the area by hand with untanned leather until it gets hot.... then check to see if you can still feel the ding.. if you can still feel it.. repeat the process.. if you can't feel it any longer you're done..

however you must be able to tell the difference between a "nick" and a "ding"

with a nick the actual fibers of the wood are cut and you will have to turn the shaft or sand it out.. dings are bends in the fibers and the above method will work beautifully..

 

[worriedbeef]

I actually picked up a little glass piece that has a round nob on one end and it makes a round contour like the roundness of the shaft. If you put the glass piece on the shaft and rub it right on the ding with a bit of pressure the ding comes out flush .... I have a few times actually used a beer glass or some other piece of solid glass that has similar contour as a shaft... This has been far more effective than when i was using a damp hot cloth. Try it.. you will see!

do u mean this?
http://www.pro9.co.uk/html/theproshop/main.php?P=product&pid=CLNG0010

my only thought is what's the point in buying it.. i can't help but feel i can get the same effect from using a glass bottle on my shaft...

 

[daniel]

The method I've used for years is put a drop of of spit right on the ding. Let it dry & feel if it came up enuf. Deep dings may require several treatments. I finish w/ a worn out piece of 600 & then 1500 & then burnish w/ the back of the piece of wet n dry sandpaper.

 

[Cornerman]

SOme elaborate techiniques for getting out a dinger. Simple is best though. Pull off a corner of a tissue, dip it into some water and then lay it over the dinger and leave it there for 20 minutes or so. Go have a smoke or 2. When you get back, check to see if the wood swelled back into place. If so grab some really really light sandpaper, 1,000 grit or more, and lightly sand the area around it.
Done.
MULLY

That's pretty much what I do. And often, I don't bother with sandpaper, but it's shaft specific. Some of my shafts I can use a soaked rag, and the grain doesn't raise. Others, I just look at funny (funnily?) and the grain raises.

All in all, I'm pretty brutal with my playing shaft. And after all the years of use, I don't think it's damaged. I guess if it is, I got my money's worth out of it.

Fred