Cutting weight bolt to make ligher?

a9ballbr8k

a9ballbr8k

Don't anger my stakehorse
Silver Member
I recently purchased a J&J break cue but its a litle heavy. Would cutting the weight bolt shorter ruin the integrity of the cue? I don't know if the hole drilled for the weight bolt depth is specific from cue to cue. Can I cut the bolt to reduce the weight and not have to worry about the wood in the butt cracking or splintering?
 
The butt wouldn't break that easily ;). The only problem would be the balans. If you cut too much, it would ruin the balans. But cutting off 0.5oz wouldn't be a big deal.
 
It's a 19.5 and I really wanted to get it down to 18.5. Would this be too much? I figured I would weight the pin, and depending on how much it would weight I wouldn't cut more than maybe 1/4 to 1.2 off. Too much?
 
a9ballbr8k said:
It's a 19.5 and I really wanted to get it down to 18.5. Would this be too much? I figured I would weight the pin, and depending on how much it would weight I wouldn't cut more than maybe 1/4 to 1.2 off. Too much?
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I can usually tell If the bolt holds anything together from the butt end, as to how the sleeve was made, altough a really deep bolt could be an indication that the whole sleeve is attatched with the aid of the bolt into the handle, although rare, you never know with that one. but yeah for the most part I just weigh the bolt then measure the lenth to try a figure out how much to remove. It's hard to hit dead nuts on the weight everytime, because the head type/style of the bolt can make a difference, but It usually gets Me really close to the ballpark, with only a hair a guestimation:D .:) Greg

P.S. Like mentioned above, Gotta watch the balance change though. afterall that's the only reason I would use one on a personal cue of mine anyhow. the balance is more of a concern to me personally, then it is to some others where weight is more of their concern. If your sensitive to balance, then it's something to think about.
 
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a9ballbr8k said:
It's a 19.5 and I really wanted to get it down to 18.5. Would this be too much? I figured I would weight the pin, and depending on how much it would weight I wouldn't cut more than maybe 1/4 to 1.2 off. Too much?
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It really depends on how your cue is balanced. I would recommend you to measure the balance point. The balance point should be like 1/3 from the butt to balance point or 2/3 from the tip to balance point. If the balance point is lesser than 1/3 (butt) or bigger than 2/3 (shaft), you can cut more. You don't want a cue balanced forward too much, it feels really uncomfortable.

If I'm not wrong, removing 1oz will change the balance point like 0.5-1 inch forward. I would say, just measure it. Cut the bolt a little, and measure it again.
 
Well I took the weight bolt out before I posted and it doesnt hold anything together, it is purely for weight. With it out it only moved the balance point and inch and maybe a half. So cutting some off wouldn't make much of a difference on the balance point imo. I think I will cut it. Any last posts I'll read before I do so.
 
a9ballbr8k said:
Thanks for the links.
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Many, if not most weight bolts are just standard threaded bolts. Most factory cues use this weight system to weight their cues. Often the basic cue weight is 17 or 18 ounces and they just put in different length bolts to accommodate the customers preference. If you want to take out weight and maintain the balance point you can get set-screws of the proper thread and put them further up into the threaded bored hole. In this way, the cue can weigh less but often keep the same balance.

Dick
 
a9ballbr8k said:
I recently purchased a J&J break cue but its a litle heavy. Would cutting the weight bolt shorter ruin the integrity of the cue? I don't know if the hole drilled for the weight bolt depth is specific from cue to cue. Can I cut the bolt to reduce the weight and not have to worry about the wood in the butt cracking or splintering?
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To answer your question, yes you can cut off some of the weight bolt or leave it out all together, without compromising the construction or integrity of the cue...JER
 
rhncue said:
Many, if not most weight bolts are just standard threaded bolts. Most factory cues use this weight system to weight their cues. Often the basic cue weight is 17 or 18 ounces and they just put in different length bolts to accommodate the customers preference. If you want to take out weight and maintain the balance point you can get set-screws of the proper thread and put them further up into the threaded bored hole. In this way, the cue can weigh less but often keep the same balance.

Dick
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Well the only problem with that is the bumper screws to the very end of the weight bolt. But that is an excellent idea.
 
a9ballbr8k said:
Well the only problem with that is the bumper screws to the very end of the weight bolt. But that is an excellent idea.
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You can get short aluminum weight bolts that are just for holding bumpers on...
 
My second hand Paul Mottey cue weighed 22.5 ounces. Someone must have wanted a heavy cue. I took the weight bolt out and will use rubber cement to hold the bumper. The cue now weighs 20.5 oz. If I leave the rubber bumber off it weighs 20.0 ounces. I would like to get another ounce or two off the cue. Is there a way to do that?

When I removed the bolt it moved the balance point about 2 inches up. I use a 30" predator shaft and usually hold the cue well behind the new balance point so it does not seem to effect the playability. I went from 10 - 19 offset on the balance point to about 12 - 17 and I hold the cue about 10 inches fromthe butt, more on most shots.

I thought about cutting the front screw but that will probably wreck the cue -- right?

I looked into drilling out the center but found that I would have to drill a hole about 6 inches into the handle to get about one ounce of wood. I guess that too would wreck the cue?

Would it lighten the cue if I replaced the leather wrap with an Irish linen wrap ?

BTW the cue seems to play better without the weight bolt as I have better control of the cue ball.

So it seems like I am stuck. I like the cue and do not want to sell it but it seems a lighter cue improves my game.
 
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JoeW said:
My second hand Paul Mottey cue weighed 22.5 ounces. Someone must have wanted a heavy cue. I took the weight bolt out and will use rubber cement to hold the bumper. The cue now weighs 20.5 oz. If I leave the rubber bumber off it weighs 20.0 ounces. I would like to get another ounce or two off the cue. Is there a way to do that?

When I removed the bolt it moved the balance point about 2 inches up. I use a 30" predator shaft and usually hold the cue well behind the new balance point so it does not seem to effect the playability. I went from 10 - 19 offset on the balance point to about 12 - 17 and I hold the cue about 10 inches fromthe butt, more on most shots.

I thought about cutting the front screw but that will probably wreck the cue -- right?

I looked into drilling out the center but found that I would have to drill a hole about 6 inches into the handle to get about one ounce of wood. I guess that too would wreck the cue?

Would it lighten the cue if I replaced the leather wrap with an Irish linen wrap ?

BTW the cue seems to play better without the weight bolt as I have better control of the cue ball.

So it seems like I am stuck. I like the cue and do not want to sell it but it seems a lighter cue improves my game.
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You can try to use a lighter shaft, but that will effect the performance of the cue. You can also take the cue to a cuemaker to change the joint. If it's a stainless joint, it's possible to change it with a lighter one. It's also possible to make the butt thinner.
 
You can also save weight by changing the original stainless steel pin to a titanium pin.
 
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