Finished my first cue, thanks AZB!

[kross]

I just finished my first cue, and would like to thank AZB for everything I've learned here. It's a simple cue, but I like it. I haven't been active on the forum, but I've been lurking and learning in the background.

Here are some specifics for my cue:

Fully cored forearm and handle with flat laminated maple.
Bird's eye maple forearm and buttsleeve.
Aluminum 3-inch 3/8-10 A-joint pin.
SS 3/8-10 joint pin.
Final tapered shaft from Atlas
Aegis-II ferrule and black phenolic rings.
Target Coatings EM9300 clear coat finish.

I made some of my own tools, which I will detail below, with pictures.

I watched Joe Barringer's DVD's, and I read Chris Hightower's book. I still made lots of mistakes. There's no substitute for experience.

Lessons learned:

- Put those pins in straight and concentric! I had to plug and re-drill those holes a couple times to get it right.
- Live threading a deep hole with a long skinny thread mill isn't very accurate. I'll just buy a 3/8-10 tap for those holes, and only use the live threading on shafts (joint and ferrule).
- Glue relief! Cracking forearms sucks.
- Waterborne clear coats need to go on in many thin coats, not piled on in a heavy coat, unlike automotive clear coats. I got much better results once I figured that out. I went through a whole quart of the stuff practicing! I'll be doing another cue shortly, I think I'll video the finishing process, to help other newbies like me out.

Since everyone loves pictures, here are a few:

To core the forearm, I made my own drill using 3/4" steel rod, and ground a "D" tip on the end. I also turned down the rod an inch or so behind the tip, for some relief from rubbing on the inside of the bored hole. Cost me less than $20, and works pretty well. It drills quite straight. The downside is it does get hot, and I have to keep backing it out and blowing it out, both to clear the chips and keep everything cool. But if you're on a budget, this is a good start before splurging on a gun drill.

I also made my own boring bar for boring 1/4" holes 3" deep. I didn't feel like spending $50-$100 on a solid carbide boring bar, so I ground one out of 1/4" round HSS tool steel. Total cost: $3.

Thanks!
-- Kevin

 

[Trent]

Nice job. Nice clean cue probably a real solid player.

Smart thinking on the tooling as well.

 

[Joe Barringer]

Very nice indeed. Enjoyed reading your lessons learned. Good luck with future builds.

 

[BHQ]

Lessons learned:

- Put those pins in straight and concentric! I had to plug and re-drill those holes a couple times to get it right.
been there done that
- Live threading a deep hole with a long skinny thread mill isn't very accurate. I'll just buy a 3/8-10 tap for those holes, and only use the live threading on shafts (joint and ferrule).
- Glue relief! Cracking forearms sucks.
been there done that too
- Waterborne clear coats need to go on in many thin coats, not piled on in a heavy coat, unlike automotive clear coats. I got much better results once I figured that out. I went through a whole quart of the stuff practicing! I'll be doing another cue shortly, I think I'll video the finishing process, to help other newbies like me out.
paying it forward, i like that :thumbup:


congrats!
and now you're hooked , right? :wink:

 

[scdiveteam]

Hi,

Great job, very nice cue..

Just to share some info. After reading where you say the tool got hot reminded me of how I blew up an Ebony piece. I started to drill and forgot to turn on the air for a inch or so. Then I turned on the air not knowing I plugged up the exit hole in the business end of the gun drill. At that tine I was running a 550 rpm.

Because it was loud I didn't clock that the air was of and the ebony piece blew up in a very dramatic way. Since then I slowed the RPM down and am careful about the air operation.

My advice to you is to get a sterling carbide gun drill and keep the RPM under 300.

Good future cues,

Rick

 

[Mcues]

Nice Job, looks good.

Mario

 

[ArizonaPete]

Nice job Kevin and congratulations on the determination to go forward and build it. What's on the back burner for the next effort?

 

[Chopdoc]

You made your boring bar to core the thing?

Making a cue is one thing. Making your tooling and producing a nice cored cue right off the bat is another.

As an observer and lover of cues, my hat is off to you.




.

 

[63Kcode]

One down. Many more to come. I am sure. Welcome to the addiction. How was the first night out shooting with it.

Larry

 

[DaveK]

Bravo on your use of the D bit reamer ! Most people have never heard of them. These old techniques are often much more accessible to small shops.

Dave

 

[cuewould]

Congrats

Welcome to the MAD HOUSE....The best people you will ever meet are right here.......P.S. Great job on your first cue ....keep them coming.....Ray

 

[JuicyGirl]

Great work! Congrats. Out looks beautiful.

Sent from my SPH-D710 using Tapatalk 2

 

[tsp&b]

Good Job!! I'm sure that it hits and plays well.

 

[Dirtbmw20]

Awesome job, love the "lessons learned"...

 

[kross]

Very nice indeed. Enjoyed reading your lessons learned. Good luck with future builds.

Thanks Joe! I would also like to thank you for your DVD's, they were a great help!

I'd like to thank Chris, too, for his book. Also a huge help!

Thanks everyone!
-- Kevin

 

[kross]

My advice to you is to get a sterling carbide gun drill and keep the RPM under 300.

For sure. I made my own tooling because I wasn't sure cue building was for me, and I didn't want to spend a bunch on tooling. Now that I'm addicted, I'll be buying a proper gun drill. :grin:

I won't be using the D-bit drill much more. It just takes too long to core a forearm (about 30 minutes). For people that have more time than money, this is a fine option. But if you can afford it, definitely go for the gun drill.

What's on the back burner for the next effort?

Next I'll be making a taper attachment, so I can start making my own shafts. I don't care for the taper on the final taper shafts from Atlas, plus I don't like having to sand them down to the proper diameter. I'd rather turn them down on the lathe, to keep them straight and round. I've seen a number of threads on here with homemade taper attachments, so I have enough ideas now to make my own. Hmm, maybe I'll document that project with pictures to help other newbies out...

Thanks everyone!
-- Kevin

 

[JoeyInCali]

Great job Kev.

You can go to Rockler and buy UHMW plates and rig it up as taper bar.
http://www.rockler.com/product.cfm?page=1580&site=ROCKLER&filter=UHMW
You just need aluminum extrusion to hold it.
Bend it as you please.

 

[bklynjava]

Looks Great!!! :thumbup:

 

[kross]

Great job Kev.

You can go to Rockler and buy UHMW plates and rig it up as taper bar.
http://www.rockler.com/product.cfm?page=1580&site=ROCKLER&filter=UHMW
You just need aluminum extrusion to hold it.
Bend it as you please.

Thanks Joey, I was going to do something similar. I was going to buy some Delrin flat bar, 1/2" x 1" x 36" from MSC, some aluminum bar locally, and mount the two together with some adjusting screws every few inches.

For the straight taper (for butts), I was going to get some aluminum bar, and to true up the edge clamp a precision straight edge to it, and use a flush trim bit on my router table. And then an adjusting screw at one end to change the amount of taper.

Then a couple brackets to hold the taper bars to the lathe. I'm not going to do the fancy four-position rotating turret to change between taper bars. I'll just unscrew one from the brackets, and screw on the other one.

Easy peasy, right? :grin:

 

[JoeyInCali]

Thanks Joey, I was going to do something similar. I was going to buy some Delrin flat bar, 1/2" x 1" x 36" from MSC, some aluminum bar locally, and mount the two together with some adjusting screws every few inches.

For the straight taper (for butts), I was going to get some aluminum bar, and to true up the edge clamp a precision straight edge to it, and use a flush trim bit on my router table. And then an adjusting screw at one end to change the amount of taper.

Then a couple brackets to hold the taper bars to the lathe. I'm not going to do the fancy four-position rotating turret to change between taper bars. I'll just unscrew one from the brackets, and screw on the other one.

Easy peasy, right? :grin:

You got it.
A 30" rod and an indicator make for great friends too .
The two will save you a ton of time and wood.
I like using a .0005 indicator so each click is a thousandth on lathe mode.

And if you use a set screw, you know what pitch gets you .100" cut per revolution.

You're on your way as a cuemaking maniac.