Finishing the Shaft

SSach

SSach

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
If this has been asked before and answered I appoligize. With that being said, Once a shaft has been tapered to the proper size what grit sandpapers are used to achieve the desired finish. What grit sand paper do you start with and what grit do you end with? When does it become in efeective?
 
I go up to 2000 grit. but most players, I mean good players are very popular for carrying 600 in their case.
 
Michael Webb said:
I go up to 2000 grit. but most players, I mean good players are very popular for carrying 600 in their case.
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Yeah, i carry some 600 lol, but only for "extreme" emergencies. Wet towel/dry towel works most of the time (along with washing hands.) But usually after the 600 (again, only in extreme emergencies) i re-clean from 600 on up to 2000 when i get back from the pool room.

Thanks,

Jon

P.S. I carry a glove in my case (wadded up in the bottom of long pocket lol) and that is for just an emergency, but if i can't find it, or it just doesn't feel right, i go with 600...
 
I don't know nothing about the gay part but alot of good players use the glove. If it were a choice between a glove because of sweating and repeated use of sanding, I'd say use it if it works. But it would be nice if it were washed once in a while.
 
BiG_JoN said:
Yeah, i carry some 600 lol, but only for "extreme" emergencies. Wet towel/dry towel works most of the time (along with washing hands.) But usually after the 600 (again, only in extreme emergencies) i re-clean from 600 on up to 2000 when i get back from the pool room.

Thanks,

Jon

P.S. I carry a glove in my case (wadded up in the bottom of long pocket lol) and that is for just an emergency, but if i can't find it, or it just doesn't feel right, i go with 600...
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Use Dr Z shaft pack.
Quit smoking, drinking and stay away from salty foods. :p
 
Finishing the shaft

> Most of my customers want their shafts as slick as I can get them,usually finish with 2000,sometimes before and sometimes after applying sealer and wax,unless they specifically ask for no sealer,which has yet to happen. On my own shafts,I usually go up to 4000 grit Micro-Mesh,then white polishing compound. I too will use 600/1000 in cases of extreme humidity or a non-air conditioned room,but it's never a piece of fresh 600,kept the same 4 x 4 piece in my case for 8 years,and with it being worn out,all it does is take the sealer and wax down or completely off,leaving me with super slick and dry wood. My problem with the gloves I've tried is the placement of the seam,it's never on the side of the finger that doesn't contact the shaft,every one I've tried has had the seam right there where I can feel it,and on a few occasions,the seam has given way or moved with the stroke,causing an annoying hang-up. Tommy D.
 
JoeyInCali said:
Use Dr Z shaft pack.
Quit smoking, drinking and stay away from salty foods. :p
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I've been in the process of "quitting" for around 2 years now... Step by step, one day at a time :D .

I don't really drink, not enough to say "i drink"...

I don't really like salt, so what are you getting at lol. :p

I've thought about one of those dr. z things, i might get one sooner or later...

Thanks,

Jon
 
larrynj1 said:
i would feel so gay if i wore a glove playing pool.
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To each their own i guess. I don't feel gay in the least when i use one. It's kinda funny though, because in the same conditions i would have the smoother stroke, and you would be worrying about what the other people might think if you used one, i say screw 'em and what they think, and play great pool with it.

Thanks,

Jon <-- Doesn't use one all the time, maybe 2% of the time...
 
BiG_JoN said:
I've been in the process of "quitting" for around 2 years now... Step by step, one day at a time :D .

I don't really drink, not enough to say "i drink"...

I don't really like salt, so what are you getting at lol. :p

I've thought about one of those dr. z things, i might get one sooner or later...

Thanks,

Jon
Click to expand...
Dr Z
 
Tommy-D said:
> Most of my customers want their shafts as slick as I can get them,usually finish with 2000,sometimes before and sometimes after applying sealer and wax,unless they specifically ask for no sealer,which has yet to happen. On my own shafts,I usually go up to 4000 grit Micro-Mesh,then white polishing compound. I too will use 600/1000 in cases of extreme humidity or a non-air conditioned room,but it's never a piece of fresh 600,kept the same 4 x 4 piece in my case for 8 years,and with it being worn out,all it does is take the sealer and wax down or completely off,leaving me with super slick and dry wood. My problem with the gloves I've tried is the placement of the seam,it's never on the side of the finger that doesn't contact the shaft,every one I've tried has had the seam right there where I can feel it,and on a few occasions,the seam has given way or moved with the stroke,causing an annoying hang-up. Tommy D.
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Tommy-D what type of shaft sealer and white compound do you use. Thanks
 
SSach said:
If this has been asked before and answered I appoligize. With that being said, Once a shaft has been tapered to the proper size what grit sandpapers are used to achieve the desired finish. What grit sand paper do you start with and what grit do you end with? When does it become in efeective?
Click to expand...

I guess that depends on how good the cuemakers shaft machine is. My machine cuts very smooth so I only have to start with 320 grit paper and work my way up to 800. Then I install the ferrule and tip and trim them to size. After that I seal the shaft and work up to 1500 grit. Next the shaft is waxed and then finished off with 2000 grit paper.
 
> The white polishing compound I use is the typical DuPont stuff in the green can with the white label,found with the car wax and similar products at any Wal-Mart,and the sealer I use is an ongoing thing,constantly trying new products and mixing/thinning or tweaking one way or the other. The stuff I'm using at the moment is a thinned out MinWax polyurethane sanding sealer I've only found at my local Homestead/Ace Hardware. Unless you thin it out properly,this stuff is real sticky,and can be polished/buffed to such an extent it feels like you're shooting with the butt of your cue,even with 2 light coats followed by 2000. Mohawk Industries "Rapid Pad" is a good general sealer,just not as durable as I like for my own shafts,and there are several other good ones,some can occasionally be found at Wal-Mart over where the small cans of paint are,just look for a satin finish or sanding sealer,and use light coats,spinning the lathe at a high RPM,applying sealer is not a good thing to do without some kind of device to spin the piece. Tommy D.
 
Tommy-D, thanks for the reply and info its always nice to know what people are trying. I didn't really understand what you were saying here((and use light coats,spinning the lathe at a high RPM,applying sealer is not a good thing to do without some kind of device to spin the piece..))??<<<have it spinning or not >>>> thanks for the info anyways I'm off to wal-mart.
 
smooth shaft

SSach said:
If this has been asked before and answered I appoligize. With that being said, Once a shaft has been tapered to the proper size what grit sandpapers are used to achieve the desired finish. What grit sand paper do you start with and what grit do you end with? When does it become in efeective?
Click to expand...

I feel that once the shaft is smooth you should only use a dry paper towel, napkin, or terry cloth to touch it up between matches. All work other than that should be handled by a competent cue repair professional.
 
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Some time ago I retapered a few shafts and after sanding down to 2000 grit sealed them with WD-40. Protected the tip and ferrule with duct tape first and then sprayed it on nice and heavy. Let it soak in for a while and wiped it off. Water beads up and slips right off, never have had the shaft warp or anything like that, and is a breeze to keep clean. I carry a small can of the stuff in my case, but rarely need to use it. I use a little round latex patch called Q-Whiz that has an extremely fine grit on one side and latex something or other on the other side. Works great! And does it ever make the shaft slick.... you can find it here:

http://www.discountpoolcues.com/qwiz.htm
 
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