First Shaft Maintenance Adventure

[Walt69]

Hi folks. I had a shaft that is in pretty bad shape and needed a new tip, so I figured I'd try my hand at working on it myself. I have a little experience with bowls and dowels etc... on my lathe but it's my first time working on a shaft. The shaft was blue-ish from chalk and whatnot and the ferrule needed to be cleaned up due to some scratches etc.. The shaft was 13mm and I'm used to playing with 12.75 due to the 314s, so I figured "what the heck" and turned it down a bit too. End result came out good to my eye although I ended up taking off a bit more so it's closer to 12.7 than 12.75. I didn't realize how hard some of these tips were. I was using my standard gouges on it and it wasn't until I took a razor to it that it started going quickly with the shaping.

I used Loctite on the tip and it held on great. I think I maybe should have taken some more of the tip down as it looks a little thick. It shaped decent though and I can't complain about how it hits "Ultraskin VS". Of course we'll see over the course of the next few months how it turns out.

Question though. Is it common to take a little bit of ferrule off when removing the old tip? I was careful about keeping control over the progression of removing the old leather tip but it seems like I had to "even" the surface out a little in order to ensure a flat surface. With that came a little bit of ferrule shaving. It couldn't have been more than a few microns though.

I forgot to take a proper pre-pic so bare with that, but there are some post pics too to show the work done. Any advice is appreciated on part of or the whole process. Thanks!

 

[Black-Balled]

Lloking good, I say.

But I am blind in one eye, can't see out the other.

 

[mortuarymike-nv]

Tip

I normally reface the ferrule when I replace a tip.
I use a carbon fiber pad on every tip I install.
I seal the ferrule with CA so it will no attract chalk.
And I would seal and wax the shaft.

You did a nice clean job.

 

[Walt69]

I normally reface the ferrule when I replace a tip.
I use a carbon fiber pad on every tip I install.
I seal the ferrule with CA so it will no attract chalk.
And I would seal and wax the shaft.

You did a nice clean job.

Do you glue them separate or does the glue press through the pad and it all come together at once? Also, does the pad have to be cut to fit or can it be a little bigger like the tip and be sanded? Lastly, what is the main purpose of padding between the ferrule and tip? I've seen the kamui clears and the G-Core "actually I think the G-core is between the ferrule and shaft bridge..." and I've heard that it may dampen or soften then shot. I assume it's also for protection correct? Sorry, I'm new to all of this.

 

[galipeau]

Good job on the tip install, however, it sounds like you changed the taper as well. I would have bought a cheap shaft to practice on first. Might affect the value of your cue, as it looks to be quite a nice Nova.

 

[Walt69]

Good job on the tip install, however, it sounds like you changed the taper as well. I would have bought a cheap shaft to practice on first. Might affect the value of your cue, as it looks to be quite a nice Nova.

Hi galipeau.

Yeah i thought about that, which is why i used smooth strokes and progressive sanding along with some calipers to make the turn to keep it as close as possible "diameter proportion wise" to when it was thicker. I think I understand what you're saying though. Would the fact that it has been turned in general lower the value or just of it was misproportioned or uneven? I myself prefer between 12.5-12.75 but everyone has different preferences.

 

[galipeau]

I personally think it lowers the value a bit depending on the cue. I know that I prefer the original taper on cues I buy. If you start sanding down the spine, you can sometimes end up with a "whippy" shaft. It's probably not a big deal, especially if you like it and it's a keeper cue for you.