Help with making Milk Dud tips?

sun526

sun526

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
How about some good recipes for making the Milk Dud tips? I want to make my own. What are some of the tips that work better for this. Do you use soft, medium or hard tips? How long do they need to be soaked and how long should they be pressed? Should you use whole milk, half and half or buttermilk, which is better. Please help. I know there are different opinions and variations on this. I value the opinions and info of all the members here and what your thoughts
 
You can do a search here on AZ, or you can just buy them from Muellers. Fifty are less than $30.00.. They are called Dudley tips by Muellers, elk master soaked in milk and pressed..I bought 50 and like them quite a bit and figure I have tips for years now!
Dan
 
Thanks Dan. I dont want to buy them made. I can get a box of 50 Elkmasters for about 20.00. So I want to do what you did and make my own. I figure if we could get a few recpies listed here under on thread, it would be a great help and a lot easier that having to search several threads. Dan how do you make yours? Please share.
 
I made a batch one time and my customers seemed to be happy with them. I soaked ElkMasters in buttermilk, left out on the countertop overnight, then pressed the heck out of them for a few days until they dried.
 
Much more fun to make your own.
Do a search for Milk Duds and you will find 2 days worth of reading on the subject. Different recipes and techniques.
I use Elk Masters soaked in milk for 24 hrs. I press them in a small flat jaw hobby vise for another 24. Last batch, I found that they seem a tad better when left in the vise for 48, or maybe just my imagination.
Just put one on my Schon shaft yesterday and it works nicely.
Check Rocket Cues thread in the cue machinery forum, hes about to start a run on tip jigs. For the price I think they'll be the cats ass and well worth it.
 
Bought Mine

sun526 said:
Thanks Dan. I dont want to buy them made. I can get a box of 50 Elkmasters for about 20.00. So I want to do what you did and make my own. I figure if we could get a few recpies listed here under on thread, it would be a great help and a lot easier that having to search several threads. Dan how do you make yours? Please share.
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You misunderstood my post, I bought mine.
There are some recipes here also, there has been quite a bit of discussion on them recently.
Take Care,
dan
 
I have to agree with doing a search on the forum. I read a couple of recipes and made my own and they play surprisingly well.


If I can do it so can you.

But for the price its cheaper to pay Muellers
 
sun526 said:
Which hardness works better?
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I used Elk Masters and a Sears bench vice and just cranked them down.

I actually forgot about them for a week. Now that 13mm tip was probibly 15 mm when I got done with it.
 
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Ther is more to it than just the recipe. But if you are into learning new things, then just try things. If you don't want to waist tips and experimenting, then just buy the dudley tips or any from people who have them.
tips are tips. No matter the brand , how they are made, every once in a while you will get a really good one and will from time to time get a really bad one.
Everything else about the play of the tip is personal preferance.
I have tried water and mineral spirits with elkmaster tips. 1 failed on installation, the others have been fine.You need to make and try several before you know that they are any good.
I have not yet tried milk, but have not yet brought any either. I just have not got around to it yet.
I have not searched very much on the dry time for the tips or the press time. Some put the tip in a mold type deal and press several at a time. Others just squeeze them in a vice. While some will press and heat them for x amount of time at y temp.It is not new and not everyone likes them.
Maybe just new to a new generation of players who now have more choices in tips than anyone can test.
Neil
 
Sun, I think some guys use mineral spirits and some bake them in the oven.
Haven't tried that recipe yet but I want to try making them with chocolate milk. Just for that sweet hit. BTW, I find mine can end up a bit on the dry side. Anyone else find that or a way around it.
I wonder if, after you soak them in milk until they expand, then soaking them in olive oil might help.
 
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Blue Hog ridr said:
Sun, I think some guys use mineral spirits and some bake them in the oven.
Haven't tried that recipe yet but I want to try making them with chocolate milk. Just for that sweet hit. BTW, I find mine can end up a bit on the dry side. Anyone else find that or a way around it.
I wonder if, after you soak them in milk until they expand, then soaking them in olive oil might help.
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Sweet hit.....lol
You raised good points about the olive oil. With it being so slick and oily. I am not sure it would dry enough to adhere to the ferrule. If you do it, let me know how it works. I think I am going to try the buttermilk for 24 hours and pressing for a couple of days, tightening a little, every so often. I am not sure if anyone has mentioned this, but milk and especially buttermilk have quite a bit of lactic acid in them. I know from cooking, fried chicken soaked in buttermilk is much more tender due to the acids breaking the meat down a little. I just wonder what this does to tips as well. Well Elkmasters are pretty cheap so I think I can experiment some. Thank you to all the have replied.

Larry
 
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sun526 said:
Sweet hit.....lol
You raised good points about the olive oil. With it being so slick and oily. I am not sure it would dry enough to adhere to the ferrule. If you do it, let me know how it works. I think I am going to try the buttermilk for 24 hours and pressing for a couple of days, tightening a little, every so often. I am not sure if anyone has mentioned this, but milk and especially buttermilk have quite a bit of lactic acid in them. I know from cooking, fried chicken soaked in buttermilk is much more tender due to the acids breaking the meat down a little. I just wonder what this does to tips as well. Well Elkmasters are pretty cheap so I think I can experiment some. Thank you to all the have replied.

Larry
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The "science" behind soaking tips in milk is that milk contains casein, protein used in making glue. By soaking the tips in this and allowing them to dry in a compressed state, it hardens them. See Wikipedia for the scientific details.
 
ragbug74 said:
The "science" behind soaking tips in milk is that milk contains casein, protein used in making glue. By soaking the tips in this and allowing them to dry in a compressed state, it hardens them. See Wikipedia for the scientific details.
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Thank you! I totally forgot about the proteins in the milk. Makes complete sense.
 
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