Horrible, horrible timing: Ding in clear coat

T

tobyjoe

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Say you were at a popular local hall. Say you were playing at a table that, while providing sufficient room for a stroke, was still pretty close to the darts area. Say you were pulling back after a shot and something hits your cue. Say the tall metal-edged table the darts-throwers rest their drinks on fell over and, though the folks standing there caught it, it hit the butt of your cue just slightly, enough to annoy you but not to worry you. Say you got home and noticed that the accident actually put a small, bb-sized nick in the clear coat, part of which seems to go all the way to the wood.

What would your options be?

I've checked with Tim Scruggs, and a complete refinish and rewrap is $200 or so. I don't need that. My cue is nearly perfect, other than this damned nick. I need a spot job, a touch up, to protect the wood beneath the clear coat. Can I do something myself, until I really need more work done? Clear nail polish? Some type of urethane? What is used, and what might I be able to do to bring it close to perfect again without having to ship it out to MD for a couple of weeks?
 
tobyjoe said:
Say you were at a popular local hall. Say you were playing at a table that, while providing sufficient room for a stroke, was still pretty close to the darts area. Say you were pulling back after a shot and something hits your cue. Say the tall metal-edged table the darts-throwers rest their drinks on fell over and, though the folks standing there caught it, it hit the butt of your cue just slightly, enough to annoy you but not to worry you. Say you got home and noticed that the accident actually put a small, bb-sized nick in the clear coat, part of which seems to go all the way to the wood.

What would your options be?

I've checked with Tim Scruggs, and a complete refinish and rewrap is $200 or so. I don't need that. My cue is nearly perfect, other than this damned nick. I need a spot job, a touch up, to protect the wood beneath the clear coat. Can I do something myself, until I really need more work done? Clear nail polish? Some type of urethane? What is used, and what might I be able to do to bring it close to perfect again without having to ship it out to MD for a couple of weeks?
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I'm afraid that refinishing is the only thing that will truly fix it. I'm sure that others, who know considerably more than I do, will post on this thread...maybe a cue maker. Good luck with it.
 
tobyjoe said:
What would your options be?

I've checked with Tim Scruggs, and a complete refinish and rewrap is $200 or so. I don't need that. My cue is nearly perfect, other than this damned nick. I need a spot job, a touch up, to protect the wood beneath the clear coat. Can I do something myself, until I really need more work done? Clear nail polish? Some type of urethane? What is used, and what might I be able to do to bring it close to perfect again without having to ship it out to MD for a couple of weeks?
Click to expand...

You can have have the spot fixed by a cue repair shop/person, I have seen it done on a Schon that had a bb-sized nick above the wrap between the points. After it was fixed you could look real close and still see it (I mean real close 3 -6 inches away), but you could not feel it. :D
 
thanks, folks. i do, of course, plan to have the cue refinished ONE DAY, but right now, it's perfect except for this new blemish. i mostly want to protect the wood beneath the ding (it's over one of the maple inlays in the ebony on the butt) until the wrap needs to be redone, at least. that will probably be more than a year away, i'd guess. perhaps i can try to get mr. purdy to hook me up with phillipi or another of his skilled associates in the DC area... otherwise, any safe, effective, home-brew remedies would be appreciated!
 
tobyjoe said:
thanks, folks. i do, of course, plan to have the cue refinished ONE DAY, but right now, it's perfect except for this new blemish. i mostly want to protect the wood beneath the ding (it's over one of the maple inlays in the ebony on the butt) until the wrap needs to be redone, at least. that will probably be more than a year away, i'd guess. perhaps i can try to get mr. purdy to hook me up with phillipi or another of his skilled associates in the DC area... otherwise, any safe, effective, home-brew remedies would be appreciated!
Click to expand...

Some superglue may fix it, but you need to be able to spin it up and sand it. If you use the real thin superglue, you may be able to do it yourself. Just be careful.
 
Frank_Glenn said:
Some superglue may fix it, but you need to be able to spin it up and sand it. If you use the real thin superglue, you may be able to do it yourself. Just be careful.
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thanks, frank. would superglue prevent or interfere with a proper refinishing later on?
 
tobyjoe said:
Say you were at a popular local hall. Say you were playing at a table that, while providing sufficient room for a stroke, was still pretty close to the darts area. Say you were pulling back after a shot and something hits your cue. Say the tall metal-edged table the darts-throwers rest their drinks on fell over and, though the folks standing there caught it, it hit the butt of your cue just slightly, enough to annoy you but not to worry you. Say you got home and noticed that the accident actually put a small, bb-sized nick in the clear coat, part of which seems to go all the way to the wood.

What would your options be?

I've checked with Tim Scruggs, and a complete refinish and rewrap is $200 or so. I don't need that. My cue is nearly perfect, other than this damned nick. I need a spot job, a touch up, to protect the wood beneath the clear coat. Can I do something myself, until I really need more work done? Clear nail polish? Some type of urethane? What is used, and what might I be able to do to bring it close to perfect again without having to ship it out to MD for a couple of weeks?
Click to expand...

Have these guys do it. I hear alot of good things about them.
http://www.proficientbilliards.com/services/refinish.htm
 
Happened to me the 2nd week I had my custom cue. Walking around the table at a bar tourney, a drunk guy stumbles between some my table and the next clipping my shoulder enough to swing me around. the butt of my cue whacks the other table hard enough to put a nick in the finish. I will wait a few years before having mine done (unless it starts to spread)..since I bet I'll get a few more before then as well.
 
tobyjoe said:
Say you got home and noticed that the accident actually put a small, bb-sized nick in the clear coat, part of which seems to go all the way to the wood.

What would your options be?
Click to expand...

If you really want to mess with it and only repair the one spot, I assume you have polyurethane clear on the cue (if it's a newer cue, you will). Polyurethane is a sandable layer of very durable plastic. To repair it, what you do is sand the spot smooth with 320 then 400 grit until you can't feel anything, then lay a couple of coats of clear polyurethane on it - if you're just doing the small spot you can just brush it on. Let it cure for at least 3 or 4 days, then sand it lightly with 600 wet, then 1000 wet, then buff it with polishing compound by hand.

Now, hope you don't ruin anything. You've just spent $20 in materials and a couple of hours.

Scott at Proficient will refinish either the butt or forearm only for $40, or both for $75. I would do the $75 job. The cue will probably look better than new (because he's a better finish painter than most cue makers) and he will have it back in two weeks or less.

http://www.proficientbilliards.com/services/refinish.htm

Chris
 
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I had a similar ding happen with one of my cues,,,,,,,,,,the cue maker told me that it would be 250 to refinish the cue,,,,,,,,,,,,,,or I could simply consider it a battle scar.
 
Striping Old Finish

TATE said:
If you really want to mess with it and only repair the one spot, I assume you have polyurethane clear on the cue (if it's a newer cue, you will). Polyurethane is a sandable layer of very durable plastic. To repair it, what you do is sand the spot smooth with 320 then 400 grit until you can't feel anything, then lay a couple of coats of clear polyurethane on it - if you're just doing the small spot you can just brush it on. Let it cure for at least 3 or 4 days, then sand it lightly with 600 wet, then 1000 wet, then buff it with polishing compound by hand.

Now, hope you don't ruin anything. You've just spent $20 in materials and a couple of hours.

Scott at Proficient will refinish either the butt or forearm only for $40, or both for $75. I would do the $75 job. The cue will probably look better than new (because he's a better finish painter than most cue makers) and he will have it back in two weeks or less.

http://www.proficientbilliards.com/services/refinish.htm

Chris
Click to expand...

Doe anyone know how to go about stripping the old finish from a cue?

Can you use laquer thinner or how is it done?
 
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