How are pressed tips made?

S

Shockerz

Registered
I've been dabbling with cutting various leathers, shaping them and then playing to see how the leather reacts:

http://www.snookercrazy.com/leather-snooker-tips/

I have then dabbled with pressing tips to see how they react at various sizes:

http://www.snookercrazy.com/how-to-press-a-cue-tip/

Obviously when people make tips they don't do this individually so they must use something a little more complex so they can punch, compress and dome the tips to lots at a time.

Obviously there are lots of people coming out with all their various makes of tip so I wonder if they have all made different devices or there is something out there that can be used.

Is this out there to be seen or is it just one of those company secrets? Certainly be interested.
 
Yes, leathers ( and tips) can be punched and pressed in a number of different ways so there are many devices out there to choose from that can be used either as-is or easily modified to produce tips en mass.
 
Great video so thanks for that.

It's a shame they didn't show how to get from the squares they cut from the sheets to the tip.

I guess you could punch them out from there but then they would be distorted if a leather punch is used which is where I am at, punched tips that are a little miss-shaped because of the punching method.

I am also stuck with how to get them to a dome without doing them individually in a press.

Great video though as I can't find any out there!
 
Shockerz said:
Great video so thanks for that.

It's a shame they didn't show how to get from the squares they cut from the sheets to the tip.

I guess you could punch them out from there but then they would be distorted if a leather punch is used which is where I am at, punched tips that are a little miss-shaped because of the punching method.

I am also stuck with how to get them to a dome without doing them individually in a press.

Great video though as I can't find any out there!
Click to expand...



There are other videos. Takes some hunting.


They can be punched round right off the bat. Or like in this video cut square then punched round. (they didn't show that)


Numerous ways to skin that cat but in general you will be working in sheets, with a hydraulic press, and punching out the tips after pressing them in sheet form.


That's the general idea. I have seen several videos in the past as I was studying the matter myself.



.
 
Mr. Bond said:
Yes, leathers ( and tips) can be punched and pressed in a number of different ways so there are many devices out there to choose from that can be used either as-is or easily modified to produce tips en mass.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the reply.

Do you have any links? I have seen the single tip method and the durometer etc but no tools, pics or video's to do any on mass.

I've been on other forums and it's a similar problem so my hobby and experimenting has come to a grinding halt.

I thought about buying a press but what to put in it to get the required shapes is where it stops for me at the moment.

If there is anything I can purchase then I would experiment a bit more.

Interesting topic though as I would like to try different methods for snooker and other cue sports to try varying amounts of grip.
 
Chopdoc said:
There are other videos. Takes some hunting.


They can be punched round right off the bat. Or like in this video cut square then punched round. (they didn't show that)


Numerous ways to skin that cat but in general you will be working in sheets, with a hydraulic press, and punching out the tips after pressing them in sheet form.


That's the general idea. I have seen several videos in the past as I was studying the matter myself.



.
Click to expand...

I've not found any as yet and gave up after a while.

If you've seen them then I'll start looking again as I find the whole topic interesting.

When you were doing it did you settle on any particular type/brand of glue?

I've also been buying and playing with different types of leather (for tips of course) and soaking / boiling it to change it's state.

Th best I had was some 55 year old leather that was great and that's the type I've been trying to replicate without success.

I can make it hard but it becomes brittle but I guess that the game, good fun trying though.
 
I didn't settle on anything. I wasn't proposing to make them, I was just studying the matter.

I did poke around to see if I can find the videos again. I only found that one and as you can see you have to watch most of it to get to that part.



.
 
Maybe I am naive. I just had a triangle tip put on a shaft. The guy asked me if I wanted it pressed so it wouldn't mushroom. He said he will put it in a vice for a couple of hours. I thought it was just that simple.
 
philly said:
Maybe I am naive. I just had a triangle tip put on a shaft. The guy asked me if I wanted it pressed so it wouldn't mushroom. He said he will put it in a vice for a couple of hours. I thought it was just that simple.
Click to expand...

It is...sort of.


Pressing individual tips...making milk duds...lots of tricks. But I think the OP was talking more about manufacturing.

The processing of the leather, and adhesives used if it is a layered tip, both open more avenues for exploration.




.
 
Chopdoc said:
It is...sort of.


Pressing individual tips...making milk duds...lots of tricks. But I think the OP was talking more about manufacturing.

The processing of the leather, and adhesives used if it is a layered tip, both open more avenues for exploration.




.
Click to expand...

Yep. That's where I was going.

Just hunting for some more info so I can try some new stuff.
 
Shockerz said:
Thanks for the reply.

Do you have any links? I have seen the single tip method and the durometer etc but no tools, pics or video's to do any on mass.

I've been on other forums and it's a similar problem so my hobby and experimenting has come to a grinding halt.

I thought about buying a press but what to put in it to get the required shapes is where it stops for me at the moment.

If there is anything I can purchase then I would experiment a bit more.

Interesting topic though as I would like to try different methods for snooker and other cue sports to try varying amounts of grip.
Click to expand...


As I mentioned, there are many methods for punching and pressing tips en mass, so obviously this is not the only way, nonetheless, for a "beginner" producing somewhat small batches, a machine like this one will let you punch whole "sheets" of tips at a time, rather than just one at a time.

Besides the machine, you would simply need to produce (or purchase) a die template or individual die rings to place on the press to cut as many as will fit on the deck.

http://tippmannclicker.com/
 
Mr. Bond said:
As I mentioned, there are many methods for punching and pressing tips en mass, so obviously this is not the only way, nonetheless, for a "beginner" producing somewhat small batches, a machine like this one will let you punch whole "sheets" of tips at a time, rather than just one at a time.

Besides the machine, you would simply need to produce (or purchase) a die template or individual die rings to place on the press to cut as many as will fit on the deck.

http://tippmannclicker.com/
Click to expand...

Yeah I'd got as far as a mechanical tip press machine to apply pressure but not as far as finding a die to cut the holes better than a leather punch, that is pretty much where I got stuck.

Looked for weeks for something to punch them out so the leather would still stay square and not out of shape due to the punch.

The press's you put on the link look great but they would do a similar job to the large mechanical desktop one I found so back to the die's........it's a game but interesting looking!
 
Shockerz said:
Yeah I'd got as far as a mechanical tip press machine to apply pressure but not as far as finding a die to cut the holes better than a leather punch, that is pretty much where I got stuck.

Looked for weeks for something to punch them out so the leather would still stay square and not out of shape due to the punch.

The press's you put on the link look great but they would do a similar job to the large mechanical desktop one I found so back to the die's........it's a game but interesting looking!
Click to expand...

In some cases, that's why punching and pressing are done as separate steps in the process. And in some cases, the die design cuts, presses and shapes at the same time. In other words, you have plenty of options, as long as profit is not your motive.
 
Mr. Bond said:
In some cases, that's why punching and pressing are done as separate steps in the process. And in some cases, the die design cuts, presses and shapes at the same time. In other words, you have plenty of options, as long as profit is not your motive.
Click to expand...

I'll certainly have to give it some more thought.

Like a lot of things in this and cue making, unless you're doing it as a living with a good customer base then profit certainly doesn't come into the equation.:)

I can think of lots of metal shapes I could use as a press but I'm not an engineer and don't have a lathe so I'll keep looking for the right die/mould......
 
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