How thick is your finish??

[Chris Byrne]

There was a heated argument at the poolhall tonight between 2 guys about finish thickness. It got me thinking about the subject. How thick is your finish once sanded and polished? The original set of sanding mandrels I learned on were a .007 finish. I believe they were made or sold thru unilock. So how thick is yours? Chris.

 

[KJ Cues]

I was told that Ray Schuler once said that too much finish would stifle the hit. I've come to believe this as well. I've had the privilege of having done work on several of his cues. His position is evident in his work. It's a cue builders choice. One of the things that I like about acrylic urethane is that it's a hard durable finish with very little millage. I try to stay btwn. .002/0025. On the flip-side, it's absolutely amazing how thick you can lay it on if you have to.

 

[KD Cues]

Pleasure to meet you, Chris!

You are almost talking about the same thickness. If the sanding mandrel is .007 smaller than the finish size of the cue, each side of finish is .0035 and that will be at the thickest point (next to the mandrel). I use clear car finish and my sanding mandrel is also .007 smaller than my finish joint size. Best of luck to you Chris! Kent

 

[Poulos Cues]

There was a heated argument at the poolhall tonight between 2 guys about finish thickness. It got me thinking about the subject. How thick is your finish once sanded and polished? The original set of sanding mandrels I learned on were a .007 finish. I believe they were made or sold thru unilock. So how thick is yours? Chris.

Hey Chris,
The mandrels that I have are .005 under for sanding and then back to size for finishing. Depending on the thickness of each coat, my cues get 8-10 coats of clear...so I guess that I am at the .002-.0025 "finish"range as well.
Chris

 

[Chris Byrne]

I have had several cues in the shop with finishes that were chipped and looked to be roughly .050 thick at the chip. I was wandering what they were trying to acomplish by applying it so thick. Chris.

 

[cueman]

My finish is between .0025" and .005" deep giving between .005" and .010" additional diameter above actual wood diameter.

 

[billiardbum]

There was a heated argument at the poolhall tonight between 2 guys about finish thickness. It got me thinking about the subject. How thick is your finish once sanded and polished? The original set of sanding mandrels I learned on were a .007 finish. I believe they were made or sold thru unilock. So how thick is yours? Chris.

.004 total, or .002 on a side...

 

[RocketQ]

There was a heated argument at the poolhall tonight between 2 guys about finish thickness. It got me thinking about the subject. How thick is your finish once sanded and polished? The original set of sanding mandrels I learned on were a .007 finish. I believe they were made or sold thru unilock. So how thick is yours? Chris.

My sanding mandrels are 0.010" smaller than the finish mandrels. The appeal to this for automotive clear is the depth it adds to the grain. Looks like you can stick your arm in up to your elbow. Downside if you go much thicker than that it chips easy. The super clear finish really shines and shows the grain well. I don't know if this is true for other types of finishes. Also I started adding a touch of reducer in the clear mix in the last coat to allow flow. Slick as glass.