i like my shafts dirty

poolplayer2093

poolplayer2093

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
and covered in chalk. when i first started playing all my friends told me to let the shafts stay dirty. it takes a long time to get them that way and it just reminds you of how much work you've put into your game. of course these were the same kinds of people that called knicks and dings "character",lol! to be honest i don't like the way shafts look when they're all brand new.

anyway, am i the only guy that likes his shafts dirty and sealed with chalk dust and hand oil?
 
Nope! I gotta have them blue...how else am I gonna be able to discern the tip!

Once I had a tip replaced and told dude I only wanted the tip. As a 'favor', he cleaned the shaft, asking me for $10 extra. I told him I wasn't paying because I told him only the tip...he still has that mufukin shaft!
 
Black-Balled said:
Nope! I gotta have them blue...how else am I gonna be able to discern the tip!

Once I had a tip replaced and told dude I only wanted the tip. As a 'favor', he cleaned the shaft, asking me for $10 extra. I told him I wasn't paying because I told him only the tip...he still has that mufukin shaft!
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i make it a point to tell people i don't want the shaft cleaned. i'd be pretty upset if someone did extra work that i didn't ask for then tried to charge me for it.

i've had people try to clean my shaft after changing my tip for me. even with me telling him "stop i like my shafts dirty" the guy kept cleaning them and saying " i like to get them real clean". that's around the time i started doing my own tips
 
Me too...

I concur, I need to break in the shaft, get it dirty and blue'd up with the oils from my hand from play to get it the way I like it. Case in point, I have a 314-2 shaft that took over a year to get it to the state I like. However, the tip came off in a tourney in May, (I took the summer off), and I used my spare, which is almost brand new, and it felt foreign. Hence, this fall, I put my great dirty playing shaft in my case and started playing with the back up shaft to get it to same state. I may need someone's input here, but can the oils from your hand penetrate the shaft to make it heavier or am I talking nonsense? The reason I ask, is that both shafts were 3.8oz when I bought them 2years ago. The used shaft is now 4.0oz, while the newer shaft has stayed the same; 3.8oz. What do you think?
Cheers, Mark
 
I call it seasoning. The chalk an hand sweat give the shaft character. I am switching main shaft to back up shaft to have it ready. An man you got to be ready. :wink:
 
I like it dirty . . .

I also prefer my shaft dirty , but she always insists that I have to clean it before she's gonna touch it . . .
wait , isn't this a pool forum ?>?>:eek:
 
Blued/dirty shafts are often a deal breaker when attempting to sell. A properly cleaned and polished shaft will provide the same results as a dirty one. Your hard work should show on the table, not your shafts. Any one can dirty a shaft....no talent in that.
 
ridewiththewind said:
Blued/dirty shafts are often a deal breaker when attempting to sell. A properly cleaned and polished shaft will provide the same results as a dirty one. Your hard work should show on the table, not your shafts. Any one can dirty a shaft....no talent in that.
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if you're always worried about reselling then your goals are probably different than mine
 
I like a patina on my shaft. After awhile they hardly ever get sticky, even with the chalk dust.
 
ridewiththewind said:
Blued/dirty shafts are often a deal breaker when attempting to sell. A properly cleaned and polished shaft will provide the same results as a dirty one. Your hard work should show on the table, not your shafts. Any one can dirty a shaft....no talent in that.
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:groucho: :groucho: :groucho:

VERY well said.
 
JimS said:
:groucho: :groucho: :groucho:

VERY well said.
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i guess. i still miss a lot of balls though. this way no matter how many balls i miss i can still look at my shaft and realize how many hours i've put in on the practice table

i like my shafts dirty and i consider all the little bumps on my cue character. my equipment gets used. i consider it a little suspect when someone says they play but their equipment is flawless
 
My shaft is blue, but nice and smooth. I'm not really concerned about it....my concern is more in the line of making balls and controlling mr. cue ball. If I ever choose to sell my cue, I can take back to J. Olivier and he will clean it up.
 
Nope , like 'em clean.

Not 'new' looking , but clean with a nice amber tint from aging.

Hate the blue shaft , hate it.

:)
 
I am very particular about my ferrules, but when it comes to the shaft I like mine dirty also. Not sticky at all, but hate the feel of a sanded shaft. I just use a piece of leather or a dollar bill to burnish mine when it feels a little sticky. I think the previous poster that acted like us pool scum didn't have any talent was a bit out of line. Cues are made to be played in my opinion, and I'm not about to use tan chalk. I can always put a shaft on the lathe and have it looking new in 5 minutes if I want to sell it.
 
poolplayer2093 said:
if you're always worried about reselling then your goals are probably different than mine
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Actually, if you would have done your homework, you would've noticed that I have rarely posted a cue for sale here...rarely. I keep mine clean...not bleached...because I have a bit of money into them, and they are primary factor in what makes my cue play so well. Sure, I could order another from the maker should the need arise, but it will not play exactly the same way, as all wood is slightly different in tonality and density.

Additionally, once a shaft has been stained blue beyond blue...it will not come all the way clean...it will need to be taken down in diameter to restore to it's original color.

The reason I mentioned hurting resale value is because I have seen people list cues for sale with heavily blued shafts, and then scratch their heads as to why the cues do not move....or move at the price they would have liked. Whether the perception is correct or not, many view a cue with heavily blued shafts as not being taken care of.
 
I like my shafts seasoned too. Ding free. And clean ferrule. I hate it when people borrow my cue and get a ring around the ferrule. And I think people who sell cues with dirty shafts are too lazy/cheap to get them cleaned before taking pictures. JMO...

Shane
 
Idaho said:
I am very particular about my ferrules, but when it comes to the shaft I like mine dirty also. Not sticky at all, but hate the feel of a sanded shaft. I just use a piece of leather or a dollar bill to burnish mine when it feels a little sticky. I think the previous poster that acted like us pool scum didn't have any talent was a bit out of line. Cues are made to be played in my opinion, and I'm not about to use tan chalk. I can always put a shaft on the lathe and have it looking new in 5 minutes if I want to sell it.
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Wow...and this is exactly how these threads turn into flamefests. I never called anyone a pool scum, or even alluded to it. A previous poster had stated that, in their opinion, a blued shaft might well be indicative of the amount of work they had put into their game, and thus be perhaps a signal of talent. My response was that I did not feel that that was necessarily so...there are talented players with dirty shafts and talented players with clean shafts. The opposite is also true. That was the point I was trying to make.

Typically, blued shafts are a result of improper chalking technique, and not keeping one's hands clean during play. Keeping one's hands clean will help alleviate the stickiness of the shaft. If you are spinning on a lathe every time you are tying to remove the bluing, then you are reducing the shaft's diameter over time, as the bluing stains down into the wood grain pretty deep.
 
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