> Today,out of the blue,a guy from Missouri calls me about getting a couple tips put on. Back a couple months ago at a tournament,I told him if he really needed a tip put on that bad,and didn't trust anyone locally,that I'd put one on for free if he was willing to drive over an hour for it. He told me he was bringing 2 shafts for sure,and called all of his buddies to see if they needed any. He showed up 2 hours later. He eventually had me do 3 shafts,just simple tips and cleaning. Much to my surprise,one of the shafts was one I put a tip on 8 years ago,using my old tools of a modified Tweeten Top Sander and a pencil-eraser type cutter similar to the Porper Graser. I didn't even notice it until I saw that the tip was worn the hell out,but still looked nice and smooth on the sides. I said that the tip put on by the last guy "was nice work",and he said "hell,you put that tip on back in the day when you had that toolbox full of stuff,before you bought the lathe". I had forgotten the fact that his was the last tip I did for anyone but myself using the old methods I developed working on my own cheap cues. I was still a recreational player when I started doing them because I was good with sandpaper and hobby knives from building models,and didn't know cool machines like lathes existed. I refined my methods to the point of turning out tips that looked as good as anyone in my area but Bill McDaniel could do with a proper machine. My work is nicer now,and MUCH easier.
One of the other tips I replaced was one that was installed by a Willard's user,and a bad one at that. Fortunately,all the damage to the ferrule was removed by facing almost 1/16 off the end. He was told about this in advance.
The 3rd one was about as bad,the but tip was fortunate enough to have come off long before I got it. This 3rd one was interesting as this was a shaft for a Layani,with the esoteric conical joint. I got worried at first,since I had never seen one,and knew no one around here had one,so I never bought a correct lathe pin for it. I got lucky upon closer inspection,as the nub of a pin that sticks out of the joint end of the shaft is 5/16-18,and I had a nut that fit it. I chucked up on the nut,screwed the shaft into it,ran the tailstock up to support the tip,and spun it with no problems.
The extra one I threw in for the hell of it was an Action J/B,I cut the tip down and packed it real hard so it broke better,and cut the clearcoat off the shaft. It had an oddball quick-release type pin,but this cue was particularly nice for that price range. All the joints are piloted and snug,the pins and inserts all feel exactly like the real Uni-Loc (they even squeak),and the butt end has one of those extensions that uses the metal rod. I did the first shaft for free,along with the break cue,and charged him a total of 30 for the other 2. He said he was prepared to pay for the first one too,but I told him my word on throwing him a bone for driving so far for simple repairs was good. Sometimes,I'll go a couple weeks without a single job,because my tips aren't coming off and no one plays enough to wear them out that fast. All of a sudden,I've done 15 in the last 10 days. All word of mouth and passing examples of my work. Tommy D.
One of the other tips I replaced was one that was installed by a Willard's user,and a bad one at that. Fortunately,all the damage to the ferrule was removed by facing almost 1/16 off the end. He was told about this in advance.
The 3rd one was about as bad,the but tip was fortunate enough to have come off long before I got it. This 3rd one was interesting as this was a shaft for a Layani,with the esoteric conical joint. I got worried at first,since I had never seen one,and knew no one around here had one,so I never bought a correct lathe pin for it. I got lucky upon closer inspection,as the nub of a pin that sticks out of the joint end of the shaft is 5/16-18,and I had a nut that fit it. I chucked up on the nut,screwed the shaft into it,ran the tailstock up to support the tip,and spun it with no problems.
The extra one I threw in for the hell of it was an Action J/B,I cut the tip down and packed it real hard so it broke better,and cut the clearcoat off the shaft. It had an oddball quick-release type pin,but this cue was particularly nice for that price range. All the joints are piloted and snug,the pins and inserts all feel exactly like the real Uni-Loc (they even squeak),and the butt end has one of those extensions that uses the metal rod. I did the first shaft for free,along with the break cue,and charged him a total of 30 for the other 2. He said he was prepared to pay for the first one too,but I told him my word on throwing him a bone for driving so far for simple repairs was good. Sometimes,I'll go a couple weeks without a single job,because my tips aren't coming off and no one plays enough to wear them out that fast. All of a sudden,I've done 15 in the last 10 days. All word of mouth and passing examples of my work. Tommy D.
