ideal time to build a custom cue

S

sengkun108

sengkun108
Silver Member
Hi all,

How long exactly that a cuemaker build a custom cue from start to finish?
i mean the ideal time to process the work.


Best:smile:
Dedy (Indonesia)
 
It really depends. A basic cue you should have up to a 6 month wait. Some cues could posibly take up to a year and there is some even longer. It also depends upon how many orders are in front of you at the time of your order! I am building a cue for someone here that has been on order for almost a year now. I am not really sure how much longer it will be. The reason for that is I am waiting to have some scrimshaw work done and I am on a waiting list. I hope that it isnt much longer. So the answer is it really depends upon what you are having built as to how long it takes!
 
sengkun108 said:
Hi all,

How long exactly that a cuemaker build a custom cue from start to finish?
i mean the ideal time to process the work.


Best:smile:
Dedy (Indonesia)
Click to expand...

If you are excluding prep time for materials about a month should do it. There is even a clip on youtube with an interview of Gus Szamboti and he said about the same thing. The confusing comes in with the turning times. The cue maker should have a good rotation of wood with shafts and so on ready to go all the times. This requires quite a bit of investment in materials. Also the term "Custom" you used can be subjective . That can mean anything from just having the cue tailored to you from a standard design to a one of a kind cue.

If you are ordering from a cuemaker who has a line of cues and works a real work week you should be able to get a cue in a reasonable amount of time. The problem is, many cue makers don't do as much work in the shop as they may think. It is the nature of a craftsman to putter. They may spend half a day fooling around with a new tool or idea or building a jig and not actually doing any paying work. You can probably order a highly sophisticated custom car and get it sooner then a custom cue.

Here is that clip of Szamboti I refered to. In watching it again I hear him say it takes two man days to assemble a cue. I guess I didn't hear it correctly the first time. Hard to believe he could actually put a cue together in 16 working hours but I am sure that is what he said. ????
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j9EtqCqbUaE
 
Last edited:
if you mean man hours maybe 10 give or take. depending on how fancy. playing the waiting game tho is what takes the time. i personlly have woods for years before i use it. then from there it takes months to a year to complete
 
macguy said:
Snip . . . In watching it again I hear him say it takes two man days to assemble a cue. I guess I didn't hear it correctly the first time. Hard to believe he could actually put a cue together in 16 working hours but I am sure that is what he said. ????
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j9EtqCqbUaE
Click to expand...

Assembly is only a small part of the process, so I guess it depends on how you define assembly. For example, is finishing part of assembly? In my mind assembly is the process of putting together all of the component parts prior to finishing. IMO assembly also doesn't count the time needed to build or prepare all of those component parts. If all of the wood was turned close to finished dimention, rings were made, veneers were mitered and glued to point stock, butt sleeve was turned and cut to length, and joint/butt collars were cut to size, could you then "assemble" it all into a cue in 2 days? Possibly, if you're using quicker curing adhesives. However, there was a lot of work already done just to get to that point, and now you still have to finish the cue, wrap it, and install tips and ferrules. In addition, most cue makers are not full time, and may only work 2-4 hours at a time.

From raw wood stock to finished cue in two days? Not usually.

Mr H
 
Hi All :

Thanks for your comment, i acctually know that some cuemaker have a longer waiting list, but i don't mean that part. What i actually concern is if a cuemaker already have the raw material for building let say a plainjane cue with a fancy ring and 2 shaft, How long that he should finish his job? maybe if he work 4 hour a day, for example.

Best:smile:
 
It should take the cuemaker about 6 months to make a cue. He will work on it a little then let the wood rest for a couple of weeks and then work on it a little more. This is how we produce straight cues. I usually take a lot longer than 6 months, but that is a good minimum. Now if he is using laminated or cored woods he could speed that up a little as they are more stable and not as prone to warping.
 
cueman said:
It should take the cuemaker about 6 months to make a cue. He will work on it a little then let the wood rest for a couple of weeks and then work on it a little more. This is how we produce straight cues. I usually take a lot longer than 6 months, but that is a good minimum. Now if he is using laminated or cored woods he could speed that up a little as they are more stable and not as prone to warping.
Click to expand...

Chris ... there are exceptions.

Cues made from house cues can be quickly made ( two days or less) and stay straight.

I have the first cue I made years ago in less than two weeks and it is still just as straight as when I made it.

Of course the wood is the key and it needs to be seasoned or properly dried and stable. Using unstable wood will produce an unstable cue.

BTW ... the wood I have bought from you in the past has always proven to be good stable wood ready for use.
However, I still have some pieces I purchased over 5 years ago awaiting that special customer.
 
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