ISO WICO points
- Thread starter ratcues
- Start date
Wico
Ryan - have you tried Viking - they may have something kicking around.
Ryan - have you tried Viking - they may have something kicking around.
I've checked with every manufacturer that has ever used them or even made cues in the same era. I may have to build them from scratch.
Wow, tough one.
I am not surprised you are not finding them.
Proper Wico points have no seam AFAIK so I guess if you can find some colored vinyl angle molding you would be able to do it.
If you did it from vinyl flat stock any seam in the point it would be obviously not Wico. I have no idea about bending such a material to an angle but I guess you could.
A lot of the Viking vinyl points had seams...not Wico style. I have examples of both styles from Viking...seam and no seam. I have one Viking that has a stack of 9 vinyl veneers!
If using PVC sheets you could mold it into an angle under heat.
I Googled a little. Perhaps a company like this one, just as an example, could help with materials: http://www.seagateplastics.com/extrusion.html
Just some thoughts. Obviously I have never made a cue so I am just thinking out loud.
The point of my post:
I would be really interested in hearing of and/or seeing the results if you actually had to "scratch make" the vinyl veneer stack.
Your repair and restoration work is amazing.
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That's what I was thinking.
Well...relatively easy for those that know what they are doing anyway. The material is the primary problem, of course.
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dumb
This may be a dumb idea - but I will throw it out there anyway. If it is - just dispense with it . How about laundry soap jugs like Era? Wico points were often green or blue or red. Those colors are prominent in Era and Tide, etc. They probably only need to be 11 in long...
This may be a dumb idea - but I will throw it out there anyway. If it is - just dispense with it . How about laundry soap jugs like Era? Wico points were often green or blue or red. Those colors are prominent in Era and Tide, etc. They probably only need to be 11 in long...
I found material to build points as a last resort. The problem is the seam. WICO points had no seam. I'm not sure if they were extruded that way or how they were made but they were already 90*.
I believe the WICO points were extruded ABS plastic (though they may be PVC). ABS can still be purchased in thin sheets and multiple colors. In fact, it's actually used to color tattoo inks by grinding it down into extremely tiny micro-beads.
ABS is thermoplastic - that is to say, it can be softened and even "liquefied" using heat. Before you try to miter it I would make an attempt to build a simple right-angle mold from aluminum and heat-form the 90-degree corner you want for the point blanks. This process will required a couple of mold-making tricks that I am sure you can figure out through "trial and error".
Also, because ABS is so easily manipulated with heat it is commonly used for 3-D printing rod, which seems to be available in an almost endless array of colors. So you may want to find someone with 3-D printer equipment and experience, and see if having your angles produced that way is feasible.
And finally, it may turn out that you can have a rough version of your angles 3-D printed, and then use an aluminum mold to final-form them (after warming/heating them to a malleable condition).
All of the above assumes that you are either so interested in the problem you're willing to devote the necessary time and money to solve it - OR your customer is willing to pay the cost of your R&D. In my experience, such customers are few and far between... although I have had a few like that over the decades of my career. In the end, however, the most viable solution is almost certainly to build/buy a new 4-point front using some of Beau Kron's veneers - perhaps some that kind of match the old Viking colors.
TW
I have played around thermoforming tubes for cue cases. It's actually pretty easy.
I was thinking the same thing you have outlined. Just make a kind of right angle jig out of right angle aluminum. You could use an iron or a heat gun to form it to the angle, just press it into the jig with the iron or a piece of heated flat stock metal, or even another right angle piece.
From my experience with cases I think it shouldn't be too difficult to get a sharp angle out of the flat stock using heat and a simple jig.
In my mind we are talking minutes of trial and error, not hours, so it shouldn't be too bad.
To get a feel for it there are a lot of YouTube videos about "hacks" making stuff using thermoforming. Short videos, easy stuff. A few minutes of video can save an hour of "experimentation".
People make everything from holsters to soap molds with thermoforming.
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Bob told me he had them extruded to prove to Burton bubbleless and seamless points could be done. He made a sideline business out of selling those and wood veneered blanks. Later he gave the product to Viking and abandoned the point blank business. I think he called them Vinyl, but don't hold me to that.
kydex
I have thermoformed Kydex for knife sheaths before. It comes in sheets and different colors...
I have thermoformed Kydex for knife sheaths before. It comes in sheets and different colors...
Have you reached out to Skip Weston?
He has a technique to make seamless veneers.
Not the same as WICO but a possible alternative.
He has a technique to make seamless veneers.
Not the same as WICO but a possible alternative.
From what I have read the originals were extruded at an angle and purchased that way.
Anyway, that looks close. Without a good sharp angle the cosmetics are not quite achieved but I am guessing the void is a more significant concern?
I wonder if a gizmo like a miniature sheet metal brake with heat could make a sharper angle?
Just thinking out loud.
Thanks for posting pics. Very interesting. Kind of cool to realize you are working on issues that were originally worked out something like 45 years ago.
:thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:
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Anyway, that looks close. Without a good sharp angle the cosmetics are not quite achieved but I am guessing the void is a more significant concern?
I wonder if a gizmo like a miniature sheet metal brake with heat could make a sharper angle?
Just thinking out loud.
Thanks for posting pics. Very interesting. Kind of cool to realize you are working on issues that were originally worked out something like 45 years ago.
:thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:
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