Joss cue, what's going on here

[PracticeChampion]

I bought this and a few other goodies cheap and this Joss butt had what I thought was over spray on it but after further inspection it appeared to have spots under the clear coat from a prior job I assume. I decided to sand it down and re-clear myself but am running into issues with the points.
Why are they looking like this? No-matter what I do they turn grey again and look really rough.

Last pic is when I got it

 

[Kim Bye]

Did you spray clear straight on wood?

 

[PracticeChampion]

Did you spray clear straight on wood?

I haven't done anything yet but sand it down and wiped off with acetone.

 

[Kim Bye]

I haven't done anything yet but sand it down and wiped off with acetone.

Ok. Looks like your not down to bare wood yet. That's typicalloy how acetone reacts with clear.

 

[PracticeChampion]

Ok. Looks like your not down to bare wood yet. That's typicalloy how acetone reacts with clear.

I sent those pics to my cue builder buddy and he's certain those points are phenolic and that's why it's so rough look. I'm getting some more paper tomorrow to clean them up some hopefully and get it cleared

 

[Dave38]

That looks like one of two things...either you still have clear coat/sealer on the cue and it reacted with the acetone, or the points are of a plastic material and that reacted with the acetone. I am NOT a fan of wiping anything with acetone without knowing what I am applying it too, as acetone melts/softens basically most plastics/finishes. Denatured alcohol is the best as it cleans but for the most part doesn't melt things

 

[Michael Webb]

I sent those pics to my cue builder buddy and he's certain those points are phenolic and that's why it's so rough look. I'm getting some more paper tomorrow to clean them up some hopefully and get it cleared

Cue makers have been using synthetics for points, inlays. Forearms, wrap sections and butt sleeves for a long time.
Don't assume it's wood just because you THINK it is.

 

[PracticeChampion]

Cue makers have been using synthetics for points, inlays. Forearms, wrap sections and butt sleeves for a long time.
Don't assume it's wood just because you THINK it is.

Yeah lesson learned for sure, obviously I'm new to any cue work but I'm learning

But truly I don't think I caused that. It had that appearance from the first time I stopped sanding. I think whoever cleared it prior did and things like that is what caused the white spots under the clear, which started this whole project. I did wipe it a few times when it was dusty with acetone but it was quick and while spinning on lathe so it dried in seconds. Hopefully it cleans up

 

[Michael Webb]

Yeah lesson learned for sure, obviously I'm new to any cue work but I'm learning

But truly I don't think I caused that. It had that appearance from the first time I stopped sanding. I think whoever cleared it prior did and things like that is what caused the white spots under the clear, which started this whole project. I did wipe it a few times when it was dusty with acetone but it was quick and while spinning on lathe so it dried in seconds. Hopefully it cleans up

I agree. It had things going on before you.

 

[Hits 'em Hard]

Yeah lesson learned for sure, obviously I'm new to any cue work but I'm learning

But truly I don't think I caused that. It had that appearance from the first time I stopped sanding. I think whoever cleared it prior did and things like that is what caused the white spots under the clear, which started this whole project. I did wipe it a few times when it was dusty with acetone but it was quick and while spinning on lathe so it dried in seconds. Hopefully it cleans up

Doesn’t matter how long the acetone was in contact with the plastic. It’ll cause problems instantly.

 

[PracticeChampion]

Doesn’t matter how long the acetone was in contact with the plastic. It’ll cause problems instantly.

Perhaps but it was like someone sandblasted it with BB's. I can't imagine the 3 seconds it took to dry caused that.

What do you clean with?

I had to sand alot more than I wanted but it's atleast smooth as silk now

 

[Hits 'em Hard]

Perhaps but it was like someone sandblasted it with BB's. I can't imagine the 3 seconds it took to dry caused that.

What do you clean with?

I had to sand alot more than I wanted but it's atleast smooth as silk now

Denatured alcohol like all the other suggestions. And acetone starts doing its chemical thing instantly. No waiting. So 3 seconds is quite a long time to have acetone doing it’s thing to plastic.

 

[Kim Bye]

Where I buy acetone and thinner, the cans looks identical. It's just the writing that's different. I've used the wrong one more than once and acetone's reaction is instant!I have since moved to buying acetone from a different place, so I don't use the wrong product. Thinner is much better to use, but as many has said, denatured alcohol is the best.

 

[PracticeChampion]

Where I buy acetone and thinner, the cans looks identical. It's just the writing that's different. I've used the wrong one more than once and acetone's reaction is instant!I have since moved to buying acetone from a different place, so I don't use the wrong product. Thinner is much better to use, but as many has said, denatured alcohol is the best.

Bought me a can today. First coat of epoxy is on. I think around 1 pm tomorrow will be 24 hours, then I'll sand and coat again and maybe again not sure. How many coats of epoxy is normally put on?

 

[Kim Bye]

Bought me a can today. First coat of epoxy is on. I think around 1 pm tomorrow will be 24 hours, then I'll sand and coat again and maybe again not sure. How many coats of epoxy is normally put on?

It depends on the epoxy you used, how you applied it, how much the wood soaks up and the temperature in the room. I tend to place the epoxy bottles in hot water before I mix, that helps a lot. Having atleast 20c/68f in the room also helps a lot. In most cases two coats will do.

 

[PracticeChampion]

It depends on the epoxy you used, how you applied it, how much the wood soaks up and the temperature in the room. I tend to place the epoxy bottles in hot water before I mix, that helps a lot. Having atleast 20c/68f in the room also helps a lot. In most cases two coats will do.

I had epoxy sitting in front of a electric heater for a few, it poured like water and as it was spinning I used my gloved fingers to push into the wood and spread out. At that point it looked good but then I got alot of bubbles after a bit so I went back and smoothed those out and that didn't work out so good and is now un-even I see now that it's mostly dry . So most of that will be coming back off

 

[Kim Bye]

I had epoxy sitting in front of a electric heater for a few, it poured like water and as it was spinning I used my gloved fingers to push into the wood and spread out. At that point it looked good but then I got alot of bubbles after a bit so I went back and smoothed those out and that didn't work out so good and is now un-even I see now that it's mostly dry . So most of that will be coming back off

I use a rubber spreader, the type you would use to apply bondo. Presses the epoxy into the wood, yet leaves a smooth surface. If you get a lot of bubbles, you can use a torch, that will pop the bubbles. Best to check out some videos on that on YouTube, easier than explaining.
Use a long sanding block and about 600RPM when sanding. Use a ruler/straight edge to check that your finish is even. I tend to stop quite often and whipe down with thinner to see where I'm at, makes it easier to not sand through.

 

[WilleeCue]

Automotive in the summertime heat will pop and leave tiny white bubbles in the clear coat it it gets to warm or is on to thick.
That might be what you are experiencing with the previous finish you are sanding off.
I always use a sanding sealer of some type to seal the wood before spraying the final finish.
Otherwise there is risk that air in the wood will cause tiny bubbles as the final coat sets up.

Finishing a cue is a skill that is not an easy process ... as you are discovering.
There is a very long list of things that can go wrong.
Thankfully time and sandpaper will usually get you back to square one so you can start all over again.

 

[PracticeChampion]

Automotive in the summertime heat will pop and leave tiny white bubbles in the clear coat it it gets to warm or is on to thick.
That might be what you are experiencing with the previous finish you are sanding off.
I always use a sanding sealer of some type to seal the wood before spraying the final finish.
Otherwise there is risk that air in the wood will cause tiny bubbles as the final coat sets up.

Finishing a cue is a skill that is not an easy process ... as you are discovering.
There is a very long list of things that can go wrong.
Thankfully time and sandpaper will usually get you back to square one so you can start all over again.

I think your right about the white specs previous being air bubbles.

Definitely a skill that takes a fine touch, so far I don't got it

 

[PracticeChampion]

Well I think I beat it finally. 3 trys with epoxy and just couldn't get it pretty so today I sprayed it with clear and is looking great hard getting good light for entire thing so hers just a few spots