I know there was a few cue makers who turned down some of these. I was wondering how they worked out. I have a chance to get some wood from an old alley and I'm curious is it worth messing with? Thanks in advance for any input. JUSTABANGER
Maple shafts from bowling alley wood
- Thread starter JUSTABANGER 2
- Start date
I heard bad things like nails, oil soaked wood etc.
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I know as far as the nails there supposed to be nailed on the edges so most will be gone once they are turned down. I've never heard about the oil though.
It'll be a lot of labor for tomato stakes.
Not if you sell all the bad stuff to your friends and keep the few good ones. Didn't somebody do that already here.
Mario
It depends on what you are dealing with in the first place. The local place closed here and I wasn't able to get there with enough time to do anything. I was told to take whatever I wanted, but had to do it myself in the next 3 hours. I could have had 3 lanes. The issue was removing them. The old owners were there and had taken a slab out for themselves. I can't remember all that was involved, but I know they said "3 hours.....a pain in the ass.. and it weighed a ton".
That was only about a 30 foot square piece. The lane was 8/4 with some steel reinforcement. He said it weighed at least 300lbs IIRC and they used 5 guys to move it.
I read through the "bowling alley shaft wood" threads and I'll the general consensus is that it is still just wood. It isn't anything special.
I wanted to use it for workshop tables myself....
If you get it for free then you only lose your time and most likely some blades from cutting it. I will suggest you use a metal detector to see if and where the nails are. I never got the chance, so I don't know what you will be dealing with exactly.
Tony with Guerra cues would know better. I think his buddy cut up a bunch for him.
That was only about a 30 foot square piece. The lane was 8/4 with some steel reinforcement. He said it weighed at least 300lbs IIRC and they used 5 guys to move it.
I read through the "bowling alley shaft wood" threads and I'll the general consensus is that it is still just wood. It isn't anything special.
I wanted to use it for workshop tables myself....
If you get it for free then you only lose your time and most likely some blades from cutting it. I will suggest you use a metal detector to see if and where the nails are. I never got the chance, so I don't know what you will be dealing with exactly.
Tony with Guerra cues would know better. I think his buddy cut up a bunch for him.
These are piece's of the lane that are still together there 11 feet long by 44 or 48 inches wide. They want $150 each for them. Maybe I'd be ahead just to pass on these.
LOL Yeah I just reread my post. I meant the holes from the nails would be gone.
It's a lovely story but it dun't add up.
Wood is not like steel. Pounding them does not do any good. You pound thick steel on an anvil, you make them thinners and stronger.
With wood, you damage them .
Imagine boards that were cut not for turning round and straight end product.
They wouldn't be concerned with grain direction. Grains could skew to the center of the planks, they don't care.
These crooked boards will be nailed to a not-so flat floor after ???
Then sanded flat on top?
Then pounded with balls for years?
Which directions do the grains point to after that?:grin-square:
It might be a nice project.
I saw some. Looked at the banana grains and ugly make-up of the pieces.
I wouldn't trade one good dowel for 100 feet of them.
Sorry to disappoint.
I used to think they were hot too.
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[Not a cue-maker]
I've got one of Tony's cues both with a regular maple shaft and one made from bowling alley wood. The bowling alley shaft stays in the case...as I prefer the regular maple one. It feels more lively to me :smile:
JMHO... To each his own!!
[/Just offering an opinion]
Clint
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PORPER and a Hightower.
Great work top surfaces... id buy them and make work benches....
That's probably their best use.
Then again, u have too many Listas already.
You get around this part of the jungle, you gotta see my shafts at .525 and .570 now. If you've seen better bunch, I'd wanna know.
Crap shoot
I think it is kind of a crap shoot.
I got some a few years ago that was installed in the 50's.
It was a lot of work but some was junk, some was good and some was great.
Only you can decide to roll the dice.... or bowling ball that is.
I think it is kind of a crap shoot.
I got some a few years ago that was installed in the 50's.
It was a lot of work but some was junk, some was good and some was great.
Only you can decide to roll the dice.... or bowling ball that is.
For $150, you can buy a pretty decent amount of 1 inch shaft dowels that are already sortred, graded, and ready for turning. I wouldnt waste my time with bowling alley wood.
Joe
I will try this out one day, but merely because my cousin owns a bowling alley with 8 lanes, good maple on the front 1/3 of the lanes. He has been in the business (alleys) for quite a while now, and he says that on his lanes, the front 1/3 or so is hard maple, the middle is actually pine, and the back end where the pins sit is maple again. Don't rightly know why, but I made a deal with him that if he ever replaces the lanes with synthetic, I get to pick up some maple from him. So I will probably eventually try this, but it won't cost me much, if anything, except time.
Jim Notestine
Jim Notestine