Need help with installing ferrules.

jlrowe

jlrowe

Billiards,Boxing & Babes
Silver Member
I do some cue repair work mostly just for friends etc. Ive only installed about a dozen ferrules in my life but hundreds of tips. The other day a friend gave me a shaft to install a ferrule. When i put it on the lathe it turned pretty straight looking at it. but when i tried installing the ferrule it wasnt turning right because one side was cutting deeper. Was it something that could been corrected? I had it chucked up close. Also couple questions. Do most cuemakers cut ferrule from front to back or back to front. the other question is i like melamine but installing sometimes it tends to pit on me. Do i need cut slower or faster etc.
Oh if it makes difference i use a hightower deluxe.
 
jlrowe said:
I do some cue repair work mostly just for friends etc. Ive only installed about a dozen ferrules in my life but hundreds of tips. The other day a friend gave me a shaft to install a ferrule. When i put it on the lathe it turned pretty straight looking at it. but when i tried installing the ferrule it wasnt turning right because one side was cutting deeper. Was it something that could been corrected? I had it chucked up close. Also couple questions. Do most cuemakers cut ferrule from front to back or back to front. the other question is i like melamine but installing sometimes it tends to pit on me. Do i need cut slower or faster etc.
Oh if it makes difference i use a hightower deluxe.
Click to expand...

Pitting of the ferrule when you cut it is common with linen based materials and if it fills in with the black sanding grit it can look very bad.
After you make your last cut (front to back) with the lathe tool apply some fast drying sanding sealer (General finishes water based Poly sanding sealer is a good one) ... thin super glue will also work ... to seal the pits.
Use several coats to really seal them good before sanding.

As for your shaft or ferule running off center, that is a matter of setting it up before you cut ... (front to back).
Sometimes you spend a lot of time setting something up ... longer than it takes to machine it.
If the shaft is not warped then you need to shim the jaws of the chuck with some thin paper strips until your dial indicator shows very little run out on the tip of the ferrule ... under .003" is good ... under .001" is better.
If you do a lot of tip and ferrule work then you might want to consider regrinding the lathe chuck jaws so they are true at that size of work piece.
 
WilleeCue said:
If the shaft is not warped then you need to shim the jaws of the chuck with some thin paper strips until your dial indicator shows very little run out on the tip of the ferrule ... under .003" is good ... under .001" is better.
Click to expand...
Make sure it runs out true at the wood where it meets the ferrule. You can't trust the tenon or the new ferrule to be true.
 
Makes me wonder where the cue came from. I agree with sheldon and will. Make sure you eliminate as much runout as you can. Sometimes, overseas or junky cues have some odd things about them that you simply cannot make right no matter what you do.
 
Once a cue is in the hands of the player anything can happen. I have seen many high quality cues that were probably near perfect when they left the cue maker but are now several thousandths out of round (some actually almost flat on one side). Usually because the owner has "Polished" or "cleaned" or "smoothed" the shaft with some sand paper or whatever. In this situation I have found I just have to be honest with the customer, explain the situation and if they want me to I finish the ferrule by hand to match up with the shaft.
 
Pitting on the ferrule. Willie said it well with CA. Another reason turn it fast and make sure the tool is real sharp. The last 4 - 6 cuts should only be a couple of thou. a piece. When doing lbm I take my last cut seal with ca then without moving the tool skim the ca off. It saves with sanding.

John
 
jlrowe said:
I do some cue repair work mostly just for friends etc. Ive only installed about a dozen ferrules in my life but hundreds of tips. The other day a friend gave me a shaft to install a ferrule. When i put it on the lathe it turned pretty straight looking at it. but when i tried installing the ferrule it wasnt turning right because one side was cutting deeper. Was it something that could been corrected? I had it chucked up close. Also couple questions. Do most cuemakers cut ferrule from front to back or back to front. the other question is i like melamine but installing sometimes it tends to pit on me. Do i need cut slower or faster etc.
Oh if it makes difference i use a hightower deluxe.
Click to expand...

I cut from left to right, (shaft side). With the pitting, it happens more with some materials then others but most important is the grind you put on the cutter. I like to use HHS and sharpen them to a razor edge. For ferrules I use a slightly forward edge on the cutter and don't want any kind of scraping. I only want to cut what is in front of the cutter no scraping. Either way you need to experiment with grinding your own cutters for the different applications. If you don't already get yourself a good machinist manual. I have one that was written in the 1950's that I am always referring to. In most cases tried and true principles apply
 
Yep Willee, I made the mistake of using black grit paper on my first melamine ferrule. it was a bad experience. Thanks guys from now on i will seal it. I just been trying to sand and polish to a good shine. Suppose it keeps it from staining so easy also.
 
The reason for the porosity is because the plastic resin does not wet out the fibre in the material, hence the little holes.
I use the low odour or low fume Ca when sealing. I don't like the fumes off the std Ca when it sets up.
Neil
 
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