New Cue Problem...Need HELP!

PrimoCues

PrimoCues

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I just made a cue for a friend like a month ago. He just told me that he noticed that it' s warping a little. Could it be something I did? or is it all on him? Should I try using a shaft/cue sealer? I was never told to do such. That Butcher's wax was the right thing.
 
Is it the shaft or the butt,
Do you season the wood properly,
Did you build it in stages
Did you buy quality wood
Is your splice centered.
Is the facing flat
Does he store the cue properly.
I'm sure I could list more.
 
spotless said:
I just made a cue for a friend like a month ago. He just told me that he noticed that it' s warping a little. Could it be something I did? or is it all on him? Should I try using a shaft/cue sealer? I was never told to do such. That Butcher's wax was the right thing.
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I assume you mean that the SHAFT warped. Did you buy the shaft turned to final sanding size, or did you turn it yourself? Reguardless, if it were one of my Qs, after only 1 month, I'd make him a new shaft & kill the bad publicity before it starts. I would also like to see the WHOLE Q myself. If the butt & the shaft are warped, in the same place, then he placed something on it or misstreated it some how. By the way if you roll both halves & they are straight, then your problem is in the joint. HOPE THIS HELPS...JER
 
There are a multitude of reasons to cause such but try not to cloud your search for such by thinking of what your customer may have done. Start from when you got your pieces(blanks). Check the other pieces that came with the said problem piece and you may pick up some clues. If the problem is not the materials then go through your production system and environmental conditions while in production. You may learn a lot by doing this internal checks first before making an enemy of your customer.
 
Thanks to all for your replies. I'm waiting till tomorrow to see the cue. If it's the shaft, I'll definately make him a new one. But if it's the joint, what should I do? Should I try using a "shaft sealer"?
 
Check if the joint pin hits bottom in the shaft recieving hole. You may need to clean up that hole first to make sure that the joint faces come in full contact. If the butt or shaft rolls true by themselves and not when together, you need to lightly reface the shaft first then check for straightness before refacing the butt's joint face if still needed.

Sometimes shafts, being structurally thinner than the butt, will develop a minor rol due to change of climate. You have to educate your customer about this possibility or he's going to be cmplaining about warpage everytime the weather changes or the cue exposed to sudden changes of temperature. You'll then be forced to keep refacing the shaft everytime this happens. Excessive deviations (2mm+) from the center axis is a different story.

Check out Chris Hightower's offerings for a shaft sealer.
 
Shaft Warpage

bandido said:
Sometimes shafts, being structurally thinner than the butt, will develop a minor rol due to change of climate. You have to educate your customer about this possibility or he's going to be cmplaining about warpage everytime the weather changes or the cue exposed to sudden changes of temperature. You'll then be forced to keep refacing the shaft everytime this happens. Excessive deviations (2mm+) from the center axis is a different story.

Check out Chris Hightower's offerings for a shaft sealer.
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If your shafts warp every time the weather changes you have a problem. I don't know ever decided that less than 2mm deviation was ok. My shafts stay straight regardless of the weather or tempature.

Nelsonite is the best shaft sealer I now of.
 
Arnot Wadsworth said:
If your shafts warp every time the weather changes you have a problem. I don't know ever decided that less than 2mm deviation was ok. My shafts stay straight regardless of the weather or tempature.

Nelsonite is the best shaft sealer I now of.
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LOL..could've sworn that I see this problem from the majority of the cue work/shaft replacement requests from cues that end up in Japan.:rolleyes: I responded in consideration that the item in question is originating there. I get quite a bit of repair work here because the item has ivory content that can be intercepted by FWS if returned to the original maker for repair.

Cuemakers do their best to get straight as an arrow shafts but you have to remember that wood is a natural material that can have an oddball that'll puzzle the heck out of you. If your shafts are what you say they are then you'd be the most sought after cuemaker.
 
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Straight Shafts

bandido said:
LOL..could've sworn that I see this problem from the majority of the cue work/shaft replacement requests from cues that end up in Japan.:rolleyes: I responded in consideration that the item in question is originating there. I get quite a bit of repair work here because the item has ivory content that can be intercepted by FWS if returned to the original maker for repair.

Cuemakers do their best to get straight as an arrow shafts but you have to remember that wood is a natural material that can have an oddball that'll puzzle the heck out of you. If your shafts are what you say they are then you'd be the most sought after cuemaker.
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That is a nice way of calling me a lier. The fact is that my shafts are seasoned for many years, dipped in Nelsonite every time they are turned and they stay straight. The warped ones get whacked in half in the beginning. I still don't think (by your own words) that as long as the warp is under 2 mm all is ok. I guess my standards are different than yours. Try seasoning your wood - it works wonders.
 
Arnot Wadsworth said:
That is a nice way of calling me a lier. The fact is that my shafts are seasoned for many years, dipped in Nelsonite every time they are turned and they stay straight. The warped ones get whacked in half in the beginning. I still don't think (by your own words) that as long as the warp is under 2 mm all is ok. I guess my standards are different than yours. Try seasoning your wood - it works wonders.
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Hmm.. I don't think I see anything there that implies that you're lying. All I see is a statement about experience of recieving work request for other makers cues.

If you stick to the thread initiators story, he speaks of a cue that has left his shop. You speak of a shaft that hasn't left yours so I'm sure that any cuemaker worth his salt will do the same as you do when the shaft warps while in his possession in its environment where its processed. I guess your system stops there and not worry about where your cue ends up at.

Are you aware that for the tip end of a shaft to deviate 2mm from the center axis of a full cue, the shafts joint face will only need to be brought off angle by 0.165 degree which is equivalent to a piece of dirt wedged or end grain expansion of 0.033mm? Check these figures out, you may learn something.

Good suggestion by the way but I've already been doing that a few years before you even started making cues. Also had a family woodcarving and handicrafts business, back in the '70s, that had a retail outlet in New York so I'm quite aware of woods reaction to environmental changes.
 
WOW guys... I learned something new too. Thanks Bandido and Arnot.
Bandido - I'll try refacing the joint faces.
Arnot - It has left the shop and has been played with for about a month now.

Still waiting for him to show up with it. I'm kinda worried to get back to work with this cue coming in. Worried that the rest of them may be like that too...
 
You have to take notice too that I was discussing "joint face" trueing in my post that you responded to. No biggie, you did say in another thread that you have a reading and comprehension problem. We all do from time to time.:)
 
spotless said:
WOW guys... I learned something new too. Thanks Bandido and Arnot.
Bandido - I'll try refacing the joint faces.
Arnot - It has left the shop and has been played with for about a month now.

Still waiting for him to show up with it. I'm kinda worried to get back to work with this cue coming in. Worried that the rest of them may be like that too...
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Let us know how you reface and seal the shaft later.
thnx
 
spotless said:
I'll try refacing the joint faces.
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Uhhhh....before determining what the cause is, or after?

spotless said:
Worried that the rest of them may be like that too...
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You might want to go back and study Mike Webbs post. There is a process, ya know?

One question that was not addressed: Did the cue roll straight when you handed it to the customer? Answer that question to yourself and it will at least give you a starting point in finding the problem.
 
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