overly tight when screwing on shaft

misterpoole

misterpoole

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Hi, I have a big pin to wood thread that is very tight. I am thinking the wood may have expanded a little over the years.
What is the easiest way to fix this? I didnt want to rethread it and anyway I dont have a lathe.
Thanks
 
Two methods. One, take a dry bar of soap and lightly pass it over the tips of the threads. Then go slowly and screw the shaft in, and out, however many times it takes. That advice, by the way, comes from the late, great cuemaker, Tim Scruggs. That was his preferred method.

Two, right where your nose meets the rest of your face, twirl the joint pin against it. We all have just a little natural body oil there. Then do the same thing.

All the best,
WW
 
WildWing said:
Two methods. One, take a dry bar of soap and lightly pass it over the tips of the threads. Then go slowly and screw the shaft in, and out, however many times it takes. That advice, by the way, comes from the late, great cuemaker, Tim Scruggs. That was his preferred method.

Two, right where your nose meets the rest of your face, twirl the joint pin against it. We all have just a little natural body oil there. Then do the same thing.

All the best,
WW
Click to expand...

Yeah, no to both. Soap is hygroscopic and oil traps contaminates.

Have someone run a tap through it. Try a good carnuba wax.
 
DeeDeeCues said:
Yeah, no to both. Soap is hygroscopic and oil traps contaminates.

Have someone run a tap through it. Try a good carnuba wax.
Click to expand...
A tap would certainly work. My impression was the OP was looking for a method without going to a repairman.

As far as contaminates getting on pin and insert surfaces, they routinely do anyhow, and can be routinely cleaned.

Agree with carnauba wax as well.
 
WildWing said:
A tap would certainly work. My impression was the OP was looking for a method without going to a repairman.

As far as contaminates getting on pin and insert surfaces, they routinely do anyhow, and can be routinely cleaned.

Agree with carnauba wax as well.
Click to expand...

Sorry if my glib tone was dickish.
 
WildWing said:
Two methods. One, take a dry bar of soap and lightly pass it over the tips of the threads. Then go slowly and screw the shaft in, and out, however many times it takes. That advice, by the way, comes from the late, great cuemaker, Tim Scruggs. That was his preferred method.

Two, right where your nose meets the rest of your face, twirl the joint pin against it. We all have just a little natural body oil there. Then do the same thing.

All the best,
WW
Click to expand...
Old school soap was fats and lye. Many soaps are now detergents, not soaps. I've done a similar thing with beeswax and it worked fine.

Something to consider: https://www.woodcraft.com/blog_entries/don-t-use-soap-to-lubricate-screws

EDIT: I should read the thread before replying... but I'll leave this for the link if anyone is interested.
 
DeeDeeCues said:
Sorry if my glib tone was dickish.
Click to expand...
Nah, not at all. You should spend some time on NPR if you want to see dickish. From dealing with cuemakers for 50 plus years, I have noticed there are differing opinions on matters like this.

You may be curious as to why I noted the advice of Tim Scruggs. Between 1998 and about 2002, he used some 3/8 by 10 Acme pins, rather than the typical 3/8 by 10 pin. He and Mike Cochran thought it was a superior pin and joint. I had them make me two cues with the Acme pin, one in 1998 and one in 2000. They worked great, and still do. However, the fit tended to tighten quite a bit. Tim had faced this, and his recommendation was just a bit of a dry bar of soap. Tim and Mike were convenient to me, so when the fit was too tight, I simply had Mike Cochran run the tap through the shafts to loosen them up a bit. There was something about the flat lands of the pin, and therefore, the flat grooves in the shaft insert area that was prone to tightening. But Tim had experience with his advice too. We're not talking about a lot of soap, just a tiny bit.

Those cues with the Acme pin haven't gotten much use in the past years, but I've noticed when putting them together now, the fit is again too tight. No problem with just rubbing the pin against my nose slightly, and the fit is still tight, but workable. Not worried about contaminants either, as they're all around us. The cues are still absolutely fine, and no need for a tap. In fact, I wouldn't want to continually have a tap going into the shaft, in case I move to the desert. There's a chance the fit could get too loose with moisture loss, in that case. Up to the OP, to decide to do with his cue.

All the best,
WW (Contaminent-free)
 
Thanks for the replies..going to get me some carnuba wax.
My description is confusing...its a typical radial pin into a wood tap..hmm maybe tap is wrong word.
I dont have a radial tap or a lathe
 
misterpoole said:
Thanks for the replies..going to get me some carnuba wax.
My description is confusing...its a typical radial pin into a wood tap..hmm maybe tap is wrong word.
I dont have a radial tap or a lathe
Click to expand...
Now we're getting somewhere. Whatever you get, put very little on the radial pin, and don't put it on the curved sections. Only put it on the points of the pin that you can feel. Those are really the threads. Even if it takes more than one try. Let us know how it goes. This is very minor in the world of DIY cue fixing.
 
WildWing said:
Nah, not at all. You should spend some time on NPR if you want to see dickish. From dealing with cuemakers for 50 plus years, I have noticed there are differing opinions on matters like this.

You may be curious as to why I noted the advice of Tim Scruggs. Between 1998 and about 2002, he used some 3/8 by 10 Acme pins, rather than the typical 3/8 by 10 pin. He and Mike Cochran thought it was a superior pin and joint. I had them make me two cues with the Acme pin, one in 1998 and one in 2000. They worked great, and still do. However, the fit tended to tighten quite a bit. Tim had faced this, and his recommendation was just a bit of a dry bar of soap. Tim and Mike were convenient to me, so when the fit was too tight, I simply had Mike Cochran run the tap through the shafts to loosen them up a bit. There was something about the flat lands of the pin, and therefore, the flat grooves in the shaft insert area that was prone to tightening. But Tim had experience with his advice too. We're not talking about a lot of soap, just a tiny bit.

Those cues with the Acme pin haven't gotten much use in the past years, but I've noticed when putting them together now, the fit is again too tight. No problem with just rubbing the pin against my nose slightly, and the fit is still tight, but workable. Not worried about contaminants either, as they're all around us. The cues are still absolutely fine, and no need for a tap. In fact, I wouldn't want to continually have a tap going into the shaft, in case I move to the desert. There's a chance the fit could get too loose with moisture loss, in that case. Up to the OP, to decide to do with his cue.

All the best,
WW (Contaminent-free)
Click to expand...
I had an old time carpenter years ago teach me to rub a little "nose grease" (as he put it) on the shaft of a router bit to keep them from getting frozen to the collet. Wipe your finger down the side of your nose and apply. Works like a charm 🤔
 
Hard Knock Cues said:
I had an old time carpenter years ago teach me to rub a little "nose grease" (as he put it) on the shaft of a router bit to keep them from getting frozen to the collet. Wipe your finger down the side of your nose and apply. Works like a charm 🤔
Click to expand...
Oldest DIY machine trick in the books.
 
Hard Knock Cues said:
I had an old time carpenter years ago teach me to rub a little "nose grease" (as he put it) on the shaft of a router bit to keep them from getting frozen to the collet. Wipe your finger down the side of your nose and apply. Works like a charm 🤔
Click to expand...
When i was younger i worked for an inventor corporation, they put me on a project making carbide laser targets for the US military. I read the gentleman's procedure manual and still could not get the numbers he did. They contacted him and had me watch him make them. he did everything i did, except he spit in the matrix,changing the ph and it made all the difference in the world when they got heated in a Helium furnace

I had to write the spitting part in my procedure manual and after that the company could have anyone make these and get the same high percentage of yields
 
slim123 said:
When i was younger i worked for an inventor corporation, they put me on a project making carbide laser targets for the US military. I read the gentleman's procedure manual and still could not get the numbers he did. They contacted him and had me watch him make them. he did everything i did, except he spit in the matrix,changing the ph and it made all the difference in the world when they got heated in a Helium furnace

I had to write the spitting part in my procedure manual and after that the company could have anyone make these and get the same high percentage of yields
Click to expand...
Number one machinery hack.
 
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