Pia Filler hates wood shafts

You can steam minor dings out of a wood shaft but the shaft will never be perfect again.

Major dings you have to fill with wood filler.

Major dings are when you actually lose wood.

The fins under certain pool table lights will ding wood shafts big time.

CF is smooth as silk.

Dings are annoying.
 
… for a really bad, sharp edge ding I use a little light sandpapering to expose the wood cells, then hit it repeatedly with a Q-tip that's just been dipped in boiling water -- dant't take but a few minutes.
While we're sharing techniques, here's mine.

I tear a small piece from a paper towel, wet it, and ball it up to about the size of a BB, but not so much that all of the water is squeezed out. I place that in the ding of the shaft, with the shaft laid on a table. I wait 30+ minutes for the shaft to absorb water from the paper towel. The goal is for the ding's surface to swell to a level slightly higher than the surrounding wood. For most dings, one session with a "paper towel BB" is enough, but for bigger dings, it might take another session or two. Once the ding is raised and the shaft is dry, I use a smooth shot glass to knock the wood at the ding back down to match that which surrounds it. Finally, I use a square of leather to burnish the shaft. The end result is a shaft that looks, feels, and measures like brand new. Total labor is typically five minutes or less, but the whole process, including wait times, is about an hour.

I don't use heat or sandpaper.

I don't know if the method I use would work with a torrefied wood shaft. I have my doubts, but it might.
 
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