Questions: Joe Porper Tools

[Troy]

Seems to me you could locate a quality repair person, ship your shaft insured via UPS, and eliminate all that unhappiness. I'd be willing to assist.

Troy

My whole premise for doing it myself is that TOO MANY *(#&^$# IDIOTS HERE IN DENVER HAVE SANDED ALMOST 1 MM FROM MY F*CKING SHAFT AFTER I ORDERED THEM NOT TO TOUCH THE F*CKING SHAFT. I requested that they finish just the tip and ferrule. Yes, I am angry at the service I've gotten in Denver.

 

[Chokeinator]

Since the Seven Ball tournament that took place in '99 sponsored by Camel, nothing big has come to town. Because of shaft stripping, this town has jaded me and yes, I'm getting ready to leave in May to return to family in the Deep South. F*ck Denver. It's the only city I know that charges extra for lettuce, tomato, pickles and onions when ordering a hamburger. It's only reason for existence is its isolation - 8 hours to the nearest big city.

Holy sh#t, they sanded your shaft haha. Sorry, don't mean to laugh at your expense but I would be pissed too. One thing I do when replacing tips on my cues is to put masking tape on the shaft just below the ferrule. It's not going to stop a run away razor blade but when I'm using a fine grade sandpaper it protects the shaft from accidental rubbing.

As far as doing it yourself comments there are two trains of thought on that. Some people are saying they don't feel confident in their equipment doing it theirselves. I'm the opposite, I don't feel confident in my equipment having someone else do it. I've had 2 cue tips done locally by a gentlemen with a lathe, both of those tips popped off within a week. It makes me wonder how much time he actually spent. I did the last two myself, took my time, I know how much time and attention to detail I put into it, I was doing it for myself so it had to be perfect, it's by no means a "hack" job. It looks better and plays better than anything I've had done locally.

People keep saying, go to the pros, go to the pros, How did the pros get to be pros? Did they just wake up one day and suddenly they were good at fixing cues? I could be wrong but I think the pros got to be pros coming from the second train of thought, they wanted to make sure it was done right so they learned how to do it for themselves so they could be confident in their equipment. I have this world view that everyone on this earth is human and that I'm as capable as the next guy, if I want something bad enough, put my heart and mind into it, I'm going to be one of the best, maybe not overnight but if I care about something enough I'll put in the work and it'll pay off as long as I have the heart not to quit before the end.

Anyway, that got a little too deep but I really am that passionate about whatever it is that I do, I've got an obsessive personality I guess.

 

[Troy]

I can't speak for any other repair people, but I had a mentor. I worked with him learning and making my share of mistakes. I then invested in a Willard's set-up with numerous accessories. Later I further invested in a lathe. It's now been over 5 years and I have Pool Room accounts and numerous very satisfied customers. I guarantee all my work.

Troy

.....How did the pros get to be pros?......

 

[Chokeinator]

I can't speak for any other repair people, but I had a mentor. I worked with him learning and making my share of mistakes. I then invested in a Willard's set-up with numerous accessories. Later I further invested in a lathe. It's now been over 5 years and I have Pool Room accounts and numerous very satisfied customers. I guarantee all my work.

Troy

I meant the question more as a matter of motivation than mechanics. I could have a mentor in accounting and still be a miserable accountant because I just don't care about numbers. Unfortunately there is no one in my area to act as a mentor so I'm on my own as far as repairs go. I do have a mentor when it comes to playing however and I definitely agree that a mentor will put you leaps and bounds ahead of the non-mentored competition in any industry if there's a passion for whatever it is you're doing. Guaranteeing work is good, if I ever did work on someone elses equipment I would definitely guarantee it, a guarantee to me means you take pride in your work.

 

[kokopuffs]

I do my own lapidary (agate bolo ties); and, gunsmithing on Colt Government 45's and get 1 inch groups at 25 yards using only $75 worth of upgrade parts. But I do my own bullet casting and reloading so I am meticulous. Pool cues shouldn't be any more difficult than firearms. I've done my own tips for 4 years and was just wondering about using the Porper line of tools and the specific sandpaper for final rounding of the newly trimmed tip.