Sticky shaft problem

[Kiad]

Hey I was just wondering if anyone here knows how to safely take the varnish or glossy finish off the shafts of cues. My hands sweat enough while I play that when mixed with chalk my Lucasi becomes very difficult to stroke. I have taken some cue smoothing sandpaper to the shaft and that has worked somewhat well but I still have problems with the glossy finish. The sandpaper I used seems to have pushed some of the glossy finish into the wood and thus I still have problems. It almost feels like I'm shooting with a cuetec fiberglass cue.

Also, does anyone know if Predator shafts have a glossy finish on the shaft? Or do they have an open wood pore shaft? I can't imagine why anyone would knowingly buy cues that have a glossy sealer on the shaft that gets sticky after a couple racks.

 

[Rackin_Zack]

Also, does anyone know if Predator shafts have a glossy finish on the shaft? Or do they have an open wood pore shaft?

Predators do not have finish on the playing portion of the shaft.

 

[Troy]

How are you getting chalk on your hands ??? (Quote - "My hands sweat enough while I play that when mixed with chalk..."
I strongly recommend washing your hands often and drying them thoroughly.

Most shafts have a "sealer" of sorts and most of my customers prefer natural wood. I remove the "finish" by spinning the shaft in a lathe and using fine sandpaper (1000 grit) to remove the glaze. I then burnish with a piece of un-dyed leather.

Troy

Hey I was just wondering if anyone here knows how to safely take the varnish or glossy finish off the shafts of cues. My hands sweat enough while I play that when mixed with chalk my Lucasi becomes very difficult to stroke. I have taken some cue smoothing sandpaper to the shaft and that has worked somewhat well but I still have problems with the glossy finish. The sandpaper I used seems to have pushed some of the glossy finish into the wood and thus I still have problems. It almost feels like I'm shooting with a cuetec fiberglass cue.

Also, does anyone know if Predator shafts have a glossy finish on the shaft? Or do they have an open wood pore shaft? I can't imagine why anyone would knowingly buy cues that have a glossy sealer on the shaft that gets sticky after a couple racks.

 

[BAZARUS]

You should definitely get rid of the finish and keep the shaft clean!
On one of tours I found very good way to do that.
First clean you shaft with "denatured alcohol" sprayed onto regular toilet paper or napkin. Do it at least 3 times untill you won't see chalk on the paper. Also with toilet paper or napkin apply "Q Wax" on the shaft. Wait couple of minutes and smooth(buff) the wax with clean toilet paper o napkin.
Do this every 2 hours of practice or every match on tour.
Its really great technique, and it will keep your shaft clean and smooth without using sandpaper or simillar products!

 

[ajrack]

stickey shaft...

Hey I was just wondering if anyone here knows how to safely take the varnish or glossy finish off the shafts of cues. My hands sweat enough while I play that when mixed with chalk my Lucasi becomes very difficult to stroke. I have taken some cue smoothing sandpaper to the shaft and that has worked somewhat well but I still have problems with the glossy finish. The sandpaper I used seems to have pushed some of the glossy finish into the wood and thus I still have problems. It almost feels like I'm shooting with a cuetec fiberglass cue.

Also, does anyone know if Predator shafts have a glossy finish on the shaft? Or do they have an open wood pore shaft? I can't imagine why anyone would knowingly buy cues that have a glossy sealer on the shaft that gets sticky after a couple racks.

First ..clean your shafts ...find a cue guy who uses a lathe...and finely sand the "stuff" off...

I only use TRU- OIL on my shafts and have been for over 25 years. Kersenbrock coated all of his cues with it on the shafts. Most players like "pretty white shafts", but if you want these, you must just sand them alot and wearem' out and buy new ones...if you do not mind the shafts getting slightly darker...which never bothered me...TRU-OIL works great...it is found in any gun shop...they use it on gun stocks.

...Have a cue maker clean your shaft nice and clean then have him apply the oil while it is spinning on the lathe. I have mine spun and buffed every 2/3 years but I have never had ANY abrasive used on my cues. I travel a lot and have been in many climates ..humid ..dry ..cold ..hot.
Just wipe them down when you are playing.. with a linen / cloth rag & wash your hands often...all of my cue shafts feel as smooth as glass.

 

[kyle]

All I've ever done is take a damp cloth and zap it in the microwave for 15 seconds.

 

[dday]

When I had a Lucasi with the coated shaft I used either dollar bill or tissue paper to keep them from gumming up. Also like Troy said wash your hands often, using the hottest water you can stand and soap. I noticed that one of KC's most famous hustler pool halls keep Lava (the soap with pumas in it) on hand all the time in the bathroom. Lava will get you hands as clean as can be and keep the shaft from gumming up. Finally you can buy a glove, I know no one wants to play with a glove but its better then the alternative.

dday

 

[Pin]

I have this problem too.

I've tried a few things, washing my hands regularly is the least problematic, but can become frustrating, and if your cue gets sticky enough it'll stop you stroking smoothly however clean your hands are.

Wiping the cue down with a dry cloth has never seemed to help me much, though damp cloth then dry cloth works short-term.

Sanding (lightly) only helped temporarily, and it's not something I want to do to my shaft regularly !


A decent wax may be a good idea, though I live in the uk, so those brand names don't mean much to me here

 

[Troy]

I've found that wax mixed with hand oil, etc., makes the problem much worse.
Most of my customers much prefer NO WAX or possibly a piece of "waxed paper" heated in a microwave then applied while spinning the shaft in a lathe to generate even more heat.

Troy

A decent wax may be a good idea, though I live in the uk, so those brand names don't mean much to me here

 

[Jon]

I've found that wax mixed with hand oil, etc., makes the problem much worse.
Most of my customers much prefer NO WAX or possibly a piece of "waxed paper" heated in a microwave then applied while spinning the shaft in a lathe to generate even more heat.

Troy

Well wax mixed with oil is a problem, but right after i clean a shaft it's almost too good, makes me stroke too fast lol, but after a couple of hours it goes down hill, but after a quick wet papertowel/dry papertowel it's back to normal, so it's not that bad. The silicone products are the worst lol, the thing about those is that it is always "wet", a local player gave the best analogy for them, he put some spit on a post and threw some of that hand chalk on it, and said, that is basically what is going on with silicone products, and he is right.

I've never heard of wax paper in the microwave, i might try that, how long do you zap it? One guy said he wouldn't mind trying some of that teflon car wax stuff in a spray bottle, anybody tried that yet?

Thanks,

Jon <- still in search of the perfect shaft smoothing compound.

 

[Colin Colenso]

I've used alcohol to clean the shaft and that works well by removing dirt, oil and moisture, but the moisture returns pretty quickly if it is humid or if you get sweaty hands.

I had better result with a car leather and vinyl polisher (I think silicon based) that would last for quite a while as it seals out the moisture. Still, it can feel a little wet so you need to rub it down a lot with a towel.

Usually I'll just used a slightly moistened towel followed by a dry towel, or even paper towel such as toilet paper.

I used to play a lot of tourneys in open aired humid venues, so had washing and regular towelling was a big chore. A constant annoyance.

The best solution I found was to learn to play with a glove. I made my own gloves out of lycra and they were quite tight. The cotton gloves are not as good. My gloves also only had a thumb and half a forefinger sleeve, so most of my hand was not covered. This works pretty well if you don't use a loop bridge.

In Oz, they though I was mad to wear a glove back then ('91), but now a lot more of the players have caught on.

 

[XzyluM]

I use Trewax. It's a natural wax specifically made for hardwood floors. Works great and when my hands start getting sweaty, I always have a hand towel around to wipe my cue and hands. When your shaft is waxed, you can just wipe the shaft with the towel and it's smooth again. The thing people don't get is when you first start waxing your cue, you have to keep with it. A wax every few months doesn't do it.