Tip Installation question

Strokerz

Strokerz

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I have been doing repairs for about 12 years. I bought my first lathe about 97 a 7x10 mini lathe which was reccomended to me by Joe Blackburn. I met Joe at the US open in 97 and kind of hung around his booth watching his every move. I got to know him a little better and found out he was born in WV as was I. He showed me a few things and told me what I needed to do repairs the right way. One of the things he showed me was the trick of using a carpet knife blade to trim the tips flush with the ferrule. I have always used this method and I love the quickness and the accuracy of it but you have to have a lathe that reverses to do this. My question is dose anyone else use this method. And also is it possible to do this with a lathe that dosen't reverse like my cue companion. I love my 7x10 but it is heavy and kind of bulky to transport and I like haveing one lathe set up here in the pro shop that will do it all. Thanks.
PS What is your favorite method of shaping a tip on the lathe. I use the old carpet blade still:D
 
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Although much safer and easier, you do not neccesarily need reverse. There is a cue maker here in town that uses the carpet blade method, and reaches around to the back of the lathe to do it because he does not have reverse. I don't know if that helps you any.
 
I use a razor knife to finish off the cut, but start with a tool in the post to get the tip close to size before hand.

Greg C
 
My lathe has reverse, and I still do the razor blade thing in forward. I wouldn't dare try it in reverse... lol.
 
PetreeCues said:
My lathe has reverse, and I still do the razor blade thing in forward. I wouldn't dare try it in reverse... lol.
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Dosen't the blade grab the tip and not peel it easily?
 
Strokerz said:
Dosen't the blade grab the tip and not peel it easily?
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It's all a matter of how you hold the blade. The angle, and the pressure you apply. I use a sharp blade (new) every time, and never have a problem at all.
 
magnetardo said:
Why don't you just put a reversing motor on your cue companion?
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I more than likely will, It's $295.00 I think. Just wanted to see if this could be done in the forward safely for me and the cue:D and to see how many of us on the board here do their trimming this way. I like it because you don't have to cut twords the ferruel with the cutter It also seems to cut cleaner espically on tips like elkmasters.
 
PetreeCues said:
It's all a matter of how you hold the blade. The angle, and the pressure you apply. I use a sharp blade (new) every time, and never have a problem at all.
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Do youe use the blade in the carpet knife of just loose and drag it twords the tip. How much of an angle would you say. Thanks
 
> It CAN be done even if you don't have reverse,you just have to understand where and how to hold the blade so you don't suffer a grievous injury. Believe me,if you ever have a blade get away from you it will give you religion. I had one grab on me and I let go of the blade and drew my hands away so I didn't get cut,but the chuck,which was spinning at about 800 rpm,caught it and I swear shot the blade into the wall deep enough you could only see half of it. If that had been my chest I wouldn't be sitting here,the blade would have gone in with no way humanly possible to retrieve it on the spot,most likely a lethal injury. Even a small minilathe is strong enough to do this,on a full-power machine lathe I'd be scared to try taking off the whole tip this way. I personally get better results trimming the tip with a toolpost cutter to about .005 oversize,and use the blade to finish. On a side note,I'm having mixed results with the Irwin Bi-Metal blades,and the Titanium-Nitride coated blades are a total bust except for shaping. Tommy D.
 
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