I received an inconsistent batch of triangle tips (for hardness) and am trying to harden them up. I put some in a vise and they came out with the same durometer reading. I soaked one in water, vised it and let it dry. Same reading, although they were flatter. Any advise about how to harded these or just throw them away?
Triangles tips in a vise
- Thread starter dirtydog48
- Start date
I don't know about anyone else
but I would be a little upset about being sold a 'reconditioned' cue tip as a new one for the new one's price. Now, if it was stated reconditioned, and had a lower price, it would be my decision and not having someone else making that decision for me.
And secondly, if you received a defective product, the original supplier should replace them FREE OF CHARGE.
but I would be a little upset about being sold a 'reconditioned' cue tip as a new one for the new one's price. Now, if it was stated reconditioned, and had a lower price, it would be my decision and not having someone else making that decision for me.
And secondly, if you received a defective product, the original supplier should replace them FREE OF CHARGE.
Not trying to decieve anyone
Just trying to improve hardness and consistency of the product. Besides, I sell these for $1.50 ea. and no one is getting cheated. Plus if it does not play as expected, I replace it as many times as necessary at no charge. Therefore, I would like to find a way to rely on their consistency.
I also understand Triangle will replace them, but they all seem to lack consistency. I could and do sell things such as Mooris, but their cost is way out of line with what they provide to the player. Now that would be doing a disservice to the customer.
Just trying to improve hardness and consistency of the product. Besides, I sell these for $1.50 ea. and no one is getting cheated. Plus if it does not play as expected, I replace it as many times as necessary at no charge. Therefore, I would like to find a way to rely on their consistency.
I also understand Triangle will replace them, but they all seem to lack consistency. I could and do sell things such as Mooris, but their cost is way out of line with what they provide to the player. Now that would be doing a disservice to the customer.
I've tried it, altough I did'nt use water, and it does flatten them out quite a bit, but then again they are so thick in the first place, I usually end up crowning quite a bit away anyhow.
I did 3 of them, and won't sell them to anyone Until I try them for Myself. I'm happy with the tips I have on My personal shafts now, so have no idea when I will get to try them. They seem very hard though, and I prefer hard tips, so we'll see.
I did 3 of them, and won't sell them to anyone Until I try them for Myself. I'm happy with the tips I have on My personal shafts now, so have no idea when I will get to try them. They seem very hard though, and I prefer hard tips, so we'll see.
cue crazy
Thanks for the thoughts, I do not experiment on customers either. This, however, started when I put a very good triangle on a friend's cue who is always in action. He wore it out and wanted a duplicate, which I already told him was tough. I have already tried 2 triangles and a water buffalo (Sniper brown) which all hit too softly. What I am really after is a way to duplicate a favorite tip, which, I know, is almost impossible.
The reason he wore out the previous tip, by the way, is he insisted on breaking with it. And obviously that is the reason it got hard. That is why I thought maybe the vise would duplicate the hardness.
Thanks for the thoughts, I do not experiment on customers either. This, however, started when I put a very good triangle on a friend's cue who is always in action. He wore it out and wanted a duplicate, which I already told him was tough. I have already tried 2 triangles and a water buffalo (Sniper brown) which all hit too softly. What I am really after is a way to duplicate a favorite tip, which, I know, is almost impossible.
The reason he wore out the previous tip, by the way, is he insisted on breaking with it. And obviously that is the reason it got hard. That is why I thought maybe the vise would duplicate the hardness.
dirtydog48 said:
Yes, I should mention that some tips I do press, 1 for the reason you mentioned, consistentcy, and 2nd to cut down on mushrooming or excesive tip maintenance. There are some tips that are less then favorable by pressing them though, for instance I've been told that some layered tips can have a delamination issue, and altough I press some of those also, there seems to be a fine line in how much clamping force you use with some, so I actually use less force, and have good results as opposed to overpressing them.
The triangles If they worked out well I would have no problems installing them on a customers cue , as long as they were aware of any issues, just that I have'nt tried this paticular one out used this way before. With that said, I guess I might have a buddy or 2 I would let try them If they wanted to be the test subject
The hard tip I like mooris Myself, so If he has'nt tried them you might mention them to him, I have no problem with them Myself personally, because I use a tip pik to make tiny holes for holding chalk if It gets too bad, altough some to seem to have miscue issues with them, so hardening the triangle up was an attempt to get a hard tip that does'nt shine over as much, and will hold chalk easily. The triumph might be another you guys may want to try if you have'nt already. I have one on My extra shaft, and it's close to the moori, but I seem to favor the moori just alittle more. Ofcoarse It could be due to the differences in the shafts, as one in laminated, and the other is not. Speaking of, Get this, the standard shaft I use is actually noticably stiffer then the laminated If you can believe that
.Good luck with them.
Greg
Snapshot9 said:
So which tips in your opinion are the defective tips, the hard or the less hard? He just wants to know how to harden the tips up to a consistent hardness maybe to please certain customers, not that there is anything wrong with the less hard tips, many players like them also. You can go through a box and find tips that will appeal to different players right out of the box. I have 3/C billiard players pay me extra for what they call "The treatment" for their new tips, even though I don't ask for it, it is just a gratuity for what they know is extra work not because there is anything wrong with the tips but I can make them better, in their opinion anyway. So I ask you which tips in the box are the defective tips?
Not defective
just radically different hardness. Some of the softer ones will not even buff shiny on the sides. And it is true that some ask for the soft ones, but most want harder. Anyone have suggestions on tips that are more consistent between each other out of the box?
My understanding of Mooris is that they are designed to get harder as they wear. My experience is they hit great until they wear halfway down and then there a lot of mis-cue issues.
For the price, a good triangle is very acceptable. The problem is that they are getting almost as bad as LePro. The last box of LePros I had were only half useable..half the box fluffed up and fell apart when I shaped them.
I am looking a White Diamonds...any experience?
Another suggestion? I have tried Tiger, moori, Sniper wbs, elkmaster and more I can't even remember.
My work is very consistent, but not being able to count on the tip is very frustrating.
just radically different hardness. Some of the softer ones will not even buff shiny on the sides. And it is true that some ask for the soft ones, but most want harder. Anyone have suggestions on tips that are more consistent between each other out of the box?
My understanding of Mooris is that they are designed to get harder as they wear. My experience is they hit great until they wear halfway down and then there a lot of mis-cue issues.
For the price, a good triangle is very acceptable. The problem is that they are getting almost as bad as LePro. The last box of LePros I had were only half useable..half the box fluffed up and fell apart when I shaped them.
I am looking a White Diamonds...any experience?
Another suggestion? I have tried Tiger, moori, Sniper wbs, elkmaster and more I can't even remember.
My work is very consistent, but not being able to count on the tip is very frustrating.
Sorry, meant
BLUE diamond tips.
BLUE diamond tips.
Tiger brand are very consistent, the ones that come in three hardness grades that is. Also Talisman pro and WB are very consistent from tip to tip, although both these tips are a little more expensive than Triangle. Talisman is about half the cost of Moori and just as reliable IMHO, plus they don't seem to glaze over like I've heard Moori's do. I buy Talisman pro domed and press them in a vise until the dome is nearly flat. After this treatment, they play like a dream, never change hardness and the radius stays right where I put it.
Basically, you see what I'm getting at. The only truly consistent tips come as layered, whereas you seem to be seeking non-layered composite tips. As for composite tips, no doubt that Triangle are the best of the bunch, despite declining consistency/quality. You'll be hard pressed (pardon the pun) to find another composite tip that betters Triangle, so I guess you'll have to master the vise treatment. JMTC, FWIW
Basically, you see what I'm getting at. The only truly consistent tips come as layered, whereas you seem to be seeking non-layered composite tips. As for composite tips, no doubt that Triangle are the best of the bunch, despite declining consistency/quality. You'll be hard pressed (pardon the pun) to find another composite tip that betters Triangle, so I guess you'll have to master the vise treatment. JMTC, FWIW
Nico
Checked the Talisman web site and they come in several hardnesses. Do you get med or hard??
Checked the Talisman web site and they come in several hardnesses. Do you get med or hard??
Sounds like your customer would like a SUMO. They are hard and I seldom miscue with them. (I used to play with Triangles exclusively). SUMO tips are inexpensive and a non-layered tip.
I get the hard ones. Pressing them in the vise doesn't significantly change the way they hit, mostly just stops the radius from flattening out after I shape it. Before I started pressing them they would flatten out to slightly less than a nickel after a few days of playing. After pressing, they are pretty well behaved and stay right about where I like them.dirtydog48 said:
Talisman hard tips are quite a bit harder than Triangles. The down-side is that they don't hold chalk as well and you have to chalk up more often. No big deal really since it's a good idea to chalk up after each shot anyway.
The up-side is harder layered tips don't suffer from de-lamination like softer layered tips sometimes can. Also, they last a long time if you don't pick at them and re-shape them constantly. Also, I rarely need to scuff the tip as it never seems to glaze over. For the price and consistency, you can't go wrong with them.
About the "Composite tips" thing. Composite meaning "something made from different parts". I read a while back that Triangle tips were made by combining leather fibers with a glue mixture and then pressing them into shape. This blend of glue and fiber would be considered composite, just like Lepro. Solid tips aren't just stamped out of a hide and tanned, they are formed first.
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> I press my Sumo's in a vise before installation,and yes I play with them. Unless a customer requests otherwise,I press everything,including Elk Masters. I only get a few here that even ask for layered tips. The last one I installed was a Moori medium,the customer sent word thru a friend that he HATES it,and wants it changed free of charge,because his stroke was was tuned to an Elk Master or fluffy Triangle,and he can't spin the ball with the harder tip,so it's MY fault. In my experience,repressed tips play better sooner,and stay that way longer,hold their shape better,plus in some cases they actually cut a little cleaner. Tommy D.
WilleeCue said:
That's what I've read too, but seems like I read where some other solution was actually used instead, and that milk duds were just what they called them when elkmasters were done that way, but don't remember what it was, and not sure which was actually used originally.
I soaked the triangles in milk. The tips will float in it at first, I just waited until they sunk to the bottom, and put them in the vice, and let them dry, after that they held the shape. Before I stuck one in a vice without the treatment, and then backed off and they sprung back to the original shape, so the milk did help keep them compressed.