want to make a pool cue, need some direction please

S

SteveBurford

Registered
Hello All,

to be precise its not me making this cue, its my local snooker cue maker, however, he is a great craftsman and i have convinced him to get into 9 ball cues, as nobody in australia makes them yet.

Im hoping some cuemakers here could assist with some probably simple questions for you guys.

were interested in trying to make some laminated shafts, what glue is used for this? or are there a couple of options.

were would a good supplier be for ferrules and joins, dont need to many just yet, but will need shipping to australia. would like to try a few types of ferrules and some phenolic would be good too, to try and make a break cue.

what finish is used on the outside of the cue, or options for finishes, snooker cues usually just get oiled or polished, so this is new to us.

any advice or tutorials available on the web would be great, like i said, they guy is a great craftsman and has been making cues for many years, just not pool cues.

any assistance appreciated.
thanks.
steve.
 
OK, this should be pretty straight-forward and controversy free.

For the supplies you seek, http://www.cuestik.com/
Also known as Atlas Billiard Supply.

Automotive clear-coat is a common finish for cues here. Here being the USA, not just AZB.

As far as tutorials on the web, you're here man. This is the best.
Using the search feature should get you most all of the answers to your questions.
If you can't find what you're looking for, just ask. That's why we're here.
 
Thanks for that info, much appreciated.

just did a search, and im still trying to learn what glue is used for the laminating process.

thanks.
steve.
 
Something I thought of while I was away is, why not introduce your CM friend to us here at AZB so we can answer his questions first-hand?
 
haha,

thing is, very good with timber, not very good with computers :-)

good idea, but no he doesn't have the patience to go online often.

sb..
 
Yeah, I kinda thought that might be the case. OK, we'll work with what we've got and see how it goes.
You mentioned that you did a search for glues for laminations. What type of laminations? Veneers, points, butterflies, handle construction?
I'm giving you these 'key' words to assist you in your search. Sometimes you have to be specific.

Since you will be the go-between, it is imperative that you ask the questions EXACTLY as he gives them to you. If you leave out even one little nuance of his question, it could be the difference btwn getting the right answer and one of many wrong ones.

Are you sure that you wouldn't like to just buy an American made cue and be done with it? Then you can show it to your builder and he'd probably be able to tell immediately what the differences are btwn a snooker cue and a pool cue. Just a thought.

For the most part, I only play 9ball anymore so the cues I build will have a lot of the traits and characteristics in them that constitute a good 9ball cue. In 9ball, you need to be able to move the QB around the table with accuracy. Sometimes you need to go 3-4 rails to get to where you need to be.
My cues reflect that ability. I also offer Predator shafts as an option on all my cues. I have many cues under $500, both from my current series and cues that I have built in the past, a few of which I still have in my store.
Again, just a thought.
 
Thanks KJ,

Im specifically referring to the laminating of the shaft only, so we can experiment with construction teqniques of both flat vaneers and pie shape. I play with mainly predator cues, and he has seen these, 9 ball and games on these tables are growing quickly here, and converting alot of players from other diciplines. we dont have a serious 9 ball cue maker in australia, not just for manufacturing but also for repair work like ferrules, joins wraps etc. so im keen to get my CM friend to make the shift and open up his cuemaking abilities to 9 ball cues.

from your comments im not sure which one (Veneers, points, butterflies) refers to the kind of lamination used in a predator shaft?

I have noticed the difference in feel of a laminated cue, and thats the kind of thing we are trying to achieve.

sorry if some of my questions seem beginner like, not up with much of the 9 ball cue lingo :-)

thanks again for any assistance.
steve
 
So basically, you want to re-invent the wheel.
What I'm getting at is, you're already using 1 of the 2 best performance shafts on the market today. The other being the OB line of shafts which are semi-flat laminate. Please understand that there is a king's ransom worth of engineering that has gone into the development of these two shafts.
Just the start-up costs alone, trying to duplicate either of these shafts would be astronomical. On this subject, I'm a little more real than I am encouraging. I thought you just wanted to build a cue.

A standard one piece Maple shaft can be made to play pretty close to the performance shafts if done correctly. Low front-end mass, extended stroke zone in the taper, etc.

I just re-read your initial post and I now see where you speak of making laminated shafts. I should be honest to tell you that I already have an allegiance, so to speak, to a particular performance shaft manufacturer so I'm not going to be of much assistance to you on that front.

The door is open and I'm laying the welcome mat out for any other posters who wish to contribute to this thread.
 
Well Thanks Anyway, I understand if you cant tell me which glue to use.

im sure there are some other cuemakers that may be able to share, after all, we are in australia so im sure it wont impact your current market.

maybe via pm.

i wouldnt say were trying to reinvent the wheel, if that were the case, no custom cue maker would use their own playing shafts or attempt laminating themsleves, they woudl just put a join to fit a predator or ob1. I mean, we could start from scratch doing this the long way and waste alot of timber glue and mountains of time, or someone could point us in the right direction.

the whole concept of a predator or ob1 shaft is really based on the premise that stiffness/flexibility or un evenness of shaft grain, whatever you want to call it, is the cause of the cueball throwing offline when playing with side/english. balance, grip position, pace, and many other factors all contribute, so effectivly, they are only perfect if the other factors are on their side. Im not knocking them, i play with a predator and love it, but there are also other ways to reduce throw other than having 14 or 6 million segments of timber in the shaft. The reason we want to experiment is for feel of contact, not just for 9 ball, but all cuesports, I find a laminated cue has a softer contact feel, even if it has a hard tip, and this is what would be a great effect for a 1pce cue (something you guys dont really use, but we can) or 3/4 cues for example.

cheers
sb..
 
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