Wood Shrinkage on Cues In Storage

[jrhendy]

I have some cues that have been stored in a controlled environment for over 20 years. It appears that on some of the cues the wood has shrunk around the joint and butt with a noticeable ridge you can feel.

Are some woods more likely to shrink than others? I guess you could trim the joint & butt bumper (delrin or phoenolic) but would probably have to refinish to sell at a reasonable price, or maybe just better off to sell as is at a reduced price.

Thanks for any help and answers.

John Henderson

 

[Thunder Thighs]

Could it be that it's actually the finish that has "shrunk" and not necessarily the wood itself? :scratchhead:

 

[jrhendy]

Could it be that it's actually the finish that has "shrunk" and not necessarily the wood itself? :scratchhead:

Could be, but some of the ridges are around 1/16”, so I thought it was the wood. I will have a cuemaker take a look.

 

[CocoboloCowboy]

I have some cues that have been stored in a controlled environment for over 20 years. It appears that on some of the cues the wood has shrunk around the joint and butt with a noticeable ridge you can feel.

Are some woods more likely to shrink than others? I guess you could trim the joint & butt bumper (delrin or phoenolic) but would probably have to refinish to sell at a reasonable price, or maybe just better off to sell as is at a reduced price.

Thanks for any help and answers.

John Henderson

So besides tempeture, did the facility control relative humidity? I ask as I am a Cigar smoker, and when your store Cigar both tempeture & relative hum its must be maintained.

Recently bout ha couple of boxes of old Cigars, apprently the owner died 10 years ago, had a big custom humidor in his home. Wife got tired of maintaining tempeture & Rh, and gave to a friend of friend to sell.

I honestly did the research on the boxes I bought, 25 - 30 years old. Yes they got better with age.

People who we call SNOW-DEMONDS, come to AZ in Winter, leave when it gets hot. The smart one leave 5 gals. buckets of water around the inside of home. The smart one leave the A/C set at 80.

The one that don't do this summer proofing, return to find wood furnature & cabinates warped.

 

[BarenbruggeCues]

I have some cues that have been stored in a controlled environment for over 20 years. It appears that on some of the cues the wood has shrunk around the joint and butt with a noticeable ridge you can feel.

Are some woods more likely to shrink than others? I guess you could trim the joint & butt bumper (delrin or phoenolic) but would probably have to refinish to sell at a reasonable price, or maybe just better off to sell as is at a reduced price.

Thanks for any help and answers.

John Henderson

Yes....Woods used to build cues with a high moisture content will more than likely shrink some when stored in a lower RH environment.
A denser wood may take much longer to stabilize to the environment it is in.
Cues would be best long term stored around the 50%rh range imo.
Finish shrinkage can be a factor also depending on what finish has been used but when the wood is next to say a piece of phenolic/metal in a cue and you feel a ridge, I'd wager everytime the wood has lost moisture and decreased in size since from the time it's been built.
The finish should shrink at the same pace no matter what it's applied to. So finish shrinkage alone would not be a factor.

 

[Mcues]

Main reason why museums like to keep it at 55% rh

Mario

 

[JoeyInCali]

If you see pine trees around you, you're in a dry climate up there.
What is your zip code ?

If you're in San Fran or Oakland, wood is liable to expand.

 

[CocoboloCowboy]

I seen Cues that were made in the Phillipines that warped so bad in Arizona because our dry heat, because some of these Cue are made in shops that are not climate or RH controlled.

 

[SpiderWeb]

Phonelic dont change and I call them dead materials. Maybe the wood needed to be dried more before making a cue with it. Fender guitar shop keeps their RM at 50% and when they bring in new veneers and some woods it is put into a room at 54% RM for a few days and then moved to the 50% area. They add a little moisture to it. So 50 is perfect for you and me and guitars as well as cue sticks. Its also perfect for basement grow rooms.

 

[scdiveteam]

I have some cues that have been stored in a controlled environment for over 20 years. It appears that on some of the cues the wood has shrunk around the joint and butt with a noticeable ridge you can feel.

Are some woods more likely to shrink than others? I guess you could trim the joint & butt bumper (delrin or phoenolic) but would probably have to refinish to sell at a reasonable price, or maybe just better off to sell as is at a reduced price.

Thanks for any help and answers.

John Henderson

45 % humidity and 59 to 70 degrees is the correct controlled invironment. JMO

 

[JoeyInCali]

45 % humidity and 59 to 70 degrees is the correct controlled invironment. JMO

Good luck with your water and electrical bills there in Las Vegas. :grin-square:
Might wanna try 75 degrees.

I'll just say it out loud , imo the best climate condition for woodworking is here in California . A few miles from the ocean and a few miles from the dry land.
We get two kinds of wind. One coming from the ocean and one coming from the desert . When the strong winds come from the desert, we get down to below 20% . And when it's hot and dry, the woods really get tested. They will SURELY shrink and move .
Most of the time, the wind we get come from the ocean. That's when humidity is pretty good for cutting wood . It hovers around 45-60%.
We can turn and cut wood with the doors and windows open.
By allowing the woods to experience dry heat and cold, and high humidity heat and cold, imo they season properly.