Andy Travis cue for sale

[Andy Travis]

Now show us your airlock, cum on Mike Wooldridge.

[MikeWooldridge]

It's not really relevant but I haven't used the original airlock for a long time. AirTwist is what I've used for last couple of years:

http://www.handmadecues.com/cues/21-airtwist

Regardless, from your pic, it appears to be a regular threaded join with lead-in and a hole in the end? Is there a pin in the female that goes in that hole?

Yourself and jp1 refer to this as an airlock join is but it is very different to what most people know as the airlock join, and coincidental that you both posted cue pictures with the same join, and same name (odd, in itself, seeing as there is already a join commonly called the airlock)

Anyway, the original question remains - does this join originate from LP cues (or someone else) or do you make them, as Jim Evans suggests?

To be clear Andy, I'm simply interested in the join itself. My curiosity was aroused only cos you posted this cue for sale shortly after jp1 posted what appears to be a cue with an identical join.

I'd just like to have a good look at these joins (not a photo) and see why they have been christened 'airlock'.

[Deepscrew]

Coming to a town near you soon...JOINT WARS!!!

[MikeWooldridge]

Coming to a town near you soon...JOINT WARS!!!

lol. i'm just curious about the joint.

first jp1, now andy travis.

i haven't seen it, and would like to.

i like to keep up to date with what's out there, that's all.

[stan-mullin]

I've got some of the LP joints, if you want one Mike PM me your address and I will post one to you.
They look almost identical to trav's picture but they have less threads on the the male.
I don't like them as it hard to know when you are connected or just pushing against trapped air.

Stan

[MikeWooldridge]

I've got some of the LP joints, if you want one Mike PM me your address and I will post one to you.
They look almost identical to trav's picture but they have less threads on the the male.
I don't like them as it hard to know when you are connected or just pushing against trapped air.

Stan

thanks stan. i've emailed me you.

[Andy Travis]

Coincidence with JP1, nothing special about it, regular joint with precision ground lead-in, the hole in the male is a centre hole used when turning/grinding, nothing in the female

[MikeWooldridge]

thanks for clearing that up

[poolqjunkie]

I can see where the confusion comes in. Usually Airlock is referred to a joint with threads also found inside of the male "tube" and this joint used by LP/Andy is usually just referred to as a vacuum joint or quick joint or something like that.
Someone once told me LP cue was the original inventor of the Airlock joint, not sure if that is true...anyone knows?

[Andy Travis]

Vacuum/airlock, same

[poolqjunkie]

Not trying to split hair here. With all due respect, there are many kinds of vacuum joints, as a suction fit can be made in many different ways; but not all vacuum joints are called Airlock joints because an Airlock joint is, as far as I know, a specific term used to denote a particular joint made with a specific dimension and constructed in a particular way (a recessed 5/16 pin to be jointed with a female machined inside a brass tube.)

But of course, I could be wrong. Just saying I always thought Airlock is a name of one particular joint while vacuum joint is a general term.:-)

Anyway, it is not really important.

[sanman]

Technically speaking the term vacuum joint is completely wrong as the only way to achieve a vacuum with air is by either cooling the air or actually removing the air, airlock is more appropriate for this type of joint as the air is trapped within the joint and is actually compressed within the joint as opposed to it being removed to create a vacuum. i think where a vacuum effect might be noticed is sometimes when one opens such a joint and notices a sucking effect. This is very simply due to the additional space the gas has to occupy when the joint is open and this is where a vaccum effect might occur due to the expansion of the fixed amount of gas into a larger space.

[MikeWooldridge]

Not trying to split hair here. With all due respect, there are many kinds of vacuum joints, as a suction fit can be made in many different ways; but not all vacuum joints are called Airlock joints because an Airlock joint is, as far as I know, a specific term used to denote a particular joint made with a specific dimension and constructed in a particular way (a recessed 5/16 pin to be jointed with a female machined inside a brass tube.)

But of course, I could be wrong. Just saying I always thought Airlock is a name of one particular joint while vacuum joint is a general term.:-)

Anyway, it is not really important.

Yep, that's how most of us see it

[Deepscrew]

Are any of these joint design's patented? Names of them patented?

Probably costs more than its worth to get a patent that actually means something anyway.

[MikeWooldridge]

Technically speaking the term vacuum joint is completely wrong as the only way to achieve a vacuum with air is by either cooling the air or actually removing the air, airlock is more appropriate for this type of joint as the air is trapped within the joint and is actually compressed within the joint as opposed to it being removed to create a vacuum. i think where a vacuum effect might be noticed is sometimes when one opens such a joint and notices a sucking effect. This is very simply due to the additional space the gas has to occupy when the joint is open and this is where a vaccum effect might occur due to the expansion of the fixed amount of gas into a larger space.

Correct of course.

The term Airlock is more a 'brand' name for a specific join, established in the market for many years now, and not a scientific description of how it actually works works.

In fact, I'm pretty sure I'm the one who marketed them as airlock in the first place. Before I started using them, I am not aware they had a specific name. I seem to remember a customer casually saying it to me once when describing the effect. I liked it, it was catchy and the name stuck. I used it on my website and other marketing, and is now used by everyone I know in the trade to describe this particular joint.

So, I think this is all my fault...

Anyway, it's the suction effect that sort of gives it a vacuum/airlock sound/feel.

But SuckLock doesn't have the same ring eh?