Too much oil=lifeless?

[poolqjunkie]

I am experimenting with various ways to finish a snooker cue, and I have noticed that if I oil the shaft too much (I actually made a 60" tune filled with linseed oil and dipped my shaft wood in there for a few days) that the shaft become lifeless, although the color and the finish all look lovely. I suspect I have made the shaft too stiff perhaps.

My guess is that if the oil replaces most of the water moisture in the wood cells of the wood through the oiling process, it will prevent moisture from entering the wood, and also increase the weight of the shaft, thus making it more "stiff" and even lifeless?

Anyone has the same experience?

[alex123]

Yes,I agree. Don't put too much oil, snooker cue is used to hit the ball, not to show the colour or looking. Many people just look at the photo of the good looking cue and say it is a good playing cue, it is totally wrong. I see many club cue have a good looking but is a poor cue.

[brother4]

Um...I still cant feel anythings wrong with my cues.
I only think it feel more hard & soild than before.
Can any cuemaker come out to share their exp?

[karkit1028]

I completely agree with poolqjunkie~
I once over oiled my cue for better looking but it completely changed the characters of the cue.

A very experienced player told me something like that:
Cue (shaft) is like a spring,
There are spaces (holes? pores?) inside of the wood to give the "lifeness" (room for vibration) of the cue.
If the cue is too soft, you can make it harder by feeding it with linseed oil.
The linseed oil would dry out and crystalise, becoming solid oil to fill up some of the pores of the wood.
Hence, make the cue stiffer.
Side effect: Weight gain and Colour change

If the theory is correct, then over-oiling a cue could really make the cue lifeless.

[brother4]

Oh...Agree.

Let me cut out a Ash in my club,and upload the photos of those cues.
I think it's funny.

[karkit1028]

According to my own experience, if you cut the shaft out, you will find that the oil only settle on the surface of the cue, the core of the wood remain intact.

[brother4]

Sure I know,so I will try it around 3~4 times a day,after 1 week,let me upload the photos.It's a good experience for us to see.

[poolqjunkie]

Brother 4, I am afraid you have misunderstood my post. It was not directed to your way of finishing your cues at all. I am sorry if it seemed that way to you.
I am doing some experiment and I have built a tube that I can really oil the cue and the shaft.--much like how Nelsonite is pressurized into the shaft in US pool cues.
With Nelsonite, it will increase the weight of the shaft, darken the color, and in my opinion, make the cue play differently, although it serves the function of really sealing the shaft against mositure.
I wanted to know if applying too much oil would have the same effect.
I think your finish look very good by the way.