Advice needed?

[sunny3909]

I have got a couple of questions? Any advice would be appreciated.

I have recently bought a master cue plays great but its not as stiff compared to older master cues..Nowadays,I believe due to extreme demand the wood is not given enough time to properly settle down.

1. I am curious to know that will the cue become a bit stiffer with time?

2. I have just refinished my cue with wax, Do I need to sand down the wax layer before I oil my cue next time say after 3-4 months?

Cheers,
sunny

[trevs1]

I have got a couple of questions? Any advice would be appreciated.

I have recently bought a master cue plays great but its not as stiff compared to older master cues..Nowadays,I believe due to extreme demand the wood is not given enough time to properly settle down.

1. I am curious to know that will the cue become a bit stiffer with time?

2. I have just refinished my cue with wax, Do I need to sand down the wax layer before I oil my cue next time say after 3-4 months?

Cheers,
sunny

If the cue plays great, that's really all that matters, not so much its rigidity.

Cues do not become stiffer over time, unless when new they were soaking wet and are allowed to dry considerably over a long..ish period.....not really likely.

The timber available today will be every bit as good as it was in the past, but, it's just a question of whether a stiffer piece of timber is used in a particular cue or not (I guess in your case....not). It has nothing to do with allowing wood to settle, it's got everything to do with the fact that's it's either stiff or not in the first place.

If you use wax on a cue, especially if it has been 'properly' oil finished, then getting oil into it in the future is going to prove tricky, as the wax will clog the pores of the timber and will not really allow the oil to do what it should, which is penetrate the timber surface slightly.

You would need to strip the finish completely to get a 'real' oil finish again.

Probably not worth the time and effort.

[wildJONESEYE]

1. I am curious to know that will the cue become a bit stiffer with time?

rub it up and down im sure it will become stiffer in time

[sunny3909]

If the cue plays great, that's really all that matters, not so much its rigidity.

Cues do not become stiffer over time, unless when new they were soaking wet and are allowed to dry considerably over a long..ish period.....not really likely.

The timber available today will be every bit as good as it was in the past, but, it's just a question of whether a stiffer piece of timber is used in a particular cue or not (I guess in your case....not). It has nothing to do with allowing wood to settle, it's got everything to do with the fact that's it's either stiff or not in the first place.

If you use wax on a cue, especially if it has been 'properly' oil finished, then getting oil into it in the future is going to prove tricky, as the wax will clog the pores of the timber and will not really allow the oil to do what it should, which is penetrate the timber surface slightly.

You would need to strip the finish completely to get a 'real' oil finish again.

Probably not worth the time and effort.

Thanks a lot Trevor.
I have finished my cue with carnauba wax.
So I shouldn't use oil in future for my cue.
Will the wax layer protect the cue from drying out?

[Terry Davidson]

A question for this string as I'm looking for an answer to this one. I recently purchased a new cue and it plays absolutely GREAT!!! However, the cuemaker applied a coat of some kind of wax as the final finish after the linseed oil. The cue has an almost glass-like finish.

My problem is this wax comes off on my hands, which get sticky plus the shaft gets sticky and I have to wipe it down frequently (every 10 shots or so) to keep if moving freely through my 'V'.

I've tried soapy water, mineral oil, acetone and finally I tried very fine steel wool just on the shaft area which runs through the 'V' and this worked better but since I hold my cue across my hips when standing behind the cue and have my bridge hand down near the points I pick up the sticky wax which ends up on the shaft and on my bridge hand.

Yesterday I tried a very fine scouring pad and took the top layer of the wax off the entire cue and this has helped, but it's still getting sticky after a frame or so.

Does anyone know of something (thinner maybe?) with which I can remove the wax, perhaps re-seal the cue with linseed (or other) oil and have this wax stickiness problem solved?

Thanks,
Terry

[sunny3909]

A question for this string as I'm looking for an answer to this one. I recently purchased a new cue and it plays absolutely GREAT!!! However, the cuemaker applied a coat of some kind of wax as the final finish after the linseed oil. The cue has an almost glass-like finish.

My problem is this wax comes off on my hands, which get sticky plus the shaft gets sticky and I have to wipe it down frequently (every 10 shots or so) to keep if moving freely through my 'V'.

I've tried soapy water, mineral oil, acetone and finally I tried very fine steel wool just on the shaft area which runs through the 'V' and this worked better but since I hold my cue across my hips when standing behind the cue and have my bridge hand down near the points I pick up the sticky wax which ends up on the shaft and on my bridge hand.

Yesterday I tried a very fine scouring pad and took the top layer of the wax off the entire cue and this has helped, but it's still getting sticky after a frame or so.

Does anyone know of something (thinner maybe?) with which I can remove the wax, perhaps re-seal the cue with linseed (or other) oil and have this wax stickiness problem solved?

Thanks,
Terry

Hi Terry!
A 1000 or higher grit sandpaper will help you in getting that wax layer off without damaging the shaft.

You can try out carnauba wax,it is one of the hardest waxes in the world and it withstands better in moisture and it doesn't become sticky at all even after playing for long time.

I am telling this from my own experience.It has worked out perfect for my cue here in India [hot and humid conditions] so I think it will work out even better for you.

Cheers'
sunny

[Terry Davidson]

sunny:

I believe I achieved the same thing as using the 1000 grit as I used a worn-out plastic scouring pad and wet it and slowing (and with a lot of effort) removed the wax from the remainder of my shaft without damaging it at all.

Actually, I play in very dry conditions and the butt was never treated with the same wax by the cuemaker so it isn't a problem.

After I used the scouring pad the shaft lost all the stickiness it had and the cue seems to play normal now with no problems, although I'll remember your carnuba wax tip as it might come in handy

Terry