My workshop

[Hello, Mr Big Shot]

The lathe is purely for joint work, and maybe give the shafts a spin to make sure they're rounded, had a play with it but haven't used it in anger yet. It's a mid size Cue Smith, not the all singing and dancing model, but it can take a one piece cue, say if I want to fit a mini butt joint, or to split a one piece down to 3/4. Excellent piece of kit.



There'll be no rush, I'm not going to go down the Dan Shelton route. I'm going to make cues as tools for playing snooker, maybe some snooker style 9 ball cues with bigger tips. I'll be making them one at a time from now on, no orders to peoples specs, going to specialize in longer cues for the taller players, experiment on tapers with different timbers, different ferrules, have some buffalo horn from the US, some stainless steel and some titanium as well as the usual brass.



Nothing extravagant, I don't have business overheads and staff to pay, not in this to make money, will work out a fair price according to time taken, materials used and my judgement on how good the shaft is. I don't believe in pricing at what the customer is prepared to pay, that's simply ripping people off in my book.

I was thinking £50 for the raw shaft, and then whatever the cost of the hardwood for the butts plus my time at £8 an hour to the finished article. We'll see what that comes out at when I've finished the first one.

You might find you're spending rather a lot of time on them, depending on how much of a perfectionist you are. I've been thinking about a new cue recently, so am happy to test drive one for you, if you're looking for feedback.

Although this subforum has gone to the dogs recently, much like the rest of the place, there's still a wealth of info for aspiring cue makers. I reckon there's a good market for bespoke snooker cues made for the american pool market - check out the for sale section for the prices cues from sought after makers can fetch - slightly more than 8quid an hour lol.

http://forums.azbilliards.com/forumdisplay.php?f=22

[Cannonball]

Just out of interest and feel free to object, but how much did all this kit cost do you think, and is it a tax write-off?

[fredkite]

My workshop

I would say check the thread and mind your own business. Just saying

[vmax4steve]

sounds like it pretty much does it all. be interested to hear more when your a few cues in..
at the moment i do have someone with a lathe and he drills holes, cuts ferrules and calves out my bullet weights, but the only machinery i have is an electric planer and a belt sander, planer is well used and the sander i mainly use for rounding the butts off and sharpening pencils.

You're doing good work j6, a little investment to cut down on the donkey work and to be self reliant is all that's needed. I have a mate with a small metal lathe who can make things for me, I might get one myself but if the Cue Smith has enough torque in its motor I might not need to.

You might find you're spending rather a lot of time on them, depending on how much of a perfectionist you are. I've been thinking about a new cue recently, so am happy to test drive one for you, if you're looking for feedback.

I could consider that, but I have my doubts about whether I'd get a balanced review as you do seem to rubbish me almost every time I post something; you might even send it to Dr. Dave, I couldn't really handle that

Just out of interest and feel free to object, but how much did all this kit cost do you think, and is it a tax write-off?

Cashed in a frozen pension that was only good for £20 a month on retirement, if I lived that long and the stock market didn't crash in the meantime, thought I could do something worthwhile with the money now. Cost all told about £3000, plus I had to have a new motorbike greedy sod that I am.

[throtts]

and is it a tax write-off?

Of course, you can take it of your gross earnings as cost.

All of us just know vmax will turn out some hot cues. It within his mentality.

[Hello, Mr Big Shot]

You're doing good work j6, a little investment to cut down on the donkey work and to be self reliant is all that's needed. I have a mate with a small metal lathe who can make things for me, I might get one myself but if the Cue Smith has enough torque in its motor I might not need to.



I could consider that, but I have my doubts about whether I'd get a balanced review as you do seem to rubbish me almost every time I post something; you might even send it to Dr. Dave, I couldn't really handle that



Cashed in a frozen pension that was only good for £20 a month on retirement, if I lived that long and the stock market didn't crash in the meantime, thought I could do something worthwhile with the money now. Cost all told about £3000, plus I had to have a new motorbike greedy sod that I am.

I don't rubbish you, i just believe in science and fact. Regardless, offer stands.

[itsnoteasy]

Of course, you can take it of your gross earnings as cost.

All of us just know vmax will turn out some hot cues. It within his mentality.

+1 , I think your bang on with how Vmax will make cues Throtts, every one to the very best of his abilities.

[vmax4steve]

All of us just know vmax will turn out some hot cues. It within his mentality.

I'm not one to care about exact splicing, my own cue has splices that are all within half an inch of each other but that is of no consequence to how it plays, but my underlying fear is that my latent OCD will take over.

Biggie

if it looks like a duck, walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, then it is a duck.
Do you seriously believe that I would put my future reputation in the hands of someone who thinks 9 ball is just as hard as snooker and any failure to find a five inch wide pocket from three feet away with a cue I'd made to be solely down to me and my lack of understanding of how difficult 9 ball is and the specialist characteristics required of a 9 ball cue.

I'd be better off making a cue eight feet long and sending it to Earl Srickland

[Hello, Mr Big Shot]

I'm not one to care about exact splicing, my own cue has splices that are all within half an inch of each other but that is of no consequence to how it plays, but my underlying fear is that my latent OCD will take over.

Biggie

if it looks like a duck, walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, then it is a duck.
Do you seriously believe that I would put my future reputation in the hands of someone who thinks 9 ball is just as hard as snooker and any failure to find a five inch wide pocket from three feet away with a cue I'd made to be solely down to me and my lack of understanding of how difficult 9 ball is and the specialist characteristics required of a 9 ball cue.

I'd be better off making a cue eight feet long and sending it to Earl Srickland

STILL sore, huh? You didn't know something elemental, you were corrected, get over it.

Oh, the top snooker players who are elite American pool players? Oh there's, um, er...oh.

[cally]

I remember the first cue you made, was it with babunga ?

I thought you'd be banging um out by now, on the back burner for a few years?

Look forward to seeing your work and how you've progressed with it... should easily be on par with parris by now...

[vmax4steve]

Well the workshop/garage got flooded on sunday morning, lost everything that was below three feet, all my sandpaper, wire wool, all my hardwood veneers, glue, finishing products all floated away, a lot of my tools are now covered in mud and need to be cleaned; Motorbikes were flooded as well, X4 won't start through water damage, little 125 Herald started though will need to be looked at, luckily the Vmax was being restored by a local shop.

All my main timber is above four feet on shelves so escaped, part finished cues and shafts are in my flat above the workshop; just had a great night out at a Think Floyd gig in the town (highly recomended BTW) and was buzzing and woke up to this

015 (640x478).jpg016 (640x478).jpg014 (478x640) (475x491).jpg

What a p1sser !!

[DeanH]

holy moly - sorry to hear of your troubles!
hope you are back to "normal" soon

[Neil Taperell]

Bad luck there Steve . No chance of claiming on the insurance ? Bound to be some clause that you are too near a water source

[vmax4steve]

Bad luck there Steve . No chance of claiming on the insurance ? Bound to be some clause that you are too near a water source

Exactly, I live in a converted watermill with the river Yeo one side of me and the mill leet on the other, no insurance even offered let alone being too expensive. Hundreds of pounds lost, and another flood alert for tonight so the mud can stay for now, but hey Think Floyd were great, the guitarist absolutely nailed the solos in Time and Comfortably Numb

[itsnoteasy]

Sorry to see that Vmax, are your lathes and whatever you have electrical OK?