cue care

Never lean your cue against the sharp edge of a table between shots. Find a corner & stand the cue there.

Never let other players shoot with your cue. Accidents happen and you are stuck with the results.

Never use talcum powder on your hands if things get sticky. The powder gets in the pores of the wood, absorbs more moisture and compounds the problem. Just keep the shaft clean and wash your hands often, even if it means washing them every ½ hour or so while you’re playing.

Cleaning & polishing your shaft

Never use Scotch Brite or any sandpaper coarser than 1000 grit to clean your shaft. The first 6" near the joint are clearcoated just like the butt. The remainder of the shaft has a mild proprietary sealer on it & a light coat of carnauba wax. The best way to maintain the finish is to keep your hands clean & the shaft dry.

When your shaft requires cleaning, use 90% isopropyl alcohol. Then burnish shaft with either leather or a brown paper shopping bag. One easy way to do it is by folding the leather (or paper) between your knees, inserting the shaft and spinning it like a Boy Scout trying to start a fire. Move the shaft up & down to span the unpainted length while spinning it. When the finish is burnished to your liking, apply a coat of wax and, before the wax dries, burnish it the same way. Repeat as necessary.

If more drastic measures are needed, go to an automotive paint supply store & buy a sheet of 1000 grit wet-or-dry paper. Cut it into several playing card sized pieces so you'll have a lifetime supply. Clean the shaft first then sand it the same way - between your knees. Apply wax.

Never use a bridge with a metal or plastic head. They are both harder than your wooden shaft. Almost any shot will cause the shaft to vibrate imperceptibly on the bridge, creating a series of minute (or larger) nicks. Either use a bar cue or buy a leather bridgehead.

Use a tip tapper for roughing the tip rather than a grit type scuffer. This raises the leather to hold chalk without unnecessarily sanding away your tip.

Your tip will mushroom after a few hours of play. This is normal and usually needs to be corrected only once. Use a sharp utility razor to carefully trim the excess flush with the ferrule. Use caution to avoid cutting the ferrule (although I can replace a damaged ferrule) or your fingers (which I cannot replace).

When returning your cue to its case, insert the tip end of the shaft and the bumper end of the butt into the case first. This keeps the exposed ends of both joints out of the dirt and chalk that invariably accumulates in the bottom of the case.

When you do get a nick, wet a small (BB sized) piece of tissue and apply it to the nick. Let it dry. On a deep nick, you may have to repeat this several times. Then use the side of a heavy glass or the bottom of a tablespoon to gently burnish the swollen portion of the wood until it blends in. You can remove almost any nick eventually with time and patience. Someone will tell you there are faster methods, but this always works and it is completely safe.

Do not leave the cue in the trunk of your car for any extended period. The temperature extremes will cause problems with the different expansion rates of the materials used in building your cue. Shaft warpage can also occur. This applies equally to summer and winter months. I always wrap my case in an old Army blanket when leaving it in the trunk. This helps keep the temperature stable over quite a long period.

If you have a Uni-Loc quick release joint, dab a bit of lubricant on the pin once in a while. I keep a tube of chap-stick in my pouch for this reason. I've seen this joint seize up a few times during assembly or dis-assembly and it's not pretty. An ounce of prevention can prevent an expensive cure.