Billiards Speak

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A tip pick, tip tapper or other tip tool should be used for roughing up the tip when it doesn’t hold chalk.  Most people over use these tools and wear down their tips much faster than they need to.  You need to be especially careful with the picks.  If they slip they will scar a ferrule.  Most miscues are the result of a poor stroke, not because the tip isn’t holding chalk like it should.   

If you get a nick in the butt of the cue that goes all the way through the finish clear fingernail polish will usually seal the hole well enough to prevent moisture from getting underneath the finish. Super glue works well too, but it is trickier to work with. It may not take much to cause the finish to separate from the wood. So, take care of holes in the finish quickly. Another way to protect your cue from moisture is to purchase joint protectors. They are inexpensive and they will help to prevent moisture from entering your cue at the exposed joint, as well as protecting these areas from other possible damage. RAVEN cues are sealed (internally and externally) on both ends of the joint when they are made to help prevent this problem. Even so joint protectors are a good idea.

Never sand out a dent or a nick in your shaft. If you aren’t squeamish about such things, dab a little saliva on the dent, time after time over a few weeks. Tap water works fine too. If the dent isn’t too deep the wood will eventually swell to where it is barely noticeable or gone entirely. If the dent is deeper or more bothersome, carefully use an iron with a damp cloth to force steam into the dent. The wood pores expand and bring the dented area to the surface. This method will require smoothing off the expanded area and the dent should be gone. Better yet, unless you just like caring for your cue yourself, take your shaft to a qualified repair-person. For a few dollars your shaft will be cleaned, dents removed and the shaft re-sealed. It is well worth the charge.

Your hands perspire. Perspiration, because part of its purpose is to remove cellular waste from our bodies, is acidic. Acid isn’t good for your cue. Neither is the chalk, powder, table grit, French-fry oil, cigarette smoke, or spilled pop or beer you inevitably come in contact with. Hopefully you occasionally wash your hands. Do the same with your cue. Don’t scrub it with a kitchen pad. Dampen a soft cloth in clean soapy water. Or just use rubbing alcohol. Wipe down the body of the cue with the cloth and immediately dry it with a different soft dry cloth. Pay special attention to the shaft. Regularly removing most of the embedded chalk and powder from the shaft will extend its playing life. A gentle rub down with a good wax or furniture polish, after the bath, will help protect your cue until its next contact with the outside world.

Most people just don’t know how to care for their shafts. A shaft should be a consistent diameter to the ferrule for several inches back toward the butt or have a gradual taper in that direction. Most used shafts are not like that. They tend to be thinner a few inches back from the ferrule because of the over use of sandpaper or Scotch-Brite. In his first book Robert Byrne told the pool-playing world about Scotch-Brite. Now shafts all over the world sag in the middle because of its over use. It isn’t Mr. Byrne’s fault. If I recall correctly he described the usage of Scotch-Brite as a gentle caress on the shaft. Instead of a gentle caress, I cringe as people wrench a green pad around the shaft and pump it up and down like a piston in a cloud of wood dust. Sandpaper unless about 1500 grit is usually worse.

Accidentally leaving your cue in a hot car or a cold one, even for a relatively short period of time, may be enough to ruin a perfectly good cue.  Please don’t leave your cue in the trunk of a car.  The best rule of thumb is “If you are comfortable …your cue would be comfortable”. 

There are about a dozen different materials in a typical two-piece cue. All of those materials expand and contract differently with heat and cold. The constant expanding and contracting is largely responsible for components of a cue being eventually felt through the finish. The finish is also worn down over time just by handling and playing with a cue. Taking it out of a case, putting it back in the case, cleaning the cue, in short every time it is touched the finish is being worn down. Metal rings are a particular problem. Because metal will expand and contract more readily than the other materials in a cue. Moisture, or humidity, is another cue killer. Most materials will absorb water and they swell when they do. The various results of exposure to temperature extremes alone can be severe. Joints become brittle and lose, rings poke through a previously smooth finish, inlays pop up and the finish separates from the surface of the wood. Unless you are going to hermetically seal the cue in a temperature and humidity controlled environment all you can do is slow down the process.  In almost every cue with metal rings you will eventually be able to feel them through the finish. 

Keep in mind your Pool Cue is like a delicate musical instrument. Treat it like one. It is just fine to play the heck out of it, like violinists do, when they perform. They carefully take the violin out of its case, guard it when they aren’t actually playing and carefully return it to its case when they finish. They don’t prop it up against a wall, thump it on the floor, or toss it on a table. You should do the same. Keep your cue stored carefully when you aren’t performing. Store it in a solid case in an upright position away from heat and air conditioning vents. Don’t keep your cue in a damp basement or a hot attic. And, try not to give it prolonged exposure to direct sunlight. It doesn’t take as much as you might think to warp a shaft. Leaning the cue up against a wall overnight may be enough to do it. Even a shaft left long enough on a flat surface can eventually warp. The butt can also warp. The ideal temperature range for a cue is 68 to 72 degrees with modest humidity.