turning a pool cue

[Brad Barnhart]

Good morning! A customer was in my shop on Saturday, I was busy on the scroll saw, never been in my shop before, looked around at the equipment & tools in the shop, took a deep breath, & asked me if I could make him a custom made pool stick? I looked at him for a little bit, more in shock than in thought, & told him I, I, yes Sir, I think we can accommodate that. He looked at me, grinned, & said thanks Cuz, see ya at Mom's funeral on Monday. I just shook my head! No way! We don't see much of our family from the south, & it had been awhile since I'd seen him, but I sure didn't recognize him! Now, my question is, I've got some pretty good quality rough sawn maple on hand, what, if any, other equipment, or pointers do you more experienced fellas think I need for this project? My lathe is a hf 12" x 37". I don't have much of a budget to go out & buy anything fancy, just so ya know. I realize this project is going to be a challenge, & its not a matter of I can't, its just a matter of honing my skills enough to do the work. Thanks for your suggestions.

[Dave Mueller]

Brad,
I have not turned a cue, but have turned canes, which do present similar problems. To me the biggest issue is getting the long taper straight and smooth without ridges. i made a full size drawing of the taper and then used measurements off the drawing to make depth cuts with a parting tool to a diameter slightly larger than the finished diameter. Then turn to the depth cuts. I had best results using a skew for the final cut, but not everyone likes to use skews. The real help was to glue full size sheets of sandpaper to pieces of MDF. These will sand the ridges away to produce a flat, smooth taper. Hope this helps.

[Marvin Hasenak]

Go to one of the pool cuemaking forums. It is not just making a long spindle, it is a long process, but in time. Most cues are also cored and filled with another stable wood to keep the cue from warping. The set the cue up and cut off a little bit, let it sit for weeks or months and cut off some more as the attain the correct diameter and taper. They do this over and over so that the wood stressors can "move" and any warp will betaken care of by the end of the long process.

And no I have not made a cue, but I have a good friend that makes cues for a living, It is also a "secret" process, they let you watch, they will help you, but in the end you will still not know what the entire process is. He does share, but from what I know about woodworking some of the minor details were not shared in their entirety. With enough research and reading and mostly trial and error you can make a decent cue. But unless you want to go into the business or hobby of cuemaking, you will spend a lot of hours learning the process.

By the way his lathe is several Taig mini lathes on steroids. CNC and the works. I never priced the stuff, but my guess is the cost of equipment is in the 10's thousands. Would I try it, hell yes if I had the money for the equipment and the space for it, I am retired and would love a new hobby, but thankfully I do not have the space for the equipment or the money to waste on a new hobby.

[Steve Peterson]

Like Marvin mentions, there are cue making forums. There are a few books.

The most important step is to start rough shaping the shaft, then let it season for a few months and shape it some more. The entire process could take well over a year. If you rush it, you will probably end up with a bent shaft. A better option may be to purchase the shaft and focus on the handle. Most of the details are cosmetic (inlays, burls, fancy wood, etc.).

I looked into it briefly, then decided to just buy a decent pool stick in the $100 range.

Steve

[Reed Gray]

I had a neighbor who made them, and to cut the tapers, he had a router on a jig. Hand tools, well, in a grand master's hands, maybe.

robo hippy

[Dave Cullen]

The cue making forums are lame. More people asking questions than giving answers. Books? I dunno of any, though it's been 15 years since I last looked. There was a short article in Fine Woodworking years ago that got me started, but that's all I know of. There is however an excellent set of videos by renowned cue maker Joe Barringer that describes the process in detail. Joe also offers classes (about $5000 for a week I believe) if you get serious.

Cue making is a precision art, and NOT done with woodworking lathes. If you have the ability to turn a 58" spindle as one piece, then OK go for it. If you're wanting to make a 2 piece cue with screw joints you'll find that it's virtually impossible to make something that's as straight as even a $20 house cue. First thing someone does with a new cue is roll it on a pool table and see how straight it is. A 1/2 degree error at the joint will make a cue wobble by 1/4 inch. Thump, thump, thump...

I bought a wood lathe and started turning 20+ years ago with the intention of making cues. After making some special fixtures and trying techniques for a year or two I actually managed to make a half dozen and gave them away as Xmas gifts that year. Every one of them self destructed within 3 months of play.

That said, I still have the supplies and the interest and I'd love to find someone who can describe a process that works without making a major investment in precision equipment. Maybe you'll have more luck than I did.

[Marvin Hasenak]

I had a neighbor who made them, and to cut the tapers, he had a router on a jig. Hand tools, well, in a grand master's hands, maybe.

robo hippy

I watched my friend "turn" a cue blank using a table saw. He was doing it as a demonstration for some other cuemakers. They were impressed, but they should have been terrified.

[David C. Roseman]

Brad, man oh man, that's a cup I'd let pass from my lips! As others have said, making a decent pool cue is an art -- high art. No way I'd recommend trying to do it as a first-time one-off, especially with the equipment you have.

Folks pay a bundle for a good cue for a reason. Also, consider this. Even if what you produce turns out to be usable, every time your cousin is shooting with buddies and can't pocket balls I can almost hear him saying "Dang cue was made by my cousin Brad. Guess I got what I paid for it!"

[Brad Barnhart]

Thanks for all the input. Sounds like this may be something to rethink. I wondered about wood movement & bending. That's the reason I came here to get more experienced opinions. I appreciate your time, gentlemen.

[Dave Cullen]

Also, consider this. Even if what you produce turns out to be usable, every time your cousin is shooting with buddies and can't pocket balls I can almost hear him saying "Dang cue was made by my cousin Brad. Guess I got what I paid for it!"

This ^^^. The game is mostly mental, and anything that distracts the player's focus is unacceptable. A cue that isn't perfect is a distraction.

The dynamics of what happens when a player strokes a cue ball are amazing. Everything between the tip and the player's hand can be felt in the "hit". Your shaft needs to be slow growth rock maple with at least 12 growth rings per inch. Anything less will "twang", or worse - deflect, and cause a missed shot. The slightest gap anywhere - just thousandths - make a cue firewood. A gap at the ferrule makes an audible "click". A gap at the butt/forearm joint makes a "buzz" that can be felt.

I still have a couple of the sticks I made years ago -



- they play like crap.

If you're still interested in giving it a try, here are some resources -

The article I mentioned in FWW was August 1986. The author called himself Colorado Slim.

Atlas Billiard Supplies is a good source for cue parts: https://www.cuestik.com/

Cue Components - parts, tools, blanks, and Joe Barringer's videos: http://www.cuecomponents.com/

Note to turners - Cue Components has clean dry turning blanks in some pretty exotic species.

HTH

[Brad Barnhart]

Thanks Dave for the information, & yes, I am still interested. If nothing else, for the knowledge. I'm not necessarily interested in taking up the habit of turning cues, but, to have the know how might be handy some day. Thank you again gentlemen for your time & responses.

[hu lowery]

Thanks Dave for the information, & yes, I am still interested. If nothing else, for the knowledge. I'm not necessarily interested in taking up the habit of turning cues, but, to have the know how might be handy some day. Thank you again gentlemen for your time & responses.

Brad,

For starters I recommend you buy my cue lathe for two grand! Then you can buy my exotic wood for another thousand, I never got serious about making cues. My shaft blanks were only six or eight dollars a pop, then I had to add stabilizer, need fresh air to be around that stuff! Of course as I turned down the blanks the cull rate was over fifty percent with quite a few being snapped when they had already been turned a half dozen times. You can buy the hardware a half dozen places, most of it can be found in my junk drawers. It takes awhile to learn the difference between crap and quality, they look just the same. Joint and buttcap material is usually sold by the inch. I still have a three foot piece of joint material somewhere, that was a hundred dollar bill.

In all seriousness, I would make sure your cousin is really interested as a one off pool cue will cost you at least several hundred to build, as much as he can buy one from an experienced maker that will last. Also, when you start with splices and inlays and such you need things like jigs and fixtures, special blades, a bandsaw that is tuned to a "T", and a milling machine or router table that is dead nuts on. As others have said, there is no margin for error anywhere in a pool cue.

Plan "B" is to buy a $150 shaft and a $200 full splice blank. Cheaper blanks can be had, so can fire wood. Chances are you will ruin the first few blanks so starting with two by fours might be the best idea!

If you get caught up in cue making you will soon have a small fortune in equipment and wood, and enough poisonous chemicals and finishes around to qualify as a superfund site when you die. From what I have seen the life expectancy of a full time cue maker is about 20-25 years, something to do with those chemicals and finishes. Amongst other things, CA glue kills. A householder using a few drops now and then isn't an issue. Someone deciding to finish cue butts with it . . .

I have a cue lathe better than anything you can buy, a NC router for cutting inlay pockets and inlays, a handful of hardware and supplies that I haven't traded or given away yet, and a book. The book by Chris Hightower isn't much but it works well with the Taig based lathe. I gave Joe Barringer's DVD's to a friend. When all is said and done anything you can watch, read, or even learn in a five thousand dollar class offered by a few people is only a starting point. You have to learn what works for you.

Joe at Cue Components will sell you a half dozen or so partially turned cue shaft blanks, should get one or two useable ones out of that. He has the full splice butt blanks too I believe. He can fix you up with anything and everything to build a cue. Go to his website and read awhile to have a good idea what you want before talking to him. Joe is a great guy but not known for tolerance and patience sometimes. My favorite cue supplier, others haven't given me the shaft, I paid dearly to get shafted!

All of my cue building stuff is in storage. I turn bowls and vessels on a standard wood lathe. A tiny fraction of the headaches and with a little care I might live a little longer than I would making cues. By the way, the cue builders, not makers, at AZBilliards.com are by and large a great bunch of guys. Go to the cue builder specific forums and search a little then ask questions, you will get plenty of help. There are other cues to build besides full splice and somebody will probably sell you some well dried wood to build a cue or two if you get to know a few of the builders. Don't buy cheap pins and inserts unless you want a crooked cue. Stay away from ivory, silver inlays and rings, and rock inlays until you know your business. Inlays need to expand, contract, and move with the wood. A simple theory, usually overlooked!

One pool cue will probably teach you how to drink and smoke if you don't already or cost you a couple three hundred out of pocket on drink and smokes if you do!

Hu

[Tim Rinehart]

Brad, Hu makes a compelling argument for going out and buying a nice cue, or three unless of course you're just hellbent on making one. I did some digging and found the FWW article if interested, just search on "turning a pool cue" and you should find the pdf of the article from FWW. Moot point if you have a subscription to FWW.

[Reed Gray]

I gave up on video games after Pong, mostly because I loved the pool tables, and most evenings would find me at my favorite tavern playing. I wanted a better cue than the tavern ones, so I went to a local store and bought a plain and simple one for about $50. The leather case I made for it was probably worth more than the cue. It was straight and served me well for a number of years. Then I quit drinking so I didn't go to the tavern much any more (this was about the time all of the 'craft' beers started coming out...) and loaned it to a friend, who forgot it at a tavern where he was playing.... Oh well, maybe I will have a pool table some day. Great mental stimulation.

robo hippy

[Dave Cullen]

I bought Joe Barringer's DVD's too. The first one in the set, an intro, Joe walks you through his shop and talks about equipment, tools, wood, and the craftsman's mentality. At the end he sits down, lights a smoke, and asks the viewer why you would want to make pool cues. After seeing what kind of investment it would take to do it right I said, "Nope".

I don't regret getting my feet wet in the craft. It got me started in wood turning and that's become my favorite hobby. I also have some exotic wood that I'd probably never have bought otherwise. I still repair cues (replace ferrules) for the local pool hall once in a while.