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Clean & Maintain Your Cue
by Sarah Mausolf | reviewed by John Echevarria
This article features the following:
Butt & Shaft | Sanding | Tips | Shaping Tips
After purchasing a cue, you'll need to protect the investment you've made by maintaining your cue properly. Here are a few simple but effective things you can do to properly maintain your cue.
Before you put your cue away, wipe it down with a warm, wet cloth. This takes just a few minutes but it can make a big difference when it comes to removing dirt and oil from your cue.
Do not, under any circumstances, bleach your
shaft. There are a number of professional cleaning products on the market that are specifically designed for cleaning cues.
Avoid subjecting your cue to major changes in temperature. Extreme heat or cold can cause warping. Don’t leave your
cue in the car! Humidity is another threat to
cues, especially the shaft, so don’t leave it anywhere where it can get too cold, too hot or damp.
Using course sandpaper on your shaft can damage it. If you want to clean up your shaft and make it feel sleek again, you may polish it with 2,000 grit sandpaper. Some players like to wet the sandpaper first because it causes the grain of the wood on the shaft to rise up.
Wax paper, leather, brown paper bag and dollar bills are a few other alternatives to sandpaper. If you don't want to take the chance on doing it yourself, you can find a cue maintenance and repair person at your next expo, show or tournament. Our Pool & Billiard Directory features listings of cue maintenance & repair professionals.
No tip lasts forever. Eventually, wear and tear will take its toll. Here are some signs that it’s time to replace your tip:
- It pops off (an obvious one)
- You hear a different sound during a shot
- It’s peeling up
- An air pocket forms underneath the tip
- It becomes spongy
- It dry rots (the fibers rise up when you tip pick it)
Leave replacing your tip
to a qualified professional. (If you try to do it yourself, you can end up cutting the
ferrule). Ask around to get a recommendation on a good
cue repairman or search our Pool & Billiard Directory.
Shaping involves using tools to prepare the surface of the
tip to hold
chalk properly. Here are a few different types of shapers.
- Scuffer: Usually a semi-circle of metal sandpaper embedded in a metal cube. Move it back and forth over the surface of the
tip.
- Tip Pik: A device the size of a Chapstick with spikes on one end. Stab holes in the
tip.
- Tip Tapper: A heavy paddle-shaped tool with sharp spikes. Hit the tip to make small holes.
Continue working on the surface of the tip until you are comfortable with the way it looks and holds
chalk. Shaping also gives you some control over the degree of curvature on your
tip. Most players shape the
tip until it conforms to the radius of a dime.
You may also wish you ask a cue maintenance and repair professional to clean up your ferrule and shape your
tip for you. Find a local cue maintenance & repair professional through our Pool & Billiard Directory!
Updated 5/2008
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