Woodturning, what kit do I need?

You may want to reference the "pointy stick compendium project" thread currently running over on rec.norm It is filled with "wisdom" on the making and lore of pointy sticks. :-)

A lathe, a roughing gouge, and a skew would seem to be an easy starting point. You can probably make it as complicated as you like from there with everything from fancy laid up blanks to high-tech composite materials.

Roger

I believe that you will find that most pool cue makers are using metal lathes rather than wood lathes.

Bill

Roger wrote:

If you google, there is a guy makes pool cues and sells the tools to make them. Try searching on lathe AND 'pool cue'. I've run across it a couple times.

Hi Bill,

Yes, this is spot on, I need to know what metal lathe is suitable due to the power aspect, what speed is safe for woodturning using a metal lathe, I need a metal lathe that can turn slow enough to allow wood to be turned.

Thanks.

OK, I'm mysified. Why a metal lathe? Is a pool cue now something other than the long tapered wooden cylinder of my youth? Seems like one of the simplest things you could possibly turn on a wood lathe--think stair balusters with no shoulders, coves, and beads to make things interesting. Might want a steady rest if you're making the whole length as one piece.

I don't know much about metal lathes but most of the ones I've seen use cutters that would leave a relatively awful scraped surface on your stick that would require an inordinant amount of sanding with a lot of chance of disturbing the smooth line of the cue. I can imagine that bumps would be bad news!

Are there different kinds of cutters one can use on a metal lathe to achieve a clean cut in wood?

Roger

Probably pool cue manufacturers do use some sort of CNC, copy or engine lathe, but I'd think a woodturner wouldn't buy the equipment for modest production. I have a friend who makes custom croquet mallets, drum sticks and batons on a old Craftsman tubular bed lathe with carbon tools...he does very well.

BTW, I'm thinking about buying some cheap flea market golf clubs, removing the metal shafts and turning some faux 'old wooden shafts with leather grips' as replacements before the collecting craze is over. Bad idea or am I too late again?

Turn to Safety, Arch Fortiter

snipped-for-privacy@webtv.net (Arch) wrote in news:18740-4224CF1A-113@storefull-

3171.bay.webtv.net:

The vintage heads are significantly different, both in their materials and their visuals. What you might do today is something that is more an homage to the old style...

Or make wooden shafted putters. Or wooden headed & shafted putters. If you think that turners will buy anything, you've never spent much time with golfers.

Patriarch

I had a neighbor who made pool cues. His set up was a slow speed metal lathe and a router with spiral bit in a jig to match the taper of the cue. This set up took care of the whipping that occurs on long thin spindles. I have another friend who turns walking sticks in much the same manner. robo hippy

Lobby Dosser wrote:

John:

I think that you need to do some reading. Much of the time metal is turned at lower speeds than wood -- not the other way around. That is especially true for those of us who turn metal with HHS cutters. Those who use carbide cutters on metal run at higher speeds.

You would need very little power so that is not an issue. You do need a machine with a bed long enough to turn your longest cue for one piece queues. Or if you want to make 2 piece cues, then the bed can be shorter.

Some years ago there was an article in Fine Woodworking on making 2 piece cues. I'd say that is a good place to start and I suspect that someone who has an index to FWW can come up with the issue number.

Really, turning the stick itself is not much of a challenge. Doing the fancy decorating is what separates the men from the boys.

Again, you need to do some research before you buy anything -- just my opinion.

Bill

John wrote:

So much oddball info, I did a search myself. Here it is:

'CUE LATHES'

Here is a preview of the things cue builders have to deal with...

If you take a nice, straight hunk of maple and make it into a cue, it is most likely that it will warp. Even if it is perfectly kiln dried, it will still not end up straight. The reason -- as you remove wood you are relieving stresses in the wood. Cheap cues may be made this way but the really good ones are not.

Now, how do you get a straight stick? You remove a little wood and put it away for a while to do whatever it is going to do. Then you do it again and again and each time you remove a little wood and straighten it out again. That allows the stresses to work their way out and gives you the best chance of getting a straight stick.

Also, it is unlikely that you can buy really premium cue maple because the suppliers save it for the big name makers who can and will pay a premium for it.

Bill

Lobby Dosser wrote:

Hi Bill,

I did not know that metal was turned at slower speeds, I used to do metalwork at a school, then a bit of woodturning at college and for some reason always thought that the metal lathe turned a lot faster than the wood lathe, so much for the education system :) As you can tell my knowlege on lathes is non existant, what books do you recommend?

Yes, ideally the lathe should be capable of handling at least 5' lengths,

60", 150 cm, 1500 mm for the metric fans, this is the reason that metal lathes are used by cue makers, on the metal lathe you can feed the wood through the head, I am thinking that maybe I should be a little less ambitious and go for the 2 piece option to see how I get on but then again the drawbacks I can see here are getting the grain to match when using ash and lining the cue up straight with a joint in the middle, this may prove very difficult so I am back to the metal lathe idea again, I think keeping the cue in one piece will make the job much easier.

I would not mind seeing that if someone has the issue number.

True, I would be more than happy with a plain cue to get me started :)

I have been to one woodturning tool supplies shop, not much help, I have emailed a couple of larger suppliers and am waiting for replies :)

Thanks all for the help so far..

That would be July/August 1986, No. 59.

The author ("Colorado Slim") finish turns a cue with a skew at 2000 rpm, on a wood lathe.

It takes (or took, as the case may be) him several weeks to finish a cue, turning it a little in stages then letting it stabilize to avoid warping in the final product.

Ken Grunke

Here's a good link to get you started.

Best of luck. Eddie

Thank you Eddie, brilliant link :) just an update to let you all know how far I have got so far since my first post on the subject.

I phoned my old cue maker to see if he was still making cues, he is but is not making as many as he used to, he told me some 8 years ago that he was retiring but he is still going, we had a chat anyway and he offered to sell me his kit, this time he is definitely retiring, he has had to give up driving so he cant get about these days, shame really, so it looks like he will retire for good soon, where have I heard that before LOL, anyway he said he will give me a call within the next couple of months, he better, if not I will be on his doorstep to find out why.

I assume he will give me the info I need on how to make the cues, naturally I will want to know how to use the kit before I buy it, when I used to visit him years ago I was always looking for clues to see how the cues were made, I assume he wont mind me being nosey on this occasion, for a change :)

My goal is to be turning cues before the end of the year.

Cheers all.