HELPFUL GUIDE….From Cue & Cushion
Most quality manufactured cues will last a lifetime if properly taken care of. Cue & Cushion wants you to enjoy your cues for as long as possible. We hope you take the time to read these hints for keeping your cue in the best possible shape.
 | My Cue is warped!All cues, regardless of price WILL warp if you do not take care of them. The two most common reasons are temperature change and side pressure. Never leave a cue in your car! Leaving a cue in your car during extreme temperatures, both hot and cold, will warp a cue in a matter of hours. It takes over two years of curing the wood and turning the wood to make it straight, and only two hours to warp it. Insulated cases will help but cannot prevent warping. Graphite or fiberglass coated cues are much less likely to warp but still are not guaranteed 100%.The second most common cause of a cue warping is side pressure. Leaning a cue against a wall incorrectly, “sword fighting” or draping a cue across your shoulders will all cause pressure against the wood grain or even micro-fractures of the wood fibers. These effects are very slow and subtle and will take time to notice. Eventually the result will always be a warped or broken cue. |
When you have to lean your cue against a wall use a Q-buddy or similar tool. These are cue holders that clamp or sit on a table that hold your cue closer to the joint of the cue, making a bend in your shaft much less likely. If you must lean your cue against a wall, then make sure the butt of the cue is less than six inches away from the wall. This will put all the pressure going down and not on the thin part of the shaft. The reason every house cue in every pool hall or bar is crooked is from careless patrons constantly leaning cues against the walls incorrectly.
My tip is wearing down!Replacing tips, ferrules, and rubber bumpers is normal maintenance when you own a cue. The ferrules especially should be inspected every time you start to play pool. A damaged ferrule will cause cracks in the wood tenon which can lead to expensive repairs including shortening your shaft. Tips are the most common repair. Although tip repair kits are available we always suggest having a professional replace your tips. Tip tappers and tip pik tools will have minimal wear and tear on your tip and extend the life. Cue cubes and other shapers are less time consuming but may shorten the life of your tip by shaving too much leather off when you use them. Always ask a Cue & Cushion employee to show you the differences of any maintenance tools we stock. |  |
My cue is turning blue!
Need to clean your cue? Start by WASHING YOUR HANDS! The number one reason that cues get so dirty is because of the oil in your hands. When the oil from your hands soaks into the bare wood shaft, chalk dust adheres to this oil soaking INTO the grains of wood in your shaft. This simple task of washing your hands will cut your maintenance on cleaning your cue by half. Also the soap will have a drying effect on your hands reducing friction and reducing the need for hand talc. Pool gloves are a great way to keep your shaft in great shape too. They also eliminate the need for hand talc. When your cue does get dirty use a mild detergent (like Soft Scrub) and a slightly damp cloth. Note: Use fiberglass conditioner for fiberglass or graphite cues. When this basic cleaning is not enough, Cue & Cushion offers plenty of mild abrasive cleaners, shaft slickers, dry bleach compounds for cleaning your cue. Note: Never use sandpapers on a fiberglass or graphite cue.
