Help with shaft care please!!!

[maranelloman]

Okay people, I have christmas coming up, and I plan on buying new equipment...I would LOVE your input please....

As of now, Im fresh out of everything!

I like the raw wood feeling on my shaft, I don't get sweaty, and I hate slick, polished, smooth shafts.

As of now, I use Atlas Clean, and after, used to use the sandy side of an OB pad, now a magic eraser or scotch pad, but I feel I am not doing any justice to my shaft....

I LOVE Atlas Clean, and I want to continue to use this product, I also have a bottle of Atlas Slick that I use sparringly. I LOVE the OB pad too...I am interested in Atlas Wax, Q-papers (any paper sanding product), Q-slick, and Atlas Clean....

Is Atlas Slick and Q-Slick the same product? I have read two different descriptons for both products...I hear Q-Slick gives you the natural wood feeling without slickness or greasiness...

I LOVE Atlas clean...Do I need it if I use slippy papers? Do I need the OB pad if I use slippy papers? Do I need either if I use Atlas Clean????

What is your theory on using these products, and in what order would you use them?

Like I said, I like the natural wood feeling..I don't want a waxy, slick wood..I also don't want to use anything not formulated for anything for cue shafts...I like Atlas clean and the OB pad, but Im willing to change...I don't feel like I am protecting my shaft using these products though..I hear Q-Slick is a protectant while Atlas Slick isn't...Should I use slippy's? Atlas Wax? When, where, and why should I use these products...PLEASE HELP ME!!! Before I spend $40 on shaft care products and cancel them all out by using them adversarially against eachother...Thank you very much for your insight...Reply, OOORRR, e-mail me (I would prefer) at

tcfergc@hotmail.com

I order all my billiard products from Nielsen's Billiards out of Illinois (check e-bay)..I highly recommend..Very customer oriented, helpful, and they take care of you BIG TIME!!!

[Rich R.]

IMHO, you are doing way too much with your shafts. It isn't needed.

Read this other thread for some ideas.
http://billiardsdigest.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=291786#Post291786

[1Time]

If the shaft is currently natural wood with no finish, I recommend burnishing. And then you can use whatever cleaning product others recommend.

I just keep re-using a small piece of 1000 grit 3M wet/dry sandpaper to keep the shaft free from debris. But sometimes I use Johnson furniture polish with a rag, burnish again, and then go back to using a used 1000 grit piece of sandpaper.

Here's how I burnish. A piece of leather probably works better. Cut a piece of 400 or 600 grit sandpaper about 4" x 6". Grip the shaft at the bottom 4" where I don't want to sand. Wrap the sandpaper long ways around the shaft with the paper smooth side against the shaft. Grip the paper around the shaft and move it quickly up and down while slowly turning the shaft with my grip hand. I also move my grip hand up and down in the opposite direction of my burnishing hand. The idea is to build up heat between the back of the sandpaper and the shaft. Work the shaft in 3 approximate 8" sections, the top, middle, and bottom.

If the shaft has a finish that you want removed, I recommend starting with 3M 400 grit wet/dry sandpaper. It make take a few pieces of sandpaper to remove the finish. Use the same technique described above for burnishing, but use less pressure and speed, and keep using different parts of the sandpaper. You want to be careful to remove the finish but not much wood.

Once the finish is removed, decide whether the shaft is smooth enough for you before burnishing or not. If it is smooth enough after the 400 grit, you could burnish and be done. Or, you could sand next with 600 grit, burnish and be done. Or, you could sand with 600 and then 1000 grit, burnish and be done. I use 1000 grit before burnishing. But you may want to burnish after 400 if you don't want your shaft as smooth or slippery.

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: maranelloman</div><div class="ubbcode-body">I like the raw wood feeling on my shaft, I don't get sweaty, and I hate slick, polished, smooth shafts.</div></div>