Taking Care Of Your Pool Cue Stick
Because a cue stick is an important piece of sports equipment, it is very important to take care of it to ensure it will work to its full extent. After a pool cue is used for a long period of time, it tends to lose its smoothness, shape, and natural feel. It is up to the owner to perform maintenance on the stick to ensure that it will be able to perform at its best.
Keeping a pool stick clean is the most important task in keeping it in good condition. There are many different types of pool cue cleaners that can be purchased from pool specialty stores, or you can choose to just use a damp towel. It is important to clean the stick thoroughly after each use, to get rid of all of the dirt and oil transferred from skin contact. This will keep the stick in great condition, and keep it feeling as new as the day it was purchased.
Using sandpaper on a pool cue also works pretty good for maintenance, since it can clean it any also get out any small nicks. Because sandpaper can cause severe damage to your stick, make sure you only use it when absolutely necessary. The sandpaper should not be very coarse, since you don’t want to put any scratches on the stick. There are other methods for bringing out dents, or you can just completely prevent them in the first place.
It is important that a pool stick keeps its shape in order to perform at its full capacity. Leaning sticks on tables on laying them down horizontally is a bad idea, because it can cause the stick to lose the shape. Because getting a pool cue back to original shape is pretty much impossible, it is important to store them properly to get the most use out of them. All pool cues should be stored in vertical racks like those seen at billiard locations, since this will prevent them from loosing their straight shape.
If your stick does become bent, it may be possible to straighten it back out as long as it has only a slight bend in it. Instead of trying to bend it back yourself; let the weight of the stick do it. You first need to heat up the stick, by using a washcloth or towel dampened with warm water. Hold the cloth onto the pool cue so it can absorb some of the heat, and then the wood will become more pliable. Then hang the stick from the tip so the weight will be pulling down from the bottom. It is best to hang it somewhere that it can stay warm, such as near a heat duct. The weight of the pool cue will straighten itself out, as long as the bend it not too severe.
The most important tip for maintaining a pool cue is to prevent any accidents from occurring. Pool cues should be used only for playing pool, and nothing else. Although it may be tempting, pool sticks should never be waved around like swords or hit together. They should only be taken out during a game of pool, and then put right back into their vertical storage to ensure their performance. Regular maintenance and preventative measures will keep a pool stick strong, in good condition, and performing great.