How to Replace Leather Tips on Cue Sticks

A quality pool cue is a billiards player's best friend, especially if he or she is a serious pool player. Pool cues are made to strike the cue ball at multiple angles in order to produce specific shots. The most essential pat of the cue is the tip, normally made from leather. A fresh leather cue tip will produce an effective strike on the cue ball. However, the cue tip will eventually wear down, crack or break. When this happens, you can use a pool cue tip replacement kit to repair it. Just like the art of making an accurate pool shot, a cue tip must be replaced with precision for the cue to perform at an optimum level.

Things You'll Need

  • Utility knife
  • Pool cue tip replacement kit
  • Sandpaper, 50-grit and 300-grit
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Instructions

    • 1

      Hold the knife at the line where the tip meets the ferrule. The ferrule is the white end on the stick--typically made of ivory, carbon fiber or plastic--and holds the tip in place on the stick. The ferrule bears the brunt of impact when striking a cue ball. Push down with the knife while simultaneously rolling the cue back and forth slightly until the knife slices through the remaining tip.

    • 2

      Sand the ferrule top down with the kit's sanding block to remove the remaining leather material that was previously glued on. Only a little bit will remain. Sand the ferrule top until you can see a white ferrule diameter and wood at the center. Ensure that you sand the top down completely flat or your tip will be crooked.

    • 3

      Sand the ferrule down briefly--for about 10 seconds--with coarse 50-grit sandpaper to roughen the top; some kits may not have sandpaper. The sanding process is essential for the glue to take hold later and for keeping your tip from breaking off during a game.

    • 4

      Roughen the new tip with 50-grit sandpaper. New tips typically have a lacquer coating on the bottom. Sand the tip bottom briefly to remove this coating.

    • 5

      Lightly coat the new tip bottom with super-glue or super-glue gel (whichever adhesive the kit supplies you with) and press the tip to the ferrule. Ensure that you center the tip onto the ferrule precisely.

    • 6

      Apply the tip-clamp as instructed in the kit. All tip-clamps are somewhat different, but typically you slide the clamp over the cue tip, until the rubber band comes in contact with the tip, pull taut, then lock the clamp down tight and let it set up for 24 hours. This is to hold the tip in place to allow the glue to bond completely.

    • 7

      Trim any excess material away from the tip, if present, using a utility knife.