How to Replace a Pool Cue Tip: A Step-by-Step Guide from a Pro

Listen, if you’re still taking your cue to the local shop and paying thirty bucks every time you need a new tip, we need to have a chat. Learning to re-tip your own stick is a rite of passage. It’s about respect for your gear.

There’s something grounding about sitting at the kitchen table, the smell of fresh leather and a bit of sandpaper grit under your nails, knowing you’re setting up your cue exactly how you like it. I’ve done this a thousand times at the Papatoetoe RSA or in the back of tournament halls under the pump. It’s not magic—it’s just physics and patience.

Here’s how you do it like a pro.

The Gear List

Don’t go using that crusty old wood glue in the shed. You need the right tools if you want the tip to stay on when you’re digging into a deep screw shot.

Step 1: Out with the Old

First things first, that old mushroomed tip has to go. Take a sharp Stanley knife or a razor blade. Hold the cue flat on a table and slice the old tip off as close to the ferrule (the white bit) as you can.

Rob’s Hack: Don't hack at it. Slow and steady. If you gouge the ferrule, you’re in for a world of hurt later. Once the bulk is off, use the blade to gently scrape away the leftover crusty glue until you see the clean, flat surface of the ferrule.

Step 2: The Face-Off

For a tip to stay on, it needs a perfectly flat surface. If the ferrule is slanted, your tip will fly off mid-frame, and you'll look like a right amateur.

Take some 400-grit sandpaper and lay it flat on the table.

Hold your cue vertically and "draw" small circles on the sandpaper.

Check it constantly. You want it level.

Important: Do the same to the bottom of your new tip (unless you're using a Kamui Clear, which is already flat). You want to roughen the leather slightly so the glue has something to bite into.

Step 3: The Stick

Now for the nerve-wracking part. Apply a tiny drop of the Gorilla Super Glue Gel to the center of the ferrule. You don't need much—if it squeezes out the sides, you’ve used too much.

Center the tip by eye. Once it touches, you’ve got about three seconds to wiggle it into the dead center before it sets. Press it down hard against the table for about 60 seconds.

Dad Wisdom: Don't use your fingers to hold it. Use a tip clamp or just press the cue tip-down into the carpet. Your fingers aren't as steady as the floor.

Step 4: The Trim

Your new tip is likely wider than your cue (usually a 14mm tip on a 12.5mm or 13mm shaft). You need to trim that overhang.

Turn the cue upside down so the tip is on the table. Use your blade to slice downwards, using the ferrule as a guide. Rotate the cue slowly. Think of it like peeling an apple. Take off small slivers at a time.

Step 5: Shaping the Dome

A flat tip is useless—you won't get any "side" on the ball. You want a curve like a U.S. Nickel (or a NZ 20c piece).

This is where the Willard Shaper comes in. Place it over the tip and rotate the cue. It’ll shave the leather down into a perfect dome. Once you’ve got the shape, take some fine sandpaper (800+ grit) and lightly sand the sides of the tip to make them flush with the ferrule.

Step 6: The Burnish

This is what separates the men from the boys. If the sides of your tip look "fuzzy," they’ll mushroom out in a week.

Get a tiny drop of water on your finger and dampen the side of the leather. Then, take a piece of old leather or even a heavy piece of cardboard and rub the side of the tip fast and hard. The friction creates heat, which seals the leather and gives it that professional, shiny black look.

The Verdict: DIY vs Pro

Look, if you’ve got a $2,000 custom cue with a carbon fiber shaft, maybe take it to a pro for the first time. But for your everyday player? Doing it yourself builds a bond with your cue. You start to learn exactly how much "meat" you like on your tip and how a fresh burnish sounds when it strikes the white.

Cheers for reading. Now get that tip on and go clear a table.

How long has it been since you actually changed your tip—is it getting a bit thin on top like mine?