GB2156691A - Sharpener for billiard cues - Google Patents

Abstract

The sharpener comprises a plate 2 from which a frusto-conical recessed member 4 extends. A plurality of blades 6 or strips of abrasive material are received in slots 5 in the walls of the recessed member 4 for the purpose of cutting off frayed parts of the felt tip 11. A housing 3 may be fitted to the plate 2 to retain frayed parts of the felt tip 11 which are cut off by the blades 6. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Sharpener for Billiard and like Cues This invention relates to sharpeners for billiard and like cues.

In use, the felt tips provided on the ends of billiard and like cues have a tendency to fray and so render the cue unsuitable for use. This is particularly significant in competition and professional games of billiards or snooker since the accuracy with which the cue can be used to hit the relevant ball is of the utmost importance.

Where the felt tip of a cue frays around the edges, it is necessary to remove the frayed parts and, when competition and professional use is being considered, the end of the cue is suitably filed or sanded down so as to remove the frayed portions. However, this is not entirely successful, since the resulting effect can be to leave the cue slightly uneven at the end, so upsetting the precise handling which is necessary.

The present invention seeks to provide a sharpener for a billiard or like cue by means of which the frayed parts of the felt tip at the end of the cue can be satisfactorily removed.

According to the invention, there is provided a sharpener for a billiard or like cue comprising a mounting element, an aperture arrangement in the mounting element adapted to receive the end of a cue and means within the said aperture for applying a scraping or cutting action to the end of the cue and thus to frayed parts of a felt tip at said end of the cue.

Preferably the aperture arrangement comprises a recessed member extending into or from the mounting element and containing a number of blades or abrasive elements arranged to act on the end of a cue placed therein.

The recessed member may suitably be of frusto-conical shape so as to provide a tapering effect on the felt tip of the cue and also to allow different sizes of cue to be trimmed with the same sharpener.

Preferably the elements providing the cutting or abrading action lie parallel to the walls of the recessed member and are caused to engage and act on the cue placed therein by a rotary action of the mounting element. To this end, the mounting element is desirably provided with means enabling it to be gripped by hand.

Where cutting blades are used, these may be mounted in adjacent slots in the recess of the recessed member so that they act in use like the blade of a pencil sharpener. In this case, a housing may surround the recessed member to catch and retain the felt trimmed from the end of a cue.

The invention will now be further described, by way of example, with reference to the drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a perspective view of one embodiment of a billiard cue sharpener in accordance with the invention; and Figure 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of the sharpener shown in Fig. 1 and additionally showing a cue ready for insertion in the sharpener.

Referring to the drawings, a billiard cue sharpener 1 comprises a generally two part construction including a mounting plate 2 and a housing 3 mounted thereon, the housing engaging an upstanding rib 7 projecting from the mounting plate 2. The mounting plate and the housing may be made from a suitable plastics material.

The mounting plate 2 is provided with a recessed element 4 which extends into the housing 3 and is preferably moulded in one piece with the mounting plate 2. The recessed element 4 has a frusto-conical shape and mounted in the walls adjacent to suitably formed slots 5 are a plurality of stainless steel blades 6, suitably secured, for example, by respective screws or bolts (not shown). In the embodiment shown in the drawings, three blades 6 are provided but a larger or smaller number of blades could be used if desired.

With the blades 6 arranged in the recessed element in the mounting plate 2, the housing 3 is set on the mounting plate by pressing it onto the rib 7. The sharpener 1 can then be gripped by the housing 3 and placed over the end of the billiard or like cue 10 so that the felt tip 11 of the cue, which is assumed to be frayed, engages the edges of the blades 6.

The sharpener 1 is then rotated, appropriately in a clockwise direction, when the sharpener will have an operation similar to that of a pencil sharpener and will cause the frayed parts of the felt tip to be cut off. The bits cut off will pass through the slot 5 adjacent the blades 6 and into the housing 3. The provision of the housing 3 has the advantage that it retains the material of the felt tip which is being removed and prevents said material from dropping on the floor or onto a billiard, snooker or like table.

The frusto-conical shape of the recessed element and the inclined angle of the blades 6 enables the sharpener to be used on cues of different sizes.

Once the sharpening operation is finished, the cue is withdrawn from the sharpener.

It will be appreciated that various modifications may be made to the above described embodiment without departing from the scope of the invention.

For example, the blades 6 could be replaced by a strip or strips of abrasive material, such as a suitable gauge sandpaper. The blades, if provided, may be arranged to be double edged so that rotation of the sharpener in either direction is possible.

If desired, the housing member could have a built-in holder for chalk so that the sharpener could take the form of a combined sharpener and cue chalk. Means are preferably provided for enabling withdrawal and replacement of the blades or abrasive materal.

While the sharpener has been shown to be round, i.e. in the form of a right circular tube, it may of course have any suitable shape, particularly those which will enable it to be more easily gripped. Furthermore, the arrangement for fastening the housing to the mounting plate may be such as to prevent the mounting plate and the housing from relative rotation so that any rotation of the housing would be transmitted via the mounting plate to the blades or abrasive members.

Claims (11)

1. A sharpener for a billiard or like cue comprising a mounting element, an aperture arrangement in the mounting element adapted to receive the end of a cue and means within the said aperture for applying a scraping or cutting action to the end of the cue and thus to frayed parts of a felt tip at said end of the cue.

2. A sharpener according to claim 1, wherein the aperture arrangement comprises a recessed member extending into or from the mounting element and containing a number of blades or abrasive elements arranged to act on the end of a cue placed therein.

3. A sharpener according to claim 2, wherein the recessed member is of frustoconical shape.

4. A sharpener according to claim 2 or claim 3, wherein the blades or abrasive elements are arranged to lie parallel to the walls of the recessed member and are caused to engage and act on the end of a cue placed therein by a rotary action of the mounting element.

5. A sharpener according to claim 4, wherein the mounting element is provided with means enabling it to be gripped by hand.

6. A sharpener according to any one of claims 2 to 5, wherein the recessed member is provided with a plurality of cutting blades which are mounted in respective slots in the recess of said recessed member.

7. A sharpener according to claim 6, wherein the recessed member is surrounded by a housing adapted to catch and retain parts of a felt tip at the end of a cue which are cut off by the blades.

8. A sharpener according to any one of claims 2 to 5, wherein the recessed member is provided with abrasive elements in the form of strips of abrasive material.

9. A sharpener according to claim 8, wherein the recessed member is surrounded by a housing.

10. A sharpener according to claim 7 or claim 9, wherein the housing includes means for holding a cue chalk thereon.

11. A sharpener for a billiard or like cue substantially as described herein with reference to the drawings.