HAND INLAID
Paul is especially proud of his completely hand-inlaid work: No machines is his motto; he is a dedicated perfectionist. When he says his cues are hand-inlaid, he means it! He has no pantograph or CNC mill, in fact, he has never seen one in use. He makes every inlay he uses from raw materials. Every inlay fits precisely into a hole cut in the cue using only an X-Acto knife and a hand-held Dremel tool. Each inlay goes into its own hole and is so precisely fitted that when testing to see if the inlay fits, he must lever out with a chisel. The rounded points that are seen in some other cues are absent in a Dayton Cue. In fact, his points are so sharp that he must guard against cutting himself.

ONE-OF-A-KIND CUES
You won't find fancy filigreed or curved inlays in a Dayton cue. Paul could do the inlaying, but no human craftsman can make numerous exact duplicates of the same filigreed inlay. This is where computers excel, they can do the same task the same way forever. Paul's vision and passion is to create one-of-a-kind custom pool cues and nothing else. He is in no hurry.

OLD WORLD CRAFTSMANSHIP 
After more than 40 years of working this way, Paul sees no need to change. After all, this is how the world's finest inlaid furniture was once made. Paul's concept of Old World Craftsmanship refers not only to the methods used but to complete attention to the smallest detail. This attention to detail is obvious to anyone who plays with one of his one-of-a-kind custom cues.
    It is not that Paul resists change, the glues and finishes he uses did not exist 10 years ago. Paul is constantly experimenting with new products. He simply refuses to compromise his Old World Craftsmanship for any process or material that doesn't improve his cues. Time-saving steps are only as good as the improvement they produce. Quality is never sacrificed. Through the years Paul has found that the best way to save time is to do it right the first time, or: Why is there always enough time to do it over, but never enough time to do it right?

A CURE FOR EVERY ILL
Paul's Old World Craftsmanship also extends to the materials he chooses for his custom cues. He will not use wood that hasn't been fully seasoned, which means the wood has cured for several years. Paul currently has more than a eight-year backlog of shafts and Birdseye maple as well as handles and exotic lumber. Some of his Birdseye and handle stock was cut during the 1920s and 1930s. Some of his shaft wood is from the 1960s. This wood was purchased in the 1970s for use in his repair of antiques. Paul sizes and turns the wood roughly every six months until it is ready to become a Dayton Cue. If after four turnings and stabilization a piece of wood still warps, it is discarded.

ONLY THE FINEST HAND-PICKED WOOD
Paul travels to Ontario or to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan every other year to personally select shaft wood from a major supplier. He typically sorts through 20 shaft blanks before he finds one that is acceptable. 
    This allows him to build an inventory of high-end custom cue shafts that will last for years. Each shaft typically has more than ten growth rings per inch and virtually no grain run out. To insure that his seasoned shafts stay true, Paul chemically stabilizes them using an industrial wood stabilizer. The chemical adds a few grams weight to the finished shaft but almost eliminates problems that occur with moisture transferring from the atmosphere to the shaft, which dramatically reduces warping of the wood. Allowing the shaft to perform the way it was intended.
    As for plastic, except threaded Delrin butt caps, Paul refuses to use anything but Phenolic resin and Thermoset plastics. These are used in joint rings, joints, butt caps, and Ivorene ferrules. Since this material glues perfectly, it can be used for structural applications.

ONLY THE FINEST MATERIALS
Paul buys his screws, bumpers, and tips because even though he could make them himself, he doesn't believe he could do a better job than a factory that specializes in the production of these items. The current selection of joint screws and connector pins available from Uni-Loc™ are accurate to within 3/10,000ths of an inch. This degree of accuracy allows custom cues to perform better than ever. 
    Additionally, it is now possible to obtain screws in aluminum, steel, brass, and titanium making it possible to control the weight and balance of the your custom cue.
    Paul typically uses steel screws because a two-piece cue needs about an ounce of weight added at the mid-point for the balance to feel right. He uses aluminum when the cue is already front heavy. No fiberglass screws are used in the joints of Dayton Cues. Paul feels that even though fiberglass seems very smooth, it still has a slightly rough surface and, since it is harder than the wood, it will eventually wear the threads in the shaft. 

CUSTOMER PREFERENCE AND SHAFT PERFORMANCE
The pins or screws Paul uses to join the shaft to the butt depends on a number of factors, including customer preference. The Uni-Loc™ radial pin offers a stiffer joint than a 5/16" screw. In addition to screw type or size, using aluminum, brass, or steel, can change a cues balance. The 3/8"-10 screw has been around a long time and provides a medium stiff hit, while the 5/16" screw, including the quick-release Uni-Loc™, produce a softer hitting cue.
    The real secret to a cue shaft's performance is in the taper. Paul uses a modified pro-taper that took years to develop. While not extremely stiff, his cues have a very solid hit with some feedback. This is partly because of the ferrule and tip, but primarily it is a product of the taper. A profile of his cue shafts would show that the diameter from the tip to the joint is a constantly changing curve.

MATERIAL ELEMENTS OF A CUSTOM CUE

FERRULES
Paul uses ivory as his standard ferrule material because it has the hit he wants, it glues great, it does not chalk up and polishes easily. He actually likes the hit of the Water Buffalo horn more than ivory, but after more than 40 years of playing with white ferrules, he cannot bring himself to change. His break and Jump/Break cues use phenolic, Aegis, or Micarta ferrules for the hard hit they provide. For a softer hit, Paul uses Ivorene III or Grise phenolic ferrules.

CUE TIPS
Since Paul began playing pool more than 40 years ago, he has been searching for a better cue tip. He has found and used some great tips over the years but the consistency was missing, among intangibles. The search is over. Paul has stopped looking for a better tip. All his custom playing cues now come with 'Talisman' laminated tips.
     Paul discovered Talisman tips last year and can find no flaws in any of the tips he's used. These tips are available in both Laminated Water Buffalo Hide and Laminated Pigskin. Texture options include soft, medium and hard. No matter which option you choose, these tips can put as much English on the ball as you need. The Pigskin also comes in extra hard. Talisman tips hold chalk, need little or no dressing and they don't mushroom.
     After playing more than 100 hours of three-cushion with a medium hard water buffalo tip, Paul has not had to scuff or trim the tip: The Talisman shows no sign of wear. Paul also plays pool with this same cue and has no trouble with full, table-length draw shots. The Talisman tip allows the player to stroke the shot more softly and still achieve the desired results. There may be a better tip out there, but until Paul finds it the Talisman does more than he ever hoped for. The search is over.

JOINT MATERIALS
Paul uses Water Buffalo horn or Cape Buffalo horn on his own cues. He likes the lively feel it imparts to the cue. His ivory joints are sleeved and bonded to an Ivorene III sleeve. This retains the hit of the ivory but greatly reduces the chance of the ivory cracking. Most of his flat-face cues use linen-based phenolic, which still produces a very solid hit. The rest of his cues use piloted steel joints polished to a mirror finish.

BUTT CAP MATERIALS
Paul prefers to use linen-based phenolic because it glues best. He will use Delrin, which he threads onto the butt, using epoxy and a screw to hold it in place. Though Paul will make a cue without a bumper, he feels that the bumper is an important part of the cue because it prevents damaging the cue. If a cue is struck sharply on a hard floor without a bumper, serious damage can occur to the butt piece and can break the butt cap. Furthermore the shock of the cue hitting the floor travels its length and can damage other parts of the cue.

JOINT PROTECTORS
A very careful person can go through life without needing a joint protector on his cue. However, the first time a shaft slips onto the floor, the customer will regret not having one. Paul frequently makes fancy joint protectors, which have the same matching wood and rings used in the cue's construction. In the case of a cue with ivory rings or stitching, the cue protectors use the same material.
    One exception to the optional use of joint protectors is the Uni-loc™ quick release pin. The tolerances of this pin and insert are so fine (.0003") that the protectors are a must. Even a tiny scratch on the pin will cause the joint to bind.

FINISH
Paul has refinished cues for more than 40 years and has used everything from tung oil to catalyzed urethane. He spent 20 years finishing antiques and has experimented with almost all finishes. He presently uses a catalyzed urethane that is sprayed over a sealed butt. He sprays many coats over a period of hours. His rule of thumb is to spray as many coats as it looks like the cue needs and then apply two more. The cue then rest for at least a week before the real work begins. Paul then wet sands the finish by hand with five progressively finer grits of sandpaper finishing with 2,000 grit. At this point, the final rubbing and polishing are done.

WRAP
Paul generally wraps his custom cues in Irish linen. An exception is his line of Jump/Break cues, which feature figured maple handles. Paul will also make handles from cored exotic woods such as tulip, Cocobolo and ebony. Another option is a leather wrap. His Irish linen, while very tightly pressed and smooth, has no finish or waxes applied to it, so it still absorbs moisture.

SANDPAPER
Occasionally some sanding is necessary to recondition a shaft. In fact, with many cues it is necessary to clean the shaft with a damp paper towel and sand it with 600 grit paper two or three times before the protruding fibers of wood are finally removed. However, after this Paul recommends no sanding at all. If a properly prepared shaft gets sticky, a damp paper towel or a damp towelette will clean it and leave it slick. At most, a rare touch-up of a clean shaft with 1200 or 1500 grit paper will produce a perfect feel and not harm the shaft or ferrule.