Hello all,
Not to long ago there was a post on here about what the greats used and it is a great thread. What I'm wondering is, what were the specs of the great's cues? Length, weight, tip size, shaft taper, etc. I asked the maker I use for most of my stuff and he told me Mosconi's shafts had a 14" taper on them. I have searched all over and not really found much info, obviously the specs would change over time but I can't find any.
So, does anyone have the specs on the cues some of the greats have used?
God, what a question. I can only go by observation, when I was there. I'll give a few, but it's by no means a complete list.
Willie Mosconi - Not sure about weight and length, but the shafts were somewhere around 12 3/4 mm, and looooooong taper. More like about 18 inches. Willie was short, and knew he had to do a lot of long bridges. I've never seen as long a taper as the shafts on Mosocni's Bushka. Not sure about his Rambow, didn't see it in person. He did say he liked a cue about 19 1/2 ounces.
Joe Balsis - Pretty stiff looking cue, at least in 1982, Legends tournament in Atlantic City, same as Willie above. I'm going to say pretty standard length, and 12 3/4 to 13 mm, very stiff looking. Couldn't tell what that cue was either. It wasn't the Palmer, Paradise, or Tad that he had earlier used.
Babe Cranfield - I handled and hit balls with both his Rambow and Balabushka. About average weight, 19 1/2 ounces, the Rambow was 57", and the Bushka was 57 1/2". Like Mosconi, he like a very long taper on the shafts, as he once said he didn't like the torque that came into play with a long stroke. I'd say about 12 1/2 mm. Over time though, he whittled his ferrules to points.
U.J. Pucket - Same tournament as Mosconi and Balsis. May have been a Tad cue, plain birdseye, looked a bit longer than usual. Very big shaft, I'm going to say at least 13 mm. Looked like a log, even in his big hands.
Minnesota Fats - Same tournament, Atlantic City. His Rambow looked to have about a 13 mm shaft, pretty long taper. I'm going to guess 57", but who knows.
Mike Sigel - I actually bent over the table with him, measuring both our cues, as he was house pro at Champion Billiards in Frederick, MD. He was fascinated with the shaft on my cue, and we measured his at exactly 12.4 mm, pretty long taper. His own make of cue. About average weight, 19 1/2 ounces. He recounted how his earlier Joss cues were just a bit thicker shafts, and slightly heavier.
Ray Martin - I can only recount from his book, 99 critical shots in pool, where he advocated a 13 mm tip, and 57 inch cue. But I recall some of his cues selling on Ebay with 12 1/2 mm shafts. The included cues made by both Balalbushka and Szamboti.
Actually, you've asked an impossible question, because not that much info is really available on the cue specs of the pros, and even they change up quite a bit. But, the above is pretty accurate, based on observation up close. It will be pretty interesting to see of others recall anything specific.
All the best,
WW
