The Road Bridge quick review

Rip

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Just received a new solution, The Road Bridge, for those just out of reach shots that we all face occassionally. You have a shot that will go in but you just can't reach it in order to make the ball while avoiding a foul. The picture below is a shot that comes up (especially in 1P). You simply want to cut the 15 into your hole (the upper left pocket) but you just can't seem to get the tip to the cue ball comfortably---so you're forced to look for a different shot.

If only I was 9 feet tall, I could get over those five balls and sink that pesky 15 into my hole! I'm far from 9 feet tall but I can now shoot over those five balls and sink that pesky 15 into my hole without fouling.

I purchased The Road Bridge from Chris Hightower (User name cueman here on AZB). This bridge extends down to approx 22" to carry easily and extends out as far as approx 67 3/4". It seems well made and well thought out. Sturdy yet lightweight. I've owned every adjustable bridge system on the market over the past 20 years and I like this one over all the others so far. I'll definitely get a lot of use out of this gadget since I'm a short guy and I can't control whitey worth a crap!
 

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KissedOut

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Just received a new solution, The Road Bridge, for those just out of reach shots that we all face occassionally. You have a shot that will go in but you just can't reach it in order to make the ball while avoiding a foul. The picture below is a shot that comes up (especially in 1P). You simply want to cut the 15 into your hole (the upper left pocket) but you just can't seem to get the tip to the cue ball comfortably---so you're forced to look for a different shot.

If only I was 9 feet tall, I could get over those five balls and sink that pesky 15 into my hole! I'm far from 9 feet tall but I can now shoot over those five balls and sink that pesky 15 into my hole without fouling.

I purchased The Road Bridge from Chris Hightower (User name cueman here on AZB). This bridge extends down to approx 22" to carry easily and extends out as far as approx 67 3/4". It seems well made and well thought out. Sturdy yet lightweight. I've owned every adjustable bridge system on the market over the past 20 years and I like this one over all the others so far. I'll definitely get a lot of use out of this gadget since I'm a short guy and I can't control whitey worth a crap!

Hmmm. I went to the site to see what it looks like and I couldn't find it listed.
 

cueman

AzB Gold Member
Gold Member
Silver Member
Hmmm. I went to the site to see what it looks like and I couldn't find it listed.

I just introduced it at the Super Billiards Expo and sold out on what I carried with me. I now only have a few left. I have not had time to take pictures and build a web page for it on my site. I do intend to do it soon. I must give a word of thanks to the Drill Sergent who demonstrated it in his Expo teaching sessions and that no doubt helped me sell out of them.
 

GoldCrown

AzB Gold Member
Gold Member
Silver Member
I just introduced it at the Super Billiards Expo and sold out on what I carried with me. I now only have a few left. I have not had time to take pictures and build a web page for it on my site. I do intend to do it soon. I must give a word of thanks to the Drill Sergent who demonstrated it in his Expo teaching sessions and that no doubt helped me sell out of them.

I saw it at SBE. Might give one some thought. I bought lathe pins and a lathe tip trim guide from you. Hope you had a great sales response at Expo. Your stuff is 1st class quality.

Rip..... Thanks for the review
 
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bbb

AzB Gold Member
Gold Member
Silver Member
I agree. It's the best bridge I've seen so far also.
Did you buy one? If so how much and where?
the road bridge seems to to have a regular looking bridge that will swivel and the telescope feature..seems well constructed....
i dont see the need for a telescoped length for a bridge icbw
i have never had a problem using a house cue to use the just a bridge
the justa bridge will fit around a ball and it may be taller (4.5 inches)
also you have more flexibility with regards to where on the cue ball you can hit due to its adjustable height
lastly the material in the grooves prevents any change in the feel of your shaft as happens sometimes with plastic bridges
to answer your question
yes i have one i carry in my case
and its $55 LESS than the road bridge
here is one site that sells them
https://manningcues.com/store/Justa-Bridge.html
 

cueman

AzB Gold Member
Gold Member
Silver Member
the road bridge seems to to have a regular looking bridge that will swivel and the telescope feature..seems well constructed....
i dont see the need for a telescoped length for a bridge icbw
i have never had a problem using a house cue to use the just a bridge
the justa bridge will fit around a ball and it may be taller (4.5 inches)
also you have more flexibility with regards to where on the cue ball you can hit due to its adjustable height
lastly the material in the grooves prevents any change in the feel of your shaft as happens sometimes with plastic bridges
to answer your question
yes i have one i carry in my case
and its $55 LESS than the road bridge
here is one site that sells them
https://manningcues.com/store/Justa-Bridge.html
The Road Bridge Head is over 5 inches tall.
Shooting shots that are close up are a pain with full length bridge.
You may not see the need for a telescoping bridge but many do.
I sold out of them at the Expo so once people saw what they could do they bought them.
I am now carrying a Highway Model with me everywhere since it fits in my case pouch.
What you are offering is just a bridge head and I also offer the bridge head called the Hitch Hiker
Unlike mass produced bridge heads that are injection molded and have the little sharp edge in the center we CNC machine ours
one at a time and cut the radius in one pass so there is no sharp edge in the middle and eliminates the need for added felt,
like the older stretch system needed.
 
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bbb

AzB Gold Member
Gold Member
Silver Member
The Road Bridge Head is over 5 inches tall.
Shooting shots that are close up are a pain with full length bridge.
You may not see the need for a telescoping bridge but many do.
I sold out of them at the Expo so once people saw what they could do they bought them.
I am now carrying a Highway Model with me everywhere since it fits in my case pouch.
What you are offering is just a bridge head and I also offer the bridge head called the Hitch Hiker
Unlike mass produced bridge heads that are injection molded and have the little sharp edge in the center we CNC machine ours
one at a time and cut the radius in one pass so there is no sharp edge in the middle and eliminates the need for added felt,
like the older stretch system needed.

thanks for the response
how much over 5 inches is it?
could you give a pic or a description of what you mean by a "short shot" where a telescoped bridge is beneficial?
what is the "highway modeL"??
good to know your bridge has no need for felt.....:thumbup:
i am all about having the best product for the job
if yours is better i would buy it and the price would be worth it....:)
 

cueman

AzB Gold Member
Gold Member
Silver Member
thanks for the response
how much over 5 inches is it?
could you give a pic or a description of what you mean by a "short shot" where a telescoped bridge is beneficial?
what is the "highway modeL"??
good to know your bridge has no need for felt.....:thumbup:
i am all about having the best product for the job
if yours is better i would buy it and the price would be worth it....:)
Someone brought your bridge head to my booth at the expo and showed me a couple of things up near the rail it could do that mine could not. I showed them a couple of things that mine could do that theirs could not. And no I do not intend on saying what those things were as I have no reason to to put down or review another product in a thread about The Road Bridge. The bridge head is 5 and a 1/4.
 

bbb

AzB Gold Member
Gold Member
Silver Member
Someone brought your bridge head to my booth at the expo and showed me a couple of things up near the rail it could do that mine could not. I showed them a couple of things that mine could do that theirs could not. And no I do not intend on saying what those things were as I have no reason to to put down or review another product in a thread about The Road Bridge. The bridge head is 5 and a 1/4.

thanks for the repy
 

cueman

AzB Gold Member
Gold Member
Silver Member
I see I missed a question.
The Highway model is the 4 foot version that will fit into many large pouches on cue cases. The Interstate model is made to attach to the outside of your case.
The Hitchhiker is a bridge head with rubber grommet to slip over your break cue ferrule.

https://www.cuesmith.com/road-bridges.html
 

RakRunr

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
The pool hall I play at has a bunch of Russos for the house bridges. They are decent, but I'm a bit of a gearhead and so a couple of years ago I decided I should have my own bridge. Since then I have tried a number of them out:

1) I started with a moose head. Cheap but functional. A good buy for only $3.

[EDIT] - not sure what happened to this section, so trying to recreate it...
2) One issue i had with the Moose was jumping, so when I saw the Jump Caddy online I bought one (~$15). This is a great bridge head, and I was impressed by the quality. The best part about it is that you can see under the jump ring and get a great line of sight on the cue ball. My only complaint about it was I had a hard time getting the right connection to a bridge cue. A little scotch tape fixed that right up...

3) As I kept exploring the bridge options, I got a Justa-bridge, largely based on the recommendations on the Forums. The design of the mechanism is intriguing: this is a great idea with the absolute best in flexibility. Unfortunately, I found that the cue did not slide comfortably through the felt on the head. Often, the cue got "stuck" and would not move smoothly, producing a jumpy and erratic stroke that cost me several games, so I ended up going back to the Jump Caddy.

4) I was at the Billiards Expo in PA earlier this year, and I saw the Drill Sergeant demo the Road Bridge. I immediately went in search of @cueman's booth and bought one. I've been using it ever since and couldn't be happier. I even sold the Jump Caddy since I wasn't using it anymore. This bridge is SUPER versatile. The head spins, the neck angles, and being able to adjust the length of the bridge is fantastic. Putting all these together means I can always get the bridge in a workable position. The only thing I would warn about is that the head (attached with an allen screw) has a tendency to come loose and spin too freely, so I keep an allen wrench in my bag and tighten it once it starts getting loose.

So, my recommendation is thus: if you want an inexpensive solution, the Jump Caddy is a good piece of equipment. If you want the best option, the Road Bridge is a (functional) work of art.
 
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Saturated Fats

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
How do you see the cue ball?

The photo showing the bridge reaching over five balls looks like the reaching part is fine, but I don't understand how the shooter sees the cue ball unless he's about seven feet tall.

It would appear that the black bridge head would block the view. Isn't that a problem? Wouldn't a clear plastic head be better?
 

cueman

AzB Gold Member
Gold Member
Silver Member
The photo showing the bridge reaching over five balls looks like the reaching part is fine, but I don't understand how the shooter sees the cue ball unless he's about seven feet tall.

It would appear that the black bridge head would block the view. Isn't that a problem? Wouldn't a clear plastic head be better?

Actually shooting over single or over multiple ball shots are easy for an average height person to see over the top of the cue and aim. The harder one is the middle of the table jump shots. A clear head might come in handy for that shot.
 
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