Cue length for my girlfriend.
- Thread starter Klopek
- Start date
i would just go with a 58" cue for stretch shots with a forward balance point. see where your grip hand is and see where the balance point is for a cue you like. then let her do the same, measure the grip hand, add the difference for you, and get a cue with that balance point.
Klopek,
The bridge length and grip point on the back of the cue are relevant to one another. A person should be gripping the cue at a point where the forearm of the grip hand will be perpendicular to the floor when the tip contacts the cue ball. This allows for cue ball contact at the very bottom of the pendulum swing, which is when the cue is at its most level point. Perhaps your girlfriend is gripping too far forward? If so, that would definitely put more weight behind the grip hand.
Most cues that are built to standard dimensions have similar balance points. Adjusting the balance point forward is rather difficult. You would need to remove the existing weight screw, drill and tap the hole deeper, and then reinsert the screw. Maybe an easier solution would be to get a cue with a joint that is all metal, such as a Schon or Joss, which would automatically provide a forward balanced cue. :smile:
Roger
A easy and cheap way would be and use a slip on rubber grip, 3 cushion player use them a lot. Using that you will be able and try out different cues, different bp´s etc. When you find something she likes you can order a cue from a cuemaker that has the specs you want.
regards
Chrippa
I'm teaching my girlfriend to play and she's picking it up very fast, (she's Filipina).
I've heard it stated that you should use a cue length/weight determined by your height and armspan. My girl is 5' 4" and it appears that a 58" cue is much too long for her.
My question is, should I have her stick with a traditional 58" cue, (which will come in handy on stretch shots), or get her a 54" or 55" cue with appropriate balance/weight adjustments.
Should be mentioned that my girl uses a fairly long bridge but still has a lot of cue behind her.
Any advice would be appreciated.
Nick
58" should be fine. if anything 57 maybe but i wouldn't suggest going with a 54" cue unless you had it customized with an extension. like a mezz extension or one like kevin deroo uses
Why does everyone think she would need a cue that's more forward balanced?
Ive heard this measurment method from a cuemaker. Place CB and OB on opposits spots get down and set up for a stroke - look how many inch you have left on the butt, 3 inch is good according to the cuemaker. I understand you about the forward weight.
Regards
Chrippa
Regards
Chrippa
Your grip sounds good and hers way off. I should order a new cue for her, some of her countrymen actually does good shooting cues and they can be under a 100. Or try LP - Lee he seems to do a nice cue for a very nice price.
regards
Chrippa
is there a weight bolt in the cue she's using? taking it out should adjust the cue enough.
What is the weight of her playing cue?
No, that's not too heavy at all. It's just right. A player's height really has nothing to do with it. If you was to survey enough good players, you would find that 19oz. is the average weight preferred. Of the ones I surveyed, they all shot with cues that ranged from 18.75 to 19.25 ounces.
That got me to thinking; if the weight selection for production cues ranges from 18 to 21 ounces, and you find many novice and intermediate players who prefer weights at both ends of that range, why is it that advanced and expert players prefer something around 19 ounces?
The answer seems to be in the fact that advanced and expert players all employ good stroke fundamentals, and almost all of them have one mechanical aspect that is the same: they cradle the cue. What does this have to do with the weight? Well, when players cradle the cue in their grip hand, and then use a pendulum swing, all they are doing is allowing the weight of the cue to do the work for them. And it seems that a 19-oz. cue, in use with a standard 6-oz. cue ball, and playing on today's fast cloth, is the best combination for letting the weight of the cue do the work, using a normal stroke.
Now if you put light cues in expert's hands and ask them to play with them, you will probably catch them gripping tighter on the cue. That's because they are trying to put more "weight" on the cue through a tighter grip. But if you ask experts to play with heavy cues, they will probably still cradle it, but they will most likely slow their stroke down, or shorten it up, in an effort to take some "weight" off of it.
By now, I hope you're getting some ideas. It sounds to me like the cue your girlfriend is using just isn't right for her. The weight is good, but she probably needs one that is balanced more forward in order to stay with that good 8" bridge length. So if it means getting a shorter cue in order to find one that feels right to her, then I say go for it. There's no rule that says cues have to be 58" long. There's just the rule that says they can be no shorter than 40".
Roger
I am getting the impression that she uses an open-hand bridge.
I don't think the length of the cue is the problem.
I think the balance point needs to be adjusted.
Well given that she's just learning the game your impression is correct.
A closed bridge will come when she gets a little more comfortable with the game.
I now have her shooting with a longer bridge and gripping the cue further back in relation. Even though she's using a longer bridge, she still uses a short back swing. She's started to get closer to the pocket when she misses and seems to really see her aiming line now. Her game is taking shape very quickly since she's been watching my many instructional videos and watching pool matches I have on DVD.
Her cue is balanced at 20" from the bumper so that's already forward balanced. She says it feels much better with the longer bridge, so we'll see how it goes.
QUOTE]
My impression wasn't due to her being a beginner. It's from my experience using an open-hand bridge. I shoot primarily right handed with a closed bridge, but when I shoot left handed, I use an open bridge. When the weight is farther back, the tip tends to lift off the bridge hand...so, a more forward weighted cue will keep the tip resting on the bridge hand better.
I know players that use an open hand bridge with their bridge hand near the joint of the cue....super long bridge, but they play pretty darn good.
With a long bridge, the backswing tends to be short. That's the nature of the stroke, and it's a good thing because if your back hand movement has flaws it is intensified at the tip of the cue.
The longer bridge does give better sighting/aim, but that back hand swing is very critical to successful execution.