Ive been playing pool for a number of years now and found myself looking back to my younger years. Im not really old im 24 but been playing for about 10 yrs. Anyway i was remembering when i first started out i liked the 12mm tips very small, because i thought it would help me play better. Thenn i tried the slighty larger ld shafts from ob cues, and yet still no satisfaction. Ive been playing around with alot of diff sizes and havent found what suits me. My vision is also very very poor, so another reason why tiny shafts dont suit me. So ive been playing pool with a friend of mine for about 3 months now, and he shoots with a 14mm shaft. i said no way too big no english right? nope, i get just as much english. Ive found that for me 14mm is the way to go. The only reason people need ld shafts is because the shaft is so tiny. with the 14mm shaft, my cue ball doesnt squirt or deflect nearly as much as the ld shafts. The only real down side ive seen from using it is it takes a more pure stroke to get the right reaction from the cue ball, but hey is that really a bad thing. Like i said my vision is poor, and after switching to 14mm, ive come up about 4 balls. Please feel free or encouraged to tell me what size you prefer and why.