Here is a little blog I wrote a few years ago. I hope it helps...
There has been much discussion about shaft tapers. We thought that we would give you and idea of our thinking on the subject and why you should consider having the shaft of the cue that you purchase from Mueller’s tapered to more suit the particulars of your game.
There are three different taper styles. The first is the conical taper. The second is the parabolic taper, and the last is a compound taper. Each has their specific playing characteristic which allows the customizing of your cue to best fit your game.
There are differing views of conical, compound, and parabolic tapers.
That being the case we need to take some time and give our view of these
and define what we mean by them.
The conical taper, also called the “euro taper” or “straight taper,” is continuous. There is an equal increase in diameter starting from the ferrule to the joint of the cue. It is very stiff and has little to no flex which transfers maximum power. Its main use is for games played on larger tables or games of banking, such as snooker, carom, etc…
The parabolic taper has a sweeping concave radius from the joint to the ferrule. This taper is not as stiff as the conical taper and is seen mostly on
after market shafts.
The compound taper as the name suggests is a shaft with two different tapers, one that is smaller and one that is larger. The small or minor taper begins at the tip and moves toward the center of the shaft and the large or major taper starts at the joint and also moves toward the center of the shaft. Where the two tapers meet is called the flex point. This taper is commonly called the “pro taper” which can be a confusing and often misused term. The reason being is that there is no standard for the “pro taper”. One cue maker can incorporate a taper that is 12” long into a shaft and another that is 14” and both could legitimately call them pro tapers. Our purpose here is to give you an idea of how the compound taper is made and to show why it is the best option for the player to best control the way his or her cue plays.
-Let’s assume we have two shafts identical in every way except the flex point. One shaft has a flex point at 8” inches from the tip and the other has a flex point at 14” from the tip. The first shaft is defined as an “8 inch taper,” the other as a “14 inch taper.” The 14” taper will have more flex, giving it more action, feel and finesse, than the 8” taper. It will be easier to execute topspin (follow), backspin (draw) and sidespin (english) with the 14” taper than the 8” taper, given the same shot. There is a trade off. The 8” taper will have more power, speed, and accuracy. These characteristics are increased or decreased depending on where the flex point is on the shaft.
The compound taper, also called “pro taper,” is one of the most misused and misunderstood terms that we come across. The compound taper has two distinct and different tapers.
The first is the minor taper that starts at the tip of the shaft and ends at the beginning of the major taper. (Defined below) The minor taper may or may not increase slightly over the designated length on the shaft which gives the shaft taper its definition.
The major taper starts where the minor ends and goes to the shaft joint. The major taper increases more aggressively, called pitch, than the minor taper. The spot where the two tapers meet is called the “flex point.” The flex point determines how much action the shaft has when executing any given shot.
-Let’s assume we have two shafts identical in every way except the flex point. One shaft has a flex point at 8” inches from the tip and the other has a flex point at 14” from the tip. The first shaft is defined as an “8 inch taper,” the other as a “14 inch taper.” The 14” taper will have more flex, giving it more action, feel and finesse, than the 8” taper. It will be easier to execute topspin (follow), backspin (draw) and sidespin (english) with the 14” taper than the 8” taper, given the same shot. There is a trade off. The 8” taper will have more power, speed, and accuracy. These characteristics are increased or decreased depending on where the flex point is on the shaft.
