BECUE arrived - review

[Scott Lee]

If you wish to believe that there is a significant difference between 1/1000th and 2/1000ths, you certainly can. That does not make it true. FTR, I said it MIGHT make a difference. How much difference is the real key...not much imo. I think it's splitting hairs...like the difference between one grain of sand and two grains of sand. In a desert it doesn't make any difference at all.

Scott Lee
http://poolknowledge.com



Scott Lee

Well like i said - that was something I was told (by two very respected instructors ) In the end my experience tells me that it is easier to draw the cueball with soft tip, at least that was my experience many years ago when my stroke was not as it is today. And I know that the contact time between the tip and the cueball is very short, on the other hand as you wrote yourself the soft tip has twice the time to induce the spin on the cueball and that MAY be worth something.
Nowadays I can draw the cueball with broomstick if you put a tip on it but why not to go for those few more % of accuracy if they are there - less power need = more control over cueball - thats how i see it

 

[Cardigan Kid]

If you wish to believe that there is a significant difference between 1/1000th and 2/1000ths, you certainly can. That does not make it true. FTR, I said it MIGHT make a difference. How much difference is the real key...not much imo. I think it's splitting hairs...like the difference between one grain of sand and two grains of sand. In a desert it doesn't make any difference at all.

Scott Lee
http://poolknowledge.com



Scott Lee

Darren Appleton made his view on tips known recently.
He says unless you're blessed with a big stroke and a lot of cue power, everyone should be playing soft tips.
I took this as his proclamation that soft tips are more forgiving and create more spin for those with weaker strokes.

Thread with his Facebook post here:

https://forums.azbilliards.com/showthread.php?t=430589

 

[Scott Lee]

They don't...but feel free to believe what you like.

Scott Lee
http://poolknowledge.com

Darren Appleton made his view on tips known recently.
He says unless you're blessed with a big stroke and a lot of cue power, everyone should be playing soft tips.
I took this as his proclamation that soft tips are more forgiving and create more spin for those with weaker strokes.

Thread with his Facebook post here:

https://forums.azbilliards.com/showthread.php?t=430589

 

[Cardigan Kid]

Not a prototype, they recently started a normal production cycle. :wink: When I asked them BECUE guys told me they are getting ready their new website which should be up in next 2-3 weeks. As far as my BECUE goes I changed the tip to Kamui Original hard and the sound became nicely crisp which I really like. Because of the tournament I played this weekend I didnt have that much time to test BECUE but I took it with me to the tournament and let other players to test it for a while. Everybody loved how BECUE draws the cueball effortlessly, they all were "WFT?!?" on their first shot:grin:

Anyway I had some ideas about improving the shaft so I talked with BECUE guys about certain customizations to BECUE shaft which I would like (smaller diameter- 11,5mm, slightly longer different taper) and it seems that BECUE guys are willing to make me a custom shaft under one condition - if they like the shaft with my specs they will use these as a template to their new model of the shaft Who am I to argue.. :wink: So I decided to wait for the new shaft before I continue to shoot with BECUE, it wouldnt make sense to learn to shoot with a shaft I wont play in the end :wink:

As for the future - BECUE is developing a new break cue and they asked me if I wanted to be their first tester because of the detailed feedback I was able to provide them about BECUE :wink: I was pretty much excited about such opportunity so I agreed right away :wink: This is going to be one wild ride with BECUE and I am enjoying every second of it!!! STAY TUNED:thumbup:

Quick question...
The BeCue came with a medium tip installed.
How did that tip perform for you and I see you had it changed right away.
My go to tip has been Kamui Black Medium. I have one waiting on stand by in a plastic bag just in case the BeCue tip doesn't pan out.

Do you recommend making the switch right out of the gate?

 

[hang-the-9]

If anyone happens to get one if these around MA, please send me a PM if you are OK with my trying it. I'm usually very much against materials like this in cues (everyone I tried has felt like hitting with a metal rod) but from the review about the action and accuracy with it has me curious.

 

[marek]

Quick question...
The BeCue came with a medium tip installed.
How did that tip perform for you and I see you had it changed right away.
My go to tip has been Kamui Black Medium. I have one waiting on stand by in a plastic bag just in case the BeCue tip doesn't pan out.

Do you recommend making the switch right out of the gate?

Ultraskin Medium on BECUE performed nicely and if your tip of preference is Kamui Black Medium you will LOVE Ultraskin Medium. :thumbup: It is just my preference of crisp hit that made me change the tip to Kamui Original Hard

 

[marek]

They don't...but feel free to believe what you like.

Scott Lee
http://poolknowledge.com

If the player has more confidence with soft tips then they do at least because the player has more relaxed stroke And yes, we are splitting the hair here, the merit of all this tip talk is that BECUE really has amazing firepower in it no matter what tip you install on it and it is only about the player being able (or not being able) to use such power

 

[HawaiianEye]

marek...I know you're an expert player, however, the contact time MAY change from 1/1000th of a second to possibly 2/1000ths of a second, with a soft tip. The difference between one millisecond and two milliseconds is not enough to make any substancial difference in the outcome. The quality of the stroke is what creates the action on the CB.

Scott Lee
http://poolknowledge.com

It isn't only the "quality" of the stroke, it is the type of stroke.

I have played for more than half a century and I know what I can do with my stroke and what I can feel.

I just changed tips on my cue last week and the softer tip gives me WAY MORE feel for the cue ball. Maybe you can't feel the difference, but I can. The OUTCOME with my same natural stroke is night and day different between the two tips.

With a harder tip, I have to "let up" on my stroke because the cue ball rebounds off the tip faster. I'm not hitting the cue ball with any less "quality".

FWIW, the tip I got rid of on my shaft had only been on it for less than two months. It was a Kamui Black Medium and it was too hard for my preference. I changed it for a G2 Soft and it plays much more to my liking.

 

[maha]

if you draw a longer distance for the same stroke it will also mean you have less control over your draw as smaller differences in power make bigger distances. so that may be great for show but not for the dough.

also what might have carbon fiber rubbing your finger s for hours at a time mean for your future health.

 

[Cocoa]

if you draw a longer distance for the same stroke it will also mean you have less control over your draw as smaller differences in power make bigger distances. so that may be great for show but not for the dough.

also what might have carbon fiber rubbing your finger s for hours at a time mean for your future health.

look up carbon fiber implants, I would be more concerned with the coating than the carbon fiber

 

[haystj]

How much is this cue being sold for?

 

[fastone371]

It isn't only the "quality" of the stroke, it is the type of stroke.

I have played for more than half a century and I know what I can do with my stroke and what I can feel.

I just changed tips on my cue last week and the softer tip gives me WAY MORE feel for the cue ball. Maybe you can't feel the difference, but I can. The OUTCOME with my same natural stroke is night and day different between the two tips.

With a harder tip, I have to "let up" on my stroke because the cue ball rebounds off the tip faster. I'm not hitting the cue ball with any less "quality".

FWIW, the tip I got rid of on my shaft had only been on it for less than two months. It was a Kamui Black Medium and it was too hard for my preference. I changed it for a G2 Soft and it plays much more to my liking.

I can not argue with you because only you know what you like. But I feel I have gravitated to harder tips because they give me more feel than soft tips. Almost every time I hit a cue with a soft tip it feels the same to me, almost dead for lack of a better explanation, its almost like you can not feel the tip striking the cue ball on soft to medium shots. I use a Tiger Everest but when I have a new tip installed I have a few layers knocked right away then after about 3-4 months of play the tip seems to harden up after use, thats when they seem to hit real nice to me. My current tip is about 2 layers from the red warning stripe in the tip, its been there about 6 months now. I dont need to reshape or scuff the tip very often, it doesnt mushroom but I must make sure to keep chalk on it because the tip is glazed. But as long as there is chalk on it I do not have miscue problems. It would be nice to find a tip that played close to this when new. I have tried Kamui med and hard and they seem soft by comparison.
I would think on a CF shaft that tip feel would be exaggerated because of the extreme stiffness of the CF.

 

[9Ballr]

Hate to say it, I have to side with Justin over Mr Lee on this. As a new player I went from an Elkmaster to Triangle and could immediately get the draw that had always eluded me. Over time I've gradually come to prefer softer tips to where I now shoot with a Sniper and an Ultraskin Pro with no issues. But before I had much of a stroke the hard tip aided my draw considerably.

I LOVE hard tips. Can't stand that soft mushy stuff.

There's a reason so many snooker players, for example, use tip clamps when they install tips.

https://youtu.be/UW2J_0fFyqA?t=3m10s

Some use visegrip over night to compress their tips.

 

[TATE]

How much is this cue being sold for?

You can get a quote from them at info@becueofficial.com

FYI they are quoted in Euro's. Retail is 750 Euro's (about $800) but they will give a better deal on that based upon what discounts are available at the time of the quote. The weight kit is additional and retails for 120 euro but I expect it will also be offered at a fair discount based on inquiry.

I want to get one but would like to see a few more reviews. Definitely prefer the shaft look versus Revo.

 

[PoppaSaun]

marek...I know you're an expert player, however, the contact time MAY change from 1/1000th of a second to possibly 2/1000ths of a second, with a soft tip. The difference between one millisecond and two milliseconds is not enough to make any substancial difference in the outcome. The quality of the stroke is what creates the action on the CB.

Scott Lee
http://poolknowledge.com

Wait...a 100% increase is insignificant?

Who comes up with this stuff?

 

[9Ballr]

Wait...a 100% increase is insignificant?

Who comes up with this stuff?

Probably in relations to how short a time the tip stays on the cue anyway.


You can have a 100% increase and make 0.0001 cent into 0.0002 (fraction of a cent). Pretty insignificant.
But it would matter more if you made 1 thousand into 2 thousand.

 

[hang-the-9]

Wait...a 100% increase is insignificant?

Who comes up with this stuff?

Lies, damn lies and statistics LOL

Double of something sounds like a lot, till you realize that something is so small it really only matters to instruments that measure it.

 

[KMRUNOUT]

Interesting read. Lots of wanna be physics experts in here. Unfortunately it doesn't seem anyone knows what "significance" means with regard to measurements. A 100% increase is extremely significant. Whether the change is from 0.001 to 0.002, or 1 million to 2 million, the *significance* of the change is identical. If doubling the contact time makes no significant difference, then contact time is not a determining factor in "amount of action you can put on the ball".

My observations suggest that cueball action has more to do with the interplay between tip hardness and stroke speed. A fast stroke always produces more action than a slow stroke. However, it seems at very slow speeds a soft tip allows a bit more action, and at fast speeds a hard tip allows more action. Occasionally this may matter on the pool table. However I generally like the feel of the hit on a hard tip, but like the feeling of grab I get from a medium soft tip for slower shots.

Just thinking out loud here. I'm happy to be wrong.

KMRUNOUT


Sent from my iPhone using AzBilliards Forums

 

[9Ballr]

Interesting read. Lots of wanna be physics experts in here. Unfortunately it doesn't seem anyone knows what "significance" means with regard to measurements. A 100% increase is extremely significant. Whether the change is from 0.001 to 0.002, or 1 million to 2 million, the *significance* of the change is identical. If doubling the contact time makes no significant difference, then contact time is not a determining factor in "amount of action you can put on the ball".
My observations suggest that cueball action has more to do with the interplay between tip hardness and stroke speed. A fast stroke always produces more action than a slow stroke. However, it seems at very slow speeds a soft tip allows a bit more action, and at fast speeds a hard tip allows more action. Occasionally this may matter on the pool table. However I generally like the feel of the hit on a hard tip, but like the feeling of grab I get from a medium soft tip for slower shots.
Just thinking out loud here. I'm happy to be wrong.
KMRUNOUT

Here's the problem with EVERYTHING you just said, less the "I'm happy to be wrong" part.

No one knows exactly if the softer tip is in fact doubling the contact time or not.
That contact point time was just some unscientific number that was thrown out.
So if you are in fact one of those "physics experts out there" then you should
factor in the entire equation and not start in the middle.

This is what was said
"however, the contact time MAY change from 1/1000th of a second to possibly 2/1000ths of a second, with a soft tip"

They're not saying this as a matter of fact and as a part of a lab result but you're treating it as such.

 

[KMRUNOUT]

Here's the problem with EVERYTHING you just said, less the "I'm happy to be wrong" part.

No one knows exactly if the softer tip is in fact doubling the contact time or not.
That contact point time was just some unscientific number that was thrown out.
So if you are in fact one of those "physics experts out there" then you should
factor in the entire equation and not start in the middle.

This is what was said
"however, the contact time MAY change from 1/1000th of a second to possibly 2/1000ths of a second, with a soft tip"

They're not saying this as a matter of fact and as a part of a lab result but you're treating it as such.

Thanks bud!

Everything, huh? Sounds like hyperbole. So my observations are not my observations? Half of what I said was simply reporting my observations. Are you saying that is wrong, that those were not my observations?

Read more carefully. I am not claiming *any* time duration. I am not claiming anything about the physics at all, except for the *meaning of significance* when it comes to measurements. I'm not treating the numbers given as accurate or inaccurate. lab result or otherwise. That actually had NOTHING to do with what I said. I made a *conditional* statement. *IF* the difference is 100%, then that is a significant difference. If you know anything about this particular topic, you would know that even a small difference would be significant.

Sorry you misunderstood.

KMRUNOUT