Jump RODS

I have a related question. It may be an easy one, but I've never been into jump cues at all.

Last year, I was watching Jason Shaw practice jumping balls. He was using a cue that looked to be around the normal 58". It was some sort of gray man-made material. He was jumping a full ball 4-5 inches away from the cueball with amazing accuracy. I've never seen jumping that good and that accurate.

Was that cue some kind of prototype jump cue from whoever his sponsor is, or do they now have full length jump cues?
 
heater451 said:
Something that pops into my head every so often, is how jump cues are allowed now, but aluminum jump "rods" were banned in the past. I suppose it is simply that jumping itself became more prevalent, but is that the case, or were rods really that much easier to use?

I also recall seeing a picture on the internet of one, but maybe as long as over two decades. Does anyone happen to have a picture of one, or actually own one currently?

Note: I tried searching here, but nothing returned for "rod", and including "jump" has enough threads to outweigh several years worth of the Encyclopædia Britannica. I think the last time I saw something about them, it was on one of the iterations of the Pool Digest forum (RIP).
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Not aluminum, but I have this
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The 40 i
Island Drive said:

17. CUE STICKS​

Cue Sticks used at WPA competitions should comply with the following
during play at table:

Length of Cue: 40 inches [1.016 m] minimum / No Maximum
Weight of Cue: No minimum / 25 oz. [708.75 gm] maximum
Width of Tip: No minimum / 14mm maximum
The cue tip may not be of a material that can scratch or damage the addressed ball. The cue tip on any stick must be composed of a piece of specially processed leather or other fibrous or pliable material that extends the natural line of the shaft end of the cue and contacts the cue ball when the shot is executed..
The ferrule of the cue stick, if of a metal material, may not be more than 1 inch [2.54 cm] in length.
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The 40 inch rule and the 14 mm rule killed the jump rods. Most were made of a simple shaft dowel turned down to about 3/4" for the front 20 something inches. With a big phenolic plug style tip on the end.
 
sounds like the old Robin Dodson Frog jump stick. short, thick, large plastic tip about the size of a quarter. Imagine a one piece cue, cut off at 40 inches from the butt and then a large tip attached.
 
trob said:
I know what your talking about and they got banned because the tip was huge lol it wasn’t a cue at All. They then set standards of what a jump cue could be. I remember them well. You’re not crazy. It was a short lived thing though.
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I actually use to sell them . The original maker was out of Pennsylvania but I can’t find them any more
 
ShootingArts said:
I haven't seen a jump rod in decades. The few around here were just a 14-18 inch bar of aluminum or stainless with a cue tip on one end. Nothing else. They jumped great but could cause confrontations. Anyone playing me always asked permission before using one. I didn't care, like the early days of jump cues they benefitted me more than they benefitted the person using them.

Hu
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If you ran into problems, they left a distinct impression on the 'problem.'
In more ways than one!!!👊🏻
 
iusedtoberich said:
I never had one of those, but they were super popular in the 90's. From what I recall, they were WAY easier to use than the jump cues we have now, for jumping over a close ball.

I believe the jump cue minimum length rule of 40" came into effect specifically to ban these rods.
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A room I used to frequent in Santa Monica had a “tradition” of players unscrewing their cues and using just their shafts for jumping (with a dart stroke). I could see why the 40” rule is in place - jumping’s too easy with such a light “cue”.

pj
chgo
 
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Patrick Johnson said:
A room I used to frequent in Santa Monica had a “tradition” of players unscrewing their cues and using just their shafts for jumping (with a dart stroke). I could see why the 40” rule was in place - jumping was too easy with such a light “cue”.

pj
chgo
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Was that the Mr.Pockets? I went there a couple times.
 
The jump rods I am talking about were around for over a decade before jump cues, no idea how long. They weren't common since they were shop made but they were out there. I didn't see anyone with good control of one. Now I am seeing jump cues that would force me to have to get one and learn to use it. They raise a person's skill set where all they used to do most of the time was piss off people because of flying pool balls!

Hu
 
ShootingArts said:
The jump rods I am talking about were around for over a decade before jump cues, no idea how long. They weren't common since they were shop made but they were out there. I didn't see anyone with good control of one. Now I am seeing jump cues that would force me to have to get one and learn to use it. They raise a person's skill set where all they used to do most of the time was piss off people because of flying pool balls!

Hu
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The ones I remember in the Philadelphia area were mass produced. (or most likely "mass produced" by 1-2 people in a small shop). They were if I recall a light weight hollow aluminum tube, no taper, and about the diameter of a quarter. They had a plastic tip on the end. They had some sort of logo or graphics perhaps screen printed onto them. They were advertised in magazines I believe.
 
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