Wood vs carbon fiber shafts for top pros - I went through the Fargo top 100 to see who uses what
- Thread starter kingwang
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I’ve played with a mezz ignite and a 12.4 redo both for several months. Both shafts had slightly more deflection than my mezz ex pro. Personally, I don’t think any shaft performs better than a mezz ex pro, but I will say that the cf shafts definitely impart more energy to the cue ball. Whether this is good or bad is debatable though. It makes long draw shots easier, but that was never an issue I had. It makes touchy spin shots harder, and I did not like that for one pocket.
billiards_watch
Well-known member
Yea there is now finessing or putting touch on a shot. It's damn powerful and does some crazy things but I still like wood shafts. You're more in control with it.
billiards_watch
Well-known member
Now don't assume wood is wood. I believe Mezz wood shafts are disguised as wood but there is some low deflection technology involved. I'm trying to find out what their sigma shafts are all about. Somebody told me its cored and there is some sort of rod in it. I have one and a WX7 and they both feel very different.
When I think wood I think 100% wood with nothing put in it. Some may get filled with foam.
When I think wood I think 100% wood with nothing put in it. Some may get filled with foam.
it’s cool to see but it really makes no difference to me. I don’t care what any pro uses in shaft or tip or chalk. They aren’t me. I don’t have their natural ability And what feels good to them might now feel good to me. All I know is I like the way the 12.9 revo hits more than any of the others I’ve tried. I make a lot of balls.. control the cue ball well and win a lot of games so it works for me. If it doesn’t work for you that’s cool to.
Ditto brother!!
I think I get this. (nano epiphany) Because of the wider range of deflection and other "anomalies" the shooter can apply control with more finity than with the CF tool.
My feeling is that carbon shafts are cheaper to make than wood. A plastic press just pops them out. With wood the process is more drawn out. At least moreso than snapping a few pieces of glorified plastic together. Wood has to be logged, cut, cured, then you turn it down . Alot of waste in that process as well. Cuemakers have pushed cf for that reason as well as for the increase in cost. I've shot against myself with a cf vs my standard shafts by makers such as Gilbert, Barnes, Runde. These three win against my cf peach, jacoby black4, and predator. Interesting to note that my plain maple from jacoby and pechauer don't compete with cf. I shoot best with my Andy Gilbert with his standard shaft. The Runde and Barnhart aren't much different.
Here’s how I assess the options of which shaft and why. Carbon fiber shafts are ideal for playing shots with angles, long or close, because cue ball delivery is more accurate than with a wood shaft. On the flip side, wood shafts are better suited for playing shots with English. There is more touch involved and carbon shafts have little feel in the difference the way you strike the cue ball. So a player has to decide what they want to give up in order to get and the bottomline is if you’ve played wood shafts a long time, you’ll usually resist the change and eventually go back to wood or at least the majority of players do.
A plastic press does not in any way shape or form, just pop out a carbon shaft. It's not an injection molded product, they are either layer wrapped, or filament wound depending on manufacture. I do agree that a low deflection multi piece wood shaft probably costs more to make. You look at a Jacoby Ultra wood shaft with their 128 laminations, I don't see any way a carbon shaft would cost more to make.
Makes me wonder if they made perfect tubes like pvc and just chopped 'em up for shafts... I think I could live with a stick like that. The shooting characteristics aside from zero taper @ 13mm, don't seem very important to me. $20 pro weapon they'd try to push into the low hundreds.
billiards_watch
Well-known member
Aiming with deflection in mind and learning how to play with a deflection is a skill. It is part of aiming. Low deflection shafts and carbon shafts eliminates that aspect of the game. There's a reason why Efren made it look so magical. He would actually have to move the rock around with touch, stroke and precision.
If you notice there are a lot of players today pocketing long range shots with power and ease. It's so easy you can cheat the pocket at that range too. You basically don't need perfect shape in today's game. All you have to do is see a shot.
Not knocking LD or carbon shafts but the game is played differently because of it.
If you notice there are a lot of players today pocketing long range shots with power and ease. It's so easy you can cheat the pocket at that range too. You basically don't need perfect shape in today's game. All you have to do is see a shot.
Not knocking LD or carbon shafts but the game is played differently because of it.
Low deflection is not "no deflection"; there is still deflection, and it's more present in those long power shots. You still need a good aim and a solid stroke.
But the game is played differently than it was in the 90s; pockets are tighter, so no cheating the pocket. Players focus more on pocketing the balls. I started noticing it with the Chinese invasion of players. I guess when you come from snooker tables, you get used to this approach to playing more. Players also play a lot more defence than they used to, taking fewer risks.
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There's lots of pocket to cheat. Most of the shots go center pocket anyway and they're still able to move the ball no sweat. Nice thing about working out your marksmanship on snooker pockets is you develop a keen awareness of shot angles and the realization that straight in on many critical shots is virtually impossible.
i assume you mean the taiwan chinese, if you're talking about an invasion. they don't come from snooker, but they have had tight pockets on american tables a long time
Yes you are right, it isn't injection molded if the cf is in layer form. But it is molded and im pretty sure it's a mechanized process. If the cf is in resin form it would be molded as well . Maybe not injection molded. I won't be working toward a doctoral degree in it but thanks for your armchair expert info.
It's this marketing propaganda that has made CF has popular as it is... Notion of performance gain is complete bunk.
Use it, don't use it. I really don't care. I'm amazed I still haven't experienced some CF users coming to my home and knocking on my door with pamphlets.
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Carbon Fiber Adventists.
Knock knock...
Egggggs-zack-leee. Well put.
'Carbon's Witnesses'. They're out there, look for guys on bikes with cue cases.
