Recent content by VTEC John

  1. VTEC John

    Anyone Use A Rhino Carbon Fiber Shaft?

    I don't give deflection a thought with my Rhino + Kamui tip, but I'm away from home for 2-3 mos now playing with a wood shaft and I have to compensate for deflection.
  2. VTEC John

    Did going from a low-end cue to high-end improve your game?

    Just cues, let's leave aside shaft/deflection discussion. I don't mean to commit a sacrilege here, but... If you're playing with, say, a Schmelke with a nice Kamui tip added, I don't see that a more expensive cue is going to help you stroke straighter. As regards other presumed benefits of high...
  3. VTEC John

    Thank you all

    Thanks for reaching out. We're all with you. Respect.
  4. VTEC John

    Sofia Mast "retiring?" The state of American pool

    I will miss seeing her in tournament play scrapping her way upwards against the ten or so elite women who show up regularly. And I'll miss the mini-drama of seeing whether she or Savannah will make it into that top tier. But she's making the right decision and she's young enough to come back if...
  5. VTEC John

    Fred J Velten from Marin, California?

    Fred's tiny shop was tucked away behind another business near the border of Corte Madera and Kentfield (across from Bread and Roses if you happen to know the area). The late forum member, L.S. Dennis had Fred make him a couple of shafts for his Helmstetter. From my one visit, probably mid-90s, I...
  6. VTEC John

    Earl Strickland - Houston, TX

    I interviewed Texas pool legend Jersey Red for Head Spot, a short-lived newsletter that I produced in the early 90s. Look left and there he is on the cover in my avatar. Red told me that Earl was very much part of the scene in Houston as a 17 year old.
  7. VTEC John

    Screw-on, over the butt extension frozen tight

    I know of one other person who had one of these accidentally over-tightened and we had to use a vice and channel locks to loosen it. Mine has frozen tight and doesn't want to loosen. Fortunately, it's not on the cue. Anybody have a solution before I toss it in the trash? Thanks from me and L.S...
  8. VTEC John

    Book recommendation for mental focus

    That's pretty much what the book is about. Nothing new in the idea of staying in the present, but he shows you how to silence your mind and all the thoughts pouring out of it. Turns out to be useful (for me, anyway) on every shot. (BTW, if you ask Chatgpt.com, Can the teachings of Eckhart Tolle...
  9. VTEC John

    Book recommendation for mental focus

    I've always been a fan of The Inner Game of Tennis, but I found this more useful. "The Power of Now" by Eckhart Tolle won't be everyone's cup of tea as it is much derived from Buddhist teachings and not focused on sport but on life in general. However, it has seriously clued me in to ways to...
  10. VTEC John

    UK Open 2026, London, May 26-31

    Same here.
  11. VTEC John

    Best Current Pool Players 70+ Years Old?

    In his appearance on Legends of the Cue, I believe Incardona said his bad back doesn't allow him to bend over a pool table any more.
  12. VTEC John

    Another Cueball Training Device/Product!!

    I want to thank El Toro for the training aid he gifted me--how to find and use the Ignore function for the first time.
  13. VTEC John

    World Pool Championship to leave Saudi!

    Jamal Khashoggi--look it up if you don't know what they did to him. We all want higher purses for pool tournaments. but this was always 100% about getting fans of various sports to view Saudi as some sort of benign, sporting kingdom. It was a pact with the devil and pool will be better off...
  14. VTEC John

    Anyone have experience with World of Leisure tables?

    I have a friend recovering from a stroke whose wife is willing to turn their small home inside out to get a table in for him to enjoy. I found a used World of Leisure for $1700 delivered, installed, new cloth. Would this thing have a single piece of slate or 3 pieces and would it make a...
  15. VTEC John

    Anti-elbow drop machine

    Just my two non-expert cents. If you drop your elbow perfectly straight, no problem, but it adds a variable to the stroke that can go wrong (hello, me). Second, ff you drop your elbow and it pulls your shoulder down with it, you've added another variable to the stroke that can go wrong (Jasmin...
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