Tips pros use... Surprise !

Catalin

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I'll probably try out a techno dud because of this thread. I see one for sale on seyberts. They're made by Outsville, right? Or is it a generic name?

.

Yes that is a brand, vs milk duds or duds that are generic. The problem that I found playing with them is that being compressed they are not as tall and they wear fast. I didn't feel any difference in play and maintenance between milk duds and Triangles, I think the compression brings them to a similar hardness. Triangles are cheaper and last longer.

Julian
 

ShootingArts

Smorg is giving St Peter the 7!
Gold Member
Silver Member
Elkmaster and Elk Pro

The tips are called Elkmaster and Elk Pro. The Elk Pro is supposed to be a more carefully selected and processed Elkmaster. One Elk Pro costs roughly the same as one box, fifty, Elkmasters. I found about nine super light tips weighing a box of Elkmasters. Discarding these, the rest played fine and held up well.

A person could buy a set of scales, two boxes of Elkmaster tips, and still be money ahead instead of buying one three tip box of Elk Pro tips which seems to be how they come, boxes of three.

Started using Elkmasters or duds back in the eighties. I have tried other things, never found a tip I liked better or that lasted enough differently to notice. Tips last me for ages.

Hu
 

cueman

AzB Gold Member
Gold Member
Silver Member
don't forget Earl in the Elkmaster discussion as he has used them pretty much exclusively during his career.

Does that make Elkmaster a great tip for you (or me)? It's very subjective but I think it's safe to say that some guys have achieved great things using them.

best,
brian kc

This one surprises me because I worked on Earls tip in the 90s and it was a LePro.
 

West Point 1987

On the Hill, Out of Gas
Silver Member
don't forget Earl in the Elkmaster discussion as he has used them pretty much exclusively during his career.

Does that make Elkmaster a great tip for you (or me)? It's very subjective but I think it's safe to say that some guys have achieved great things using them.

best,
brian kc

I believe his go to tips were the original Moori tips, he was getting old stock for years until it dried up. I also heard he flirted with milk duds of one type or other. Never heard he used EM, but would bet he's tried everything at least once. Mike Gulyassy told me Early went through 13 tips in one day trying out a shaft..
 

West Point 1987

On the Hill, Out of Gas
Silver Member
I only shoot with Pooldawg8's milk duds...they're the nuts. After a day's breaking in, they last me about 6 months of heavy daily play. The trick for me is to not touch the tip once I get it shaped, my playing style and chalking keeps it in good shape. After a few years' trying out various layered tips, I went back to what I started out with, pressed single layer, so OP's information doesn't surprise me at all.
 

Tony_in_MD

You want some of this?
Silver Member
Well not all Triangles are created equal. Which is why I press mine. I like a shorter tip, in my mind the tips feel doesn't change as much as when the tip starts tall and wears down.

Consistency is the biggest advantage with layered tips IMHO.

Yes that is a brand, vs milk duds or duds that are generic. The problem that I found playing with them is that being compressed they are not as tall and they wear fast. I didn't feel any difference in play and maintenance between milk duds and Triangles, I think the compression brings them to a similar hardness. Triangles are cheaper and last longer.

Julian
 

KMRUNOUT

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I believe his go to tips were the original Moori tips, he was getting old stock for years until it dried up. I also heard he flirted with milk duds of one type or other. Never heard he used EM, but would bet he's tried everything at least once. Mike Gulyassy told me Early went through 13 tips in one day trying out a shaft..

Having stood right next to Earl while holding Earl's cue and talking about tips, I can assure you he had an Elk Master on there. This would have been about 4-5 years ago. I hit some balls with his cue. Very low deflection! And about 17.5 oz.

KMRUNOUT
 

JolietJames

Boot Party Coordinator
Silver Member
I think the point is that the pros don't throw $25 at a Kamui tip like so many ad-driven drones do in the amateur ranks. The repair guy working the larger tournaments in AZ and Vegas commented on how he's never seen anything like it. 90% of people requesting new tips ask for Kamui. I guess their advertising is paying off big time. As it turns out, most can play to the best of their ability with a $.50 tip. (And Master's chalk)
 

Kickin' Chicken

Kick Shot Aficionado
Gold Member
Silver Member
9
This one surprises me because I worked on Earls tip in the 90s and it was a LePro.

Like km I also had an opportunity to hit with one of Earl's cues years ago. It was at Steinway and it was one of his 72" javelins from MG, and he told me that the only tip he uses are elkmasters and it's been that way for a very long time. I'm sure he's tried out plenty of others but seems to have settled on the em's.

And after watching me hit some balls he went to his case and got me my very own set of his famous finger slides that he said are available at CVS and that I should be using them. :wink:

best,
brian kc
 

HawaiianEye

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Earl has said many times that he uses Elk Master tips.

Rodney Morris told me that he liked to use Triangle tips.

CJ Wiley likes "milk duds".

It doesn't matter what they use...you aren't them and you aren't going to play like them no matter what tip you use.

I have people come up to me every week and ask me what type of tip I use when they see me hit a shot that requires some "magic" or a lot of "juice". I tell them and then set up the shot for them and let them try my cue to see how the shot works for them. 99% of the time, they can't do it or say the tip "isn't for them".

Find a tip you like and use it.

For me, I like Tom Hay's soft Ultra-skin black tips. They play way better than the Kamui crap and cost 1/10 as much.

If you can't control the cue ball, you can't control the table or the game.
 
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Tommy-D

World's best B player...
Silver Member
I had a conversation with Earl at the 2000 U.S. Open at Joe Blackburn's booth and at the time he was using his own hand selected Triangles out of a sandwich bag he had in his case.

He was warming up for a match and instead of changing shafts because of something being off,he walked out into the hallway where Joe's booth was and was insistent that Joe drop everything while he unscrewed and said "here put this on" and handed him the tip.

He claimed that he went thru 10 boxes of them to get the 40 or so he said he had with him,and said the ones he liked best were the ones that were the "whitest" with clean,smooth bottoms because those had "more grit" in them :confused:. Tommy D.
 
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