Does a good cue matter?

Ken_4fun

Ken_4fun

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I absolutely suck playing off the wall.

I have the highest regard for those who can do it, but I just cant. Tip and taper are so important to me.

I have seen a guy really play well off the wall. It really amazed me.

I will say that as long it is good solid cue with good taper and tip, I can play with it. I used to change cues often as I sold them, but now I don't flip cues like I used to.

The other thing I thought about years ago, guys wouldn't carry cues, and play off the rail. That being, I think the house cues were kept in great condition. The cues you find now, most belong in a garbage heap.

Ken
 
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smashmouth

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
house cues are usually wrecks

you need a straight cue, good tip period, any $99 cue from players or dufferin or some other spot in china whomever will shoot just as well as any other cue

it's impossible for that not to be the case

having said that, cues receive abuse and by their nature are designed to inflict force and they suffer from it, a better built cue will last longer, for life imo, while a cheap cue always has en expiration date but cheap cues for learning are still best and will often last for years

terms like "hit" and "feel" cannot truly be quantified and are more placebo effect than anything else

even warped cues and crappy tips can in fact be played with at a high level , i made a thread about shoddy snooker tips and someone posted the mushroomed fiasco peter ebdon won the word title with
 
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mcesarey

New member
Just so I can get a swing in on this dead horse....I believe anything can hit well with a decent tip. At one of the pool rooms I used to play at, they put LePro hard tips on every house cue and they all played fine. There were both Cue-tec and Valley house cues in there, and one of my buddies won a 100-man tourney with one of the Valley house cues. However, I still think it's important to get a decent-enough cue to shoot with regularly. I'm an advocate of finding someone locally selling anything with a Predator shaft for cheap...somebody who needs money or something. They're always available.
 
worktheknight

worktheknight

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I just had a person leave our facilities who was looking for a cue. Last week, he brought me a nice old Mcdermott that he wanted a black leather wrap put on it and some fancy inlays in the forearm as I told him to just come over an buy a new cue as I would treat him right. I marked the table so we could set up the same shot, which was a little cut in the corner that allowed the cue ball to bounce off the rail and up across corner. He hit the same shot a number of time with different cues as I just wanted him to let me know which cue for him felt like it done more work for him without him feeling like he was forcing one of the cues. He picked a few and a little later, setting the cb and a ob on the same chalk marks, I asked him to shoot the same shot with low english and run the ball down table without hitting the rail, he could not do it and could not do it. So, I pulled out a cue, put it together and he the same shot with low and almost made the cue ball in the cross corner pocket with draw. He looked at me kinda stunned as I don't think he ever in his life hit a cue ball with that much action. I just said, add $ 150.00 and come back next week, my next order of Schon Cues come in. Yes, there is a great number of shooters who can hit shots with almost anything, but, when a player has played for a while and is looking for a cue to do a little work, I still think there is a level where a cue can help pick it up a little, just my opinion and look forward to the sale next week.
 
pulzcul

pulzcul

"Chasinrainbows"
Silver Member
worktheknight said:
I just had a person leave our facilities who was looking for a cue. Last week, he brought me a nice old Mcdermott that he wanted a black leather wrap put on it and some fancy inlays in the forearm as I told him to just come over an buy a new cue as I would treat him right. I marked the table so we could set up the same shot, which was a little cut in the corner that allowed the cue ball to bounce off the rail and up across corner. He hit the same shot a number of time with different cues as I just wanted him to let me know which cue for him felt like it done more work for him without him feeling like he was forcing one of the cues. He picked a few and a little later, setting the cb and a ob on the same chalk marks, I asked him to shoot the same shot with low english and run the ball down table without hitting the rail, he could not do it and could not do it. So, I pulled out a cue, put it together and he the same shot with low and almost made the cue ball in the cross corner pocket with draw. He looked at me kinda stunned as I don't think he ever in his life hit a cue ball with that much action. I just said, add $ 150.00 and come back next week, my next order of Schon Cues come in. Yes, there is a great number of shooters who can hit shots with almost anything, but, when a player has played for a while and is looking for a cue to do a little work, I still think there is a level where a cue can help pick it up a little, just my opinion and look forward to the sale next week.
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Well said!!
 
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a.jin88

Registered
Yes, but not a large amount. It's about what you're comfortable with. There's a local A- player in my hometown who loves his Players cue, but has a Moori tip on it. He swears as long as it's straight, it's more about the tip than the cue. However, most people are more comfortable with a higher end cue due to it's deflection (or lack thereof), balance, and over-all feel. I personally hate the uni-lock joint. I don't like the hit. I prefer a 3/8 or Radial pin.
 
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oldschool2791

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
A good cue does matter but a good cue doesnt meen the most expensive.I hear of a few 150/250 dollar cues that are suppose to be as good as you need to get the job done.
 
Blue Hog ridr

Blue Hog ridr

World Famous Fisherman.
Silver Member
something that is familiar to them
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I believe that says much right there. You can have a cheap cue but if you are comfortable playing with it, it will be just fine. I have a $25 Eliminator sneaky and a cheaper Varney conversion. Both are decent. I bought a cheap cue from EBay, re did it and for well under $100, it plays great on a bar box.

You can also have an expensive cue and if you aren't liking it, it won't do you a bit of good in the long run.

One thing is for sure, fancy ring work and inlays won't help you pot balls.
 
galipeau

galipeau

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
maha said:
usually house cues have poor tips. they are put on badly, are cheap, too worn, etc.

also have badly tapered shafts with many nicks in them to irritate or distract you.

if you find one that is straight and you sand it down to make it smooth and put a proper tip on it then you will have a cue that should perform just like any more expensive cue.
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In bars, yes they're generally crap, but in any decent pool room, you can find a dufferin that will play well.

The question is, "does a good cue matter?". This is subjective. Does it matter to the individual, or to everyone's game, or as a tool? There are different ways to interpret the question.

Ronnie Allen was the worlds best one pocket player at one point in time he could play with virtually any cue, and was known to switch out cues often. Some guys like Ronnie O'Sullivan, from what I have heard, are extremely picky about their cues and don't even like changing to pool cues to play pool from their regular snooker gear.

If the cue is somewhat straight, and the tip isn't petrified leather, any decent player should be able to string a few balls together. It's just nice to have fancy stuff, really.
 
Jaden

Jaden

"no buds chill"
Silver Member
Maybe against a lower level player...

franko said:
Yes in my opinion the cue matters. It is true that a Pro can win using a broomstick, but that does not mean he is playing up to his full potentential . I will not use any names here but a top pro who was sponsored by a big production cue company was openly complaining about if he were playing with a different cue he would have won . He was playing one of those very long races winner take all and had lost. When you play with a cue that is comfortable to you it gives you more confidence.
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The idea that a pro can play just as good with anything is a misnomer...

They can play CLOSE to as good, but they have to make different shot selections and will miss more often without their regular playing cue.

A champion is not as likely to beat another champion playing with a cue they are not used to.

It also depends what kind of player they are, are they deliberate or are they feel based. IF they are deliberate, what is their style of play and what is their normal equipment.

Do they use LD equipment or standard? Have they ever played with standard if they currently play with ld?

I can pick up almost any cue and within a few shots play within 80-90% of my game, but that's because I am now a deliberate player and have played with equipment that has a great degree of disparity and I know what to do differently with different equipment.

Many pros and other good players can quickly adjust, either their style of play or their shot selection to be able to play at a high level with any equipment, but that doesn't mean that they will play their best with anything.

If your goal is to play your best, you need to find what works best for you (good equipment of course) and stick with it.
 
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