On A SS joint cue would you use a softer tip compared to a wood to wood joint

PoolFan101

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Hello

We were discussing this the other day. I prefer a Medium tip but some people say that a cue with a SS joint would have a stiffer hit and may need a softer tip to compensate for it. I have played a few Cues that were SS that did feel very stiff and have played with some that were not and you could not tell the difference between it and a Wood to Wood joint. Fwiw my Son got a Triangle tip installed over the weekend $10 bux including pro installed and Man that things plays good , it is taking English really well and I can really make that cue ball dance with it. I am impressed with how it plays.
 

Woodshaft

Do what works for YOU!
I put a triangle on my predator 12.9 shaft on my schon (ss joint). Plays much better than the soft predator tip that it came with.
 

MattPoland

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
The feel of a hit is a magical thing where the stick vibrates exactly as YOUR brain really hopes it will vibrate. I don’t worry about that much. I already know my brain will get used to and then later anticipate the feel of whichever stick/joint/tip I commit to.

My choice on tip is exactly this. I’d love it to be as soft as possible because I like it to really grip the ball and not miscue. And maybe my brain hopes to feel that squishy hit and hear that soft padded thump of a soft tip hit. That said, too soft of a tip has a tendency to harden over time. So my experience of the tip is in a constant state of flux. Plus it wants to mushroom, meaning I’m constantly maintaining my tip. It’s a lot of attention I’m putting on my tip (and not on my patterns and stroke).

Eventually I get tired of all that obsession over a tip. I still don’t like hard tips because the sound is too shrill. They seem like they are meant for break cues where you don’t need much spin, want more energy transfer, and want more durability from slamming racks. More importantly I miscue more with them.

So I settle for a medium tip. It doesn’t mushroom much or at all. And if I grab a layered tip to boot, they are also very consistent out of the box and between boxes. A medium tip still needs some scuffing but is much more consistent over its lifespan.

So all those considerations tend to overrule any thoughts on joint pairing or hit preference. I’ll put any layered medium tip on any cue and commit to it.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
 

cuesblues

cue accumulator
Silver Member
For the most part it doesn't matter, especially at normal stroking velocities.
When you really drill the ball there is more going on and maybe a harder tip would feel and hit better than a soft tip.

Basically when I'm in stroke I like a hard tip, out of stroke like now I like a softer tip, the
cue design doesn't have much to do with it.
 

Biloxi Boy

Man With A Golden Arm
I really only use two cues, and I have tiger snipers on both of them. I like soft tips, but I went through them too quickly -- like ice at a fourth of july bbq. I think the secret is using a pick to keep the tip surface open -- effectively "softening" them.
 

straightline

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Or play with a phenolic if you like disappointment. If you're not sure, just give up chalk.

I use elkmasters on everything I have. As previously mentioned, the grab and cush are the deal. Mine hit like rubber. I switched from WB blacks. Lost the last one of the box and only had too small elkmasters. Put it on undersized and all; never looked back.

Speaking of rubber, where TF is NASA with the space age stuff?
 

garczar

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Hello

We were discussing this the other day. I prefer a Medium tip but some people say that a cue with a SS joint would have a stiffer hit and may need a softer tip to compensate for it. I have played a few Cues that were SS that did feel very stiff and have played with some that were not and you could not tell the difference between it and a Wood to Wood joint. Fwiw my Son got a Triangle tip installed over the weekend $10 bux including pro installed and Man that things plays good , it is taking English really well and I can really make that cue ball dance with it. I am impressed with how it plays.
SS cues aren't always stiff and W-2-W aren't always soft hitting. Pick the tip you like. Have to try a few to find out. Would you ask someone what the best beer/scotch/cigar/food is and then go buy it? Gotta try 'em out yourself.
 
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MitchAlsup

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
We were discussing this the other day. I prefer a Medium tip but some people say that a cue with a SS joint would have a stiffer hit and may need a softer tip to compensate for it.

The CB leaves the tip before the impact shock wave reaches the joint. Thus, you don't change the tip based on the joint.
 

Geosnooker

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
No idea,

My snooker cue is all wood joint including the pin. Been using it almost every day for 14 years...for both Snooker and American pool. I have a zipper lock Bag of tips about a decade old. Change the tip once a year or so but don’t really keep track. It think they are Elkmasters but might be Walmart specials.

The point being is that I’m just used to cue and tip. Billiards isn’t magic so best to stick with what you have. Don’t become a cue or tip hopper and definitely don’t take advice from the ‘switchers’. They are all ‘experts’ but still can’t seem to sink a ball with their 3rd or 4th cue and 5th type of tip.

There may indeed be a best combination of cue, joint, tip etc. but ‘nobody knows’. There are two many variables that can’t be controlled.
 

whammo57

Kim Walker
Silver Member
every metal jointed cue that I have shot with hit soft........... so I believe a metal joint gives you a softer hit.............

just my experience

Kim
 

Bob Jewett

AZB Osmium Member
Staff member
Gold Member
Silver Member
The CB leaves the tip before the impact shock wave reaches the joint. Thus, you don't change the tip based on the joint.
The speed of sound in maple along the grain (as in a shaft) is about 13,000 feet per second or 13 feet in a millisecond. The tip is in contact for about a millisecond.

I agree with your second statement but for a different reason. If the cue is solidly built, the joint will have negligible effect on the hit.

The OP should select the tip type by other criteria than the joint type.
 
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