New cue, or new shaft?

slaya786 said:

Hey,

A couple of years ago I purchased a McDermott M81E on eBay for about 100$. The cue was brand new. However, due to my lack of experience and ignorance the cue is now warped. Rolling the shaft and butt of the cue individually shows both have a slight roll.

I've started shooting pool again, and although i'm no all star (in fact, I'm pretty horrible:wink i'd like a decently playable cue again.

My question is, whether replacing the shaft of the cue would be sufficient. Or, would it be more advisable to replace the entire cue.

My budget is around 100$.

If replacing the shaft alone would suffice, I was looking into the HXT LD Skinny shaft.

But, if I would need to replace the entire cue, considering my budget, any thoughts on a particular cue?

Thanks.

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If you bought the cue new from an authorized dealer, contact McDermott. They cover warpage in their warrantee.
If you bought it used, and the warp is bad enough to affect play you might want to consider a new cue. With that budget look at Shmelke and or Players.
Chuck

Dale Perry makes a good cue. I picked one up on eBay for just over $100. Nothing fancy, but it hit well and was balanced nicely.

Certainly check with McDermott, but ... Here's another option, you really should consider this cue as well. If you don't like the black wrap, change it out for something like brown and white. It comes with two shafts. You just can't beat the price and they play and look nice and the extra shaft is really nice to have.

I fell in love with these inexpensive cues, I lengthened the pro taper simply with a helper, drill and sandpaper.

I like the idea of the two shafts, and ... there is an even less ornate cue this guy sells with zebra wood for 69 bucks that also comes with two shafts. Get em both, and have 4 shafts and two butts that you can enjoy without breaking the bank. Oh, and the weights can be easily changed with an allen wrench and purchased for a few dollars at pooldawg, which is another nice thing. THESE ARE THE WEIGHTS THAT FIT IT.

HERE IS THE LINK

This is with a brown wrap ...

Chuck Fields said:

If you bought the cue new from an authorized dealer, contact McDermott. They cover warpage in their warrantee.
If you bought it used, and the warp is bad enough to affect play you might want to consider a new cue. With that budget look at Shmelke and or Players.
Chuck

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Chuck's answer is the best solution.

If you end up going with a new cue, contact David Schmelke of Schmelke Cues. You can have a solid cue made to your specs for less than $100. David has always been more than helpful when ordering or sending a cue in for customizing/repair.

If I were you, I wouldn't buy anything. There's nothing about a slight warp that will negatively affect the playability. The cue will play as well as it did when brand new and straight. Save your hundred dollars for tournament entry or lessons from a certified instructor. Either will do more for your game than buying a new cue or shaft.

qbilder said:

If I were you, I wouldn't buy anything. There's nothing about a slight warp that will negatively affect the playability. The cue will play as well as it did when brand new and straight. Save your hundred dollars for tournament entry or lessons from a certified instructor. Either will do more for your game than buying a new cue or shaft.

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This is good advice. Jillions are playing well, with a slight warp in their shaft. Get a few lessons, to give yourself a kick start.

Good Luck