Need advice on buying a pool cue...

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Toby Ngo

Guest
I’ve been playing pool on and off for awhile now, but have never taken this game seriously. Now that I joint APA a few weeks ago, I would like to play the game in a more consistent manner or even take it to the next level, if it’s all possible. Therefore, I’ve decided to invest in my first cue stick.

From my experience with the house stick…I shoot better with 20-21oz that have smaller tip (I don’t know what size). Therefore, can someone make a recommendation on what pool cue should I buy? I’m looking to spend somewhere in the neighborhood of 300. Is it possible to get a fairly good custom cue for that amount of money?

PS – I’m not too crazy about looks.


Thanks,
Toby
 
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Koop

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member

First I will say that choosing a cue is all a matter of personal preference. For the money you are talking about there are a ton of great cues out there; mostly production. I don't know if anyone out there has owned a Helmstetter before but I had one for about 3 years that hit as well as any $800 cue out there. Other brands to look into would be: Fury, Lucasi, and maybe a used Schon if you could find one for that price. Just make sure you hit with it before buying...

Dave

 
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Wes

Guest
The Helmstetter is nice. My last cue was a Helmstetter with a Predator shaft (which I'm currently selling the whole setup for $400).

I would recommend a Predator Sneaky Pete. They run in the $300 range. I recommend Seybert's as a place to get the cue. They are great.
 
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Toby Ngo

Guest
Thanks DDKoop, twiztid_cue and Wes for your answer!! I just checked those cue out...Lucasi and Helmstetter seem to have the most reasonable price (cheaper!!), but the Predator Sneaky Pete is a little more. Do you think the predator is worth my extra hundred bucks?
 
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Wes

Guest
The Predator shaft is just plain awesome. What I would suggest is just buying the Lucasi or Helmstetter. Then later on you can buy a Predator shaft to fit either cue. The shafts run around $200 though.
 

twiztid_cue

Tweak!
Silver Member
Wes is correct. Predator and Lucasi use the Uni-Lock system on most of their cues. But then you can get a type of joint on any of the cues. I have never played with a predator cue but from what people say about them they love em. Also if you wanted to spend a lil extra money Meucci from what I hear makes a great cue. you can find them for starting at just over 300.
 
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Wes

Guest
Yeah, they use the Uni-Loc joint on a lot of the cues. However, no matter what type of joint it has, Predator should make a shaft that fits it.
 
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Toby Ngo

Guest
talk about Meucci and shaft...what do you guy think of the black dot shaft compare to predator 314 shaft? Just curious!!
 
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Wes

Guest
I've played a little with the Meucci black dot. It doesn't really compare to the Predator 314 in my opinion.
 

Koop

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member

Toby,

Me personally. I really like the look of the Lucasi LE3. It only runs around $180 at Hawleys.com and you could still get the predator shaft. I don't think you will find the black-dot to be as good as the Predator shaft but I am not positive. The Helmstetter RH-3 is about the same and I think you will find the hit to be very sweet.

If the shaft is too thick you can always bring it to a cueman to taper it down for you but once you get used to the 13mm I don't know if you would want to. The 13mm provides more surface area for the hit which is what you would probably want as a beginner. Just my opinion and best of luck.

Dave

 

accdealer

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
just my 2 cents guys. while i understand the theories behind the predator shaft, and believe that they are valid, i still think that it is a lot of marketing hype. they are somewhat the meucci of the new millenium. if anyone remembers, back in the eighties when meucci was really making a strong move, their marketing scheme to players was a cue with very little deflection. now, they are almost contradicting themselves with their red dot and black dot shafts. where were the predator shafts when the legends of yesterday and even today where setting records and playing jam up pool?

anyway, back on course. i happen to think that you cannot buy more cue for your dollar than a lucasi. frankly, i cannot believe that they are so affordable. however, i have hit with a few and i just don't like the way they play. i AM very picky though, so others might like it. whether i like it or not, it is still a hell of a lot of cue for very little money.

one thing that i cannot stress to you enough. although production cues are supposed to be carbon copies of each other within a given brand name, believe it or not they actually can hit different from one to another. the reason why i am bringing this up is because some internet dealers are very appealing with their prices. however, i strongly recommend that whatever kind of cue you buy, that you buy it from somewhere that you can hold it in your hands and hit a couple of balls with it before you lay down your hard earned cash.

i remember reading that you preferred cues with a thinner shaft. you will find that most new cues are coming with a standard sized shaft, roughly 13.25mm, with the exeception of predator, their shafts are always 12.75. Once you buy your cue, you can always take it to your local cue repairman and for 25-50 bucks have the shaft turned down a bit. HOWEVER, unless you have very small hands, or 'fat' fingers, i would recommend adjusting to a normal sized shaft. it will be easier for you to play with and the amounts of english that you are going to be applying to the cue ball will be more predictable.
 

Slasher

KE = 0.5 • m • v2
Silver Member
I have been playing with a Lucasi for a couple of months now and I think it's one of the best hitting natural wood cues around.
I came from a cuetec that was very stiff and although a stiff cue shoots pretty straight ,it lacks feel. I think the Pred shaft also lacks feel.
Just my opinion for what it's worth.

Lance
 

Cardinal_Syn

Julz
Silver Member
I have shot with my friends Lucasi...well i didn't like the way it hit...just comes down to personal preference....my first cue which was a dufferin...i guesse it's not popular in the US as it is here and it really shoots great nice feel nice balance, it's comparable to the other higher brands....now i shoot with a falcon with a 314 i guesse it shoots even better. With your $300 range you can get a joss cue with that....I've tried my friends Joss cue aswell and it shotted great to...although they're shaft comes with a 13.25mm taper so it felt akward for me shooting with it but nontheless shotted great like someone else mentioned in this forum you can always turn it down....
 
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Toby Ngo

Guest
DDKoop said:


The Helmstetter RH-3 is about the same and I think you will find the hit to be very sweet.


Thanks everyone! Since there are positive and negative comments on Lucasi cue…I’ll go ahead and take Dave's advice and order a Helmstetter to start off with.

PS- cheapest one I found is 115 shipped. Model RH-3 with 13mm shaft, 20.5oz adjustable weight. Irish linen wrap. (Free spandex shooting glove and a box Balabushka chalk).

Toby
 
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Koop

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member

Best of luck and I think you will be pleasantly surprised at how well they play for the money. A good friend of mine in Up-State New York shoots with a Schon and when he hit with my Helmstetter he couldn't tell the difference. Might not be the case with all of them but you certainly can't go wrong for that kind of money. I am actually thinking of buying another one for my wife to use in our league.

Dave

 

Cardinal_Syn

Julz
Silver Member
Toby Ngo said:
Thanks everyone! Since there are positive and negative comments on Lucasi cue…I’ll go ahead and take Dave's advice and order a Helmstetter to start off with.

PS- cheapest one I found is 115 shipped. Model RH-3 with 13mm shaft, 20.5oz adjustable weight. Irish linen wrap. (Free spandex shooting glove and a box Balabushka chalk).

Toby
well don't take our word for it...go to the store and shoot with it....good luck on the cue your buying though
 

Koop

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member

Cardinal,

I couldn't agree more. They are great cues but I think you should always shoot with it before buying.

Koop

 
K

Kerry

Guest
One word of caution.

You mention 20.5 oz adjustable weight. Make sure you know what the cue weighs without a weight bolt. Some cue makers say that the weight is adjustable, which is true, but you don't know which direction the adjustment is possible. In other words, if you get the 20.5 oz cue, it might be 20.5 oz without a weight bolt, meaning your only option is to make it heavier. Also, changing the weight bolt changes the balance.

Like everyone said, hit with it first. Something to consider: two cues could be identical in every way except one is heavier. The heavier one will *feel* like it hits more solid. Just give it a good long test.

KerryM
 
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