I have played with a 13 mm shaft on my cue for as long as I have played, which is basically 40 years. In watching the internet events, it appears that a large number of players are using smaller diameter shafts. Is there a good reason, or is it just personal preference? Thanks
13mm or smaller?
- Thread starter Mole Eye
- Start date
Stay with 13mm.
If you like low c/b squirt then go for smaller.
But stay within 13mm range. :grin-square:
Good question! I was going to ask the same question after I just went to my 11.2 mm shaft and my games drastically improved.
Some of this depends on what game you are playing. Thicker shafts are better for straight pool and thinner shafts are better for 9 ball, where you need lots of action on the cueball, so everyone says. In the old days I had a 13mm and a 12.5mm shaft for my Joss cue.
I talked to John Schmidt at the US Open and he just loves his Z2 shaft and told me that I didn't know what I was missing if I haven't tried it yet.
One thing I have noticed is that with the skinny shaft you can zero in on the spot you want to hit on the cueball. To exaggerate my point, just imagine hitting a shot with the butt of a pool cue and trying to determine where on the cueball you will hit, or better yet what your english will be.
if my stroke was as straight as john schmidts i'd be ok using a shaft that skinny too. but i'm just human so i play better with thicker shafts!
i think it's the change in equipment as a whole. the pockets are getting tighter the balls are getting lighter and people lke to see the cb move around more because we're playing more rotation games. i think all of those all lead to people putting down the 13mm tips for the thinner ones. i still prefer 13mm but i used to be a 12.5mm guy
I thought the same thing when he was talking to me LOL. I actually had a Z2 shaft and I COULD NOT STAND THE HARD TIP. Miscued so many times I never used the shaft again.
But, on my 11.2 mm shaft I have a Kamui black Super Soft tip and it shoots awesome. Something else to consider. I have a Willard Tip Machine and have just started experimenting with different tips, so I just stumbled onto to this (must admit I theorized first).
I play with a McDermott I-3 shaft on my Schon CX-06. To me, it's a perfect combination of balance and feel. The I-3 has a Moori Soft tip with a 11.75mm diameter. The small tip gives me a sense of geometric precision where I hit the cue ball. Try a smaller tip diameter - you may like it. But, you're right about it being a personal preference. You play best with whatever cue (and tip) that feels good to you. Don't worry about what others are using. Good luck in your quest for the perfect combination.
Geometric precision - I like that term!
smaller = more spin
if you want to impress all your buddies by how much english you can put on the ball by all means go to a skinny shaft, now if you want to pocket balls and take all your buddies money stay with a larger shaft.
my way of saying, i can get a lot more extreme english on a ball using a 12 mm tip, but i am MUCH more accurate by using a 13 mm shaft.
if you want to impress all your buddies by how much english you can put on the ball by all means go to a skinny shaft, now if you want to pocket balls and take all your buddies money stay with a larger shaft.
my way of saying, i can get a lot more extreme english on a ball using a 12 mm tip, but i am MUCH more accurate by using a 13 mm shaft.
A smaller tip does not mean you will get more English on the ball as compared to a bigger one. The only thing a smaller tip does is allow you to hit more precisely the English you want to apply. It doesn't matter what size tip you have, or what tip curve you use, if you hit the exact same spot on a cue ball with all variants of tips, you will get the same action out of the cue ball. Now a dime curve tip allows you to reach farther out from center cue ball than a nickel, giving you more English. But as far as tip size and English, there's no correlation.
Edit: Note that different tips have more effect on English than the actual shape or size.
Edit: Note that different tips have more effect on English than the actual shape or size.
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I prefer 12mm but it's just personal preference.
The balls are getting lighter? How do you figure? Did they go to Jenny Craig?
Nick
Nick
Very true. The only disadvantages is that bigger tip can't reached the most bottom for maximum draw. But then why do we it that much for?
TV tournament balls are actually heavier.
TheThaiger
Banned
At what point does a smaller tip become non deflecting (or pretty LD)? I play with a McDermott, which has been taken down to around 12.25, and it doesn't really noticeably deflect.
Not much actually, but if your ferrule is 10mm you will notice it.
LD shaft maker try as much as possible to reduce the tip load by any possible ways.
TheThaiger
Banned
Sure. But what I mean is, my 12.25mm McDermott doesn't deflect much at all, yet my friend's 13mm McDermott deflects quite a bit, so I presume the size of the shaft affects deflection as much as a hollow end/lightweight ferrule etc. I guess the amount the shaft size affects deflection is on a sliding scale.