3/8-10 or radial

What is your experience with each and which did you like more...

However you answer that questions is that I would suggest.
 
RSCA HOOLIGAN said:
What would you suggest and why ?

Thanks
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I would choose the 3/8x10 simply because not all radial pins are the same (pitch differences). This can be true of the 3/8x10 thread also, it just seems more common in radial pins. If your never planning on an aftermarket shaft or having another shaft built for your cue later down the road, the choice is a toss-up. I've never noticed that much playing difference between the two pins.

Maniac
 
3/8 x 10. I think the pitch locks the cue together tighter, not that the radial is bad. When they're both tight they're tight, but I think it is a little easier for the radial to get loose.
 
I prefer a 3/8 x 10 pin both the regular and the modern. (cracking open can O worms) Radial pins seem to flex unlike the 3/8 x 10 to me.

Brian
 
The only radials I have hit with were on a couple of Scruggs cues that I have owned. One had a SS joint and one was a ivory joint, both flat faced. All my cues now are flat faced 3/8-10 and I like the 3/8-10 joint better. Maybe just my preference, but i like the hit of the 3/8-10 better. Feels like a crisper more solid hit to me, which I like.
 
I've owned both and for some reason I prefer the radial. However, my first experience with a radial was a Barnhart and my next was a custom cue that I had orded from Twisted Turtle (Ron Daniels), I love the feed back of the radial, but that could just be personal preference.

Jason
 
thindpoolplayer said:
I prefer a 3/8 x 10 pin both the regular and the modern. (cracking open can O worms) Radial pins seem to flex unlike the 3/8 x 10 to me.

Brian
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The small diameter of the radial pin is .312".
The small diameter of the SW pin is .305".
McDermott's 3/8 10's small diameter is much smaller. And it's threads wear out more b/c the wood threads ride on the outside of the pin and not much inside.

3/8 radial shouldn't flex more if they're made of the same material.
Done right and used properly, 3/8 radial wood threads should last as long as the life of the shaft .
 
DoubleD said:
I'd wager that nobody can actually feel the difference between the two. They have it in their heads that they can, have convinced themselves, have bought into some kind of propaganda...they have sipped that Kool-aid and then guzzled the pitcher.

Here is what I know:

The 3/8-10 is a pin that has been around for a long time. The threads on it are based on machine threads used for actual assemblies (you know, minor stuff like keeping the wheels on your car and keeping planes together).

Radial is a thread developed by a guy who looked at the drive screws on his equipment and thought it looked neat-o.

Radial screws really are the AMC Gremlin of current cue building. Your gramma and a bunch of people think they are cool, but in a few years that stupid fad will pass and people will go back to something based in, uhm, actual engineering.

dld-->can't wait for the day that people actually figure out that all of these gimmick threads are actually gimmicks.
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Radial screw was invented by Bill Stroud.
http://forums.azbilliards.com/showpost.php?p=3142213&postcount=17
It's been around a long time and will not be extinct any time soon.
I believe it's more popular than the regular 3/8 10.
 
DoubleD said:
If you are going to talk screws, at least take the thirty-second beginner course and learn that the 'small' diameter is called the 'minor' diameter. We have a vocabulary for a reason.

I've never seen a 3/8-10 thread worn out. I've seen them damaged due to abuse, but never worn out.

From an engineering standpoint, the 3/8 radial should bend less, but is a moot point. If the screw is flexing, there is something majorly wrong.

Screws are made to provide axial force. The friction caused by the axial force is used to react the shear forces caused by a force or moment on an assembly.

dld
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Are we arrogant or what ?
I've seen plenty of McDermott's with loose shaft.
http://dzcues.com/images/joints/mod pin.jpg
The pic explains it. Because the wood threads do not mate with minor ( yes I know it's called minor but used small as layman term ) of the screw all that much.
If it were that good, the modified 3/8 10 has no advantage then.
 
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Pin size?

Have someone scrw your cue together and take apart as well and you never look at the connections and you will never know (or care) what the pin size is anyway. However, 3/8 10 is likely the most common pin size.
 
First of all, you might as well ask "Do you prefer blondes or brunettes, and why?" Personal preference is just that, personal.

Second, instead of asking what we think, try a bunch of different cues and see what you like.

Third, you didn't explain what criteria were involved in the comparison between a Radial and 3/8-10. Do you mean the difference in the hit? The looks? The installation process? The speed of screwing and un-screwing the cue?

I'll assume you're asking what difference a Radial and 3/8-10 pin make in the hit of a cue. First, understand that there's far more to the hit of a cue than the pin type. The hit of a pool cue is determined by everything that goes into it, from the tip to the bumper and everything in between. And *how* the cue is built is just as important (if not more) as *what* it's made of. Most cuemakers build cues very similarly, but subtle differences in construction can make huge differences in feel.

IMHO, there is *zero* difference in feel between a Radial pin and a 3/8-10 pin. That's not to say one of my cues with a Radial pin will feel the same as a McDermott with a 3/8-10. I'm just saying the difference in the two pins themselves doesn't make a difference in the hit. (Yes, of course there's a significant difference in feel between a Radial and 5/16-14, but that wasn't the question, was it?) Once the cue is securely screwed together, the Radial and 3/8-10 pin are doing the exact same thing: holding the cue together with a wood-to-wood contact surface. Any infinitesimal differences in the shape of the screw are moot.

I'm sure there are hundreds, if not thousands, of players that will angrily disagree with me on that point. But, if you think about it at the smallest level (just the joint screw and the threaded hole in the shaft), once the cue is together, what *really* is the difference?!? The *only* difference is the contact surfaces between the joint screw and the threaded hole. The big question: is that difference *significant* as it pertains to playing pool.

If a structural engineer can show me *scientifically* that one of the two joint screws has a *SIGNIFICANT* difference in some dimension that makes one bit of difference when playing pool, then and only then will I believe there's any difference between the two. Until then, anyone that claims there's a difference in hit between a Radial pin and a 3/8-10 pin are simply expressing their opinion as to what they like.

Furthermore, when someone claims to prefer one pin over the other, it's probably because they are comparing the overall hit of two different cues with two different joint pins, and are incorrectly breaking everything down to the pin type. For example, if you like a Jacoby with a Radial pin, but don't like a McDermott with a 3/8-10 pin, it's much more likely that you prefer Jacoby's overall construction method rather than the Radial pin.

To address another point, any assertion that not all radial pins are the same is incorrect. There's a big difference between genuine Uni-Loc Radial pins (7.62 tpi or 3 threads per cm) and the aftermarket look-a-like "radial" pins (8 tpi). Yes, they look similar, but the difference in thread count makes them completely different. Just as a 3/8-10 pin is completely different from a 3/8-11 pin.

And finally, to answer the original question: I prefer the Radial pin for a number of reasons. I think the Radial pin has a cleaner design and looks better (Yeah, I know it sounds kinda stupid, but I prefer it.). And, as a cuemaker, I believe they are much easier to install and work on.
 
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I have a 3x8/10 and a 3x8/11 flat faced..........the 3x8/11 is much better....but i think it belongs to the flat faced technology.....
 

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Two best cues I've personally played with,

Keith Kustom - Indian rosewood plain jane, 3/8x10 pin.
(my buddy's cue local no-name guy)

Woody woodworth - Birdseye Plain Jane, Whatever radial he uses.
(Adam Behnke's pickle cue.)

They both hit a ton and i would gladly play with either.

I would say the total construction of the cue is far more important than the pin. Take a look at huebler's. They use a tiny pin and still play good. for that matter Schoen and Joss. Build quality much more important. IMO

Best,

Justin
 
i will probably not win brownie points with this respomce:o
it doesnt f@@king matter
its the indian not the arrow...:eek:
you guys that fret over pin/taper/joint/shaft/tip/full splice/short splice/
anything else you want to include are kidding yourselves
get on a table
tske lessons from s pro instructor
and lsarn how to plsy
:eek: :eek:
jmho
icbw
but i dont think so
:)
 
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