anyone use front hand english exclusively?

[ShootingArts]

Just a question of idle curiosity, do any of you use front hand english exclusively or almost exclusively? For the sake of this thread I'm not talking about using it in combination with parallel or back hand english but as a stand alone way to apply english.

Hu

 

[Banks]

If somebody asked me what kind of english I use, I wouldn't know what to tell them.

 

[AngryTurtle]

I am in the midst of experimenting with this at the moment. I started out using parallel english, then tried front hand and back hand after learning about them here. Backhand always overcompensates for me (too much), so at the moment, I am using Front hand only. Just to add to the mix I am also using a LD shaft, and a regular. Given all this, tomorrow, of course could be different!

 

[ronscuba]

Not exclusive.

When using a LD shaft like the Mezz WD700, I use front hand then slightly adjust.

For medium deflection shaft like the Mezz Alpha, I use back hand then slightly adjust.

Adjustments done for stroke speed, bridge length, cue angle, etc..

 

[hang-the-9]

Just a question of idle curiosity, do any of you use front hand english exclusively or almost exclusively? For the sake of this thread I'm not talking about using it in combination with parallel or back hand english but as a stand alone way to apply english.

Hu

I line up the spin I want as I'm aiming. Meaning if I want left spin, my tip is aming on the left when I get down on the shot. I don't aim center then move my tip left. I guess that is front hand english. Does not mean that's the right way as I've been at the game for over 20 years and am still not an A player, so I'd guess half the things I do could be done better.

 

[KRJ]

Just a question of idle curiosity, do any of you use front hand english exclusively or almost exclusively? For the sake of this thread I'm not talking about using it in combination with parallel or back hand english but as a stand alone way to apply english.

Hu

Hu, you should explain what you mean by "FHE" as many folks may not know they are using it because they don't have a name for it

 

[DallasHopps]

I feel like, if I were to attempt all of the assorted methods of aiming and englishing discussed on this forum, my cue would somehow end up turned around in my hands and I would no longer be able to discern the colors of the balls on the table.

Incredibly, my iPad accepted englishing as a word without indicating it was a misspelling or suggesting an alternative. I therefore move that the act of applying side spin to a cue ball be referred to henceforth as 'englishing'.

 

[ShootingArts]

good point

Hu, you should explain what you mean by "FHE" as many folks may not know they are using it because they don't have a name for it

A good point, Thanks!

Front hand english as I define it and the only way I know to describe it is when you physically move your bridge hand over in the direction you want to apply english. This doesn't mean set the hand down and then move it although you can, with practice I'm sure the front hand drops into position automatically on most or all shots.

The difference between front hand english and parallel english is that the back hand does not move over the same distance as the front hand but only moves to realign on target to pocket the ball. The effect is much the same as back hand english except the mechanical pivot axis is the grip hand rather than the bridge hand. As a result the cue is much closer to in alignment with the shot than using back hand english, but not perfectly in alignment only offset the way parallel english is.

Hu

 

[Pete]

I do. I don't understand how anyone can pivot the back hand and stroke straight:sorry:...

 

[Allen Brown]

I just stroke straight. Ive found that Im more accurate this way with shot making and shape control.

 

[ENGLISH!]

Hi Hu,

Is that one of the 7 dwarfs I hear.

I have very often used just FHE over the course of years playing & still do. But I did not use just it over the same time frame.

By that I mean I also used 'parallel' & combo FHE/BHE, along with the occasional BHE alone but much more rarely than any of the others.

By the way, who is the woman in the pic you posted in Portraits of Beauty?
I'm not sure I recognise her.

Best to Y'a,
Rick

 

[Aaron_S]

Front hand is the only thing I use consciously. I know that my back hand is doing things that I'm not sensing, however, so to be fair I'd have to say I use a combination of FHE and BHE.

 

[TheNewSharkster]

My instructor only uses front hand english when playing inside spin. I wont mention his name but he is a pro player.

Personally I cant do it because of the massive amount of deflection. Maybe if I used a LD shaft it would be easier to compensate.

 

[iusedtoberich]

Can of worms but I personally believe it's impossible to use any single specific method on every shot, or even on "most" shots. The combination of squirt, swerve, throw, speed, cloth, bridge length, impeding balls to bridge, cue elevation, etc, preclude one from using the exact same technique every shot.

That's my opinion. Yours may vary

 

[dr_dave]

Can of worms but I personally believe it's impossible to use any single specific method on every shot, or even on "most" shots. The combination of squirt, swerve, throw, speed, cloth, bridge length, impeding balls to bridge, cue elevation, etc, preclude one from using the exact same technique every shot.

Agreed. FHE is appropriate on certain types of shots (e.g., long, slow shots), BHE is appropriate on others (e.g., short or fast shots), and appropriate combinations of FHE and BHE are required on all shots in between. For much more information on this topic, see:

back-hand (BHE) and front-hand english (FHE)

The alternative is to aim without any pivot whatsoever, aligning the cue in the necessary direction to compensate for squirt, swerve, and throw, based on years of practice and successful experience. To do this, one must have a solid understanding and/or intuition of important squirt, swerve, and throw effects.

Regards,
Dave

 

[Jaden]

Do you understand how to find the cues pivot point???

I am in the midst of experimenting with this at the moment. I started out using parallel english, then tried front hand and back hand after learning about them here. Backhand always overcompensates for me (too much), so at the moment, I am using Front hand only. Just to add to the mix I am also using a LD shaft, and a regular. Given all this, tomorrow, of course could be different!

If you're using an LD shaft and you bridge normally, it WILL overcompensate because the pivot point on an LD shaft is farther back.

I currently bridge at about 15" with my LD shaft to use BHE...

Jaden

 

[Tramp Steamer]

When I was young, and used poor English, my mother sometimes used her front hand, and her back hand.

 

[dr_dave]

Agreed. FHE is appropriate on certain types of shots (e.g., long, slow shots), BHE is appropriate on others (e.g., short or fast shots), and appropriate combinations of FHE and BHE are required on all shots in between. For much more information on this topic, see:

back-hand (BHE) and front-hand english (FHE)

The alternative is to aim without any pivot whatsoever, aligning the cue in the necessary direction to compensate for squirt, swerve, and throw, based on years of practice and successful experience. To do this, one must have a solid understanding and/or intuition of important squirt, swerve, and throw effects.

Regards,
Dave

Another alternative is to vary cue elevation to allow pure "parallel english" on every shot (if you are good at judging the cue elevation required to have swerve cancel the effects of swerve and throw on every shot). I certainly would not recommend this approach, but some people seem to suggest it.

For more info, see parallel english.

Regards,
Dave

 

[iusedtoberich]

Incidentally, the past few days I've been working on this drill from Joe Tucker's Guaranteed Improvement book, called "Ten Across". The object is to make all 10 balls in any order, and each time, bring the CB past the center string. You do it for 10 racks, and keep score. 100 would be perfect.

I've learned so much doing this. The repetition of the same shots is showing me how to hit each one. Shots on the exact same line, if they are further or shorter, require a different aim. Its really teaching me. (And sometimes frustrating me, lol). I know I'm not a good player, but I just can't believe when people say they do the same thing for every shot. Yet when I go through this drill, the shot is different each time. I'm even noticing something tiny like a 2 or 3 deg elevation change in the butt changes the "aim". I don't have it all figured out yet, but my eyes are opening to all the combined affects of squirt, swerve, throw ( both CIT, SIT), and what affects each one.

Anyway, its a great drill. The highest I got thus far was 71 pocketed balls out of a possible 100. It takes about half an hour to go through 10 racks. Highly recommend the drill and the book!

 

[ShootingArts]

Hi Hu,

Is that one of the 7 dwarfs I hear.

I have very often used just FHE over the course of years playing & still do. But I did not use just it over the same time frame.

By that I mean I also used 'parallel' & combo FHE/BHE, along with the occasional BHE alone but much more rarely than any of the others.

By the way, who is the woman in the pic you posted in Portraits of Beauty?
I'm not sure I recognise her.

Best to Y'a,
Rick

I'm just genuinely curious if anyone uses primarily front hand english for most of their shots with english. No ulterior motive, might try to use it more myself.



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Hu