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chuckg

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I usually play with a B Owen cue with a Lucasi 0 Flexpoint shaft but I decided to go old school and shoot with my Dufferin conversion cue . I pulled it out of it's case and noticed the tip was very flat and had a bit of a mushroom and I had no tip tools with me . I will make it work .
I played a few hours with it and was hitting them pretty could.....I think I was really concentrating on my psr and aiming . I did not notice much deflection in the old full splice warrior . I might just start playing with the regular wood shafts that came with the Owen . I was just about ready to join the cf club but will wait a bit yet .

Chuckg
 
If you look at the taper of Bob’s cue shafts you’ll see he uses a different taper. The length of the shaft starting at the shaft collar keeps it original shape for a longer length before the taper starts than all my other cues. I noticed it 10 years ago when Bob made my 1st cue. The hit/feel of my cue was different and better than my other cues. I took all my cue shafts and laid them side by side……22 cues shafts…….10 different cues. It was immediately apparent that the taper Bob uses was different; the cue shaft’s original diameter extended further before the taper starts on my, or any of my friends’, cues.

I spoke with Bob about this because I wanted to know if it was purposefully done to affect feel or performance of the
cue. He told me he found that his pool cues play a little better with this shape. Well, he was being modest. Bob Owen
cues play a lot better than most cues you’ll get to own. I am one of Bob’s biggest fans but not only because of his cue making skills which I consider superb. He is one of the most gracious and affable persons I ever met. He answers the
phone, doesn’t ever give you a run around about your cue underway, and he delivers the finished cue on schedule.
 
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I don’t much like my Owen 12.5mm shaft. but really enjoy playing with the 11.75mm. The hit with it leaves little to be desired from a cue. The 12.5 never gets used. But I have it if I ever want to sell which probably won’t happen. His keilwood plays nice too at 12mm.
 
Took me over a month and over a dozen shaft blanks to make the same discovery. Shafts are amazingly sensitive to how far you bring down the butt's matching taper into the shaft and the type of transition you use. A plain curve into the slow taper part of the shaft will work, an S curve often called a parabolic taper, works a lot better.

I found it amazing how much an inch or so of stiffer taper near the joint makes. Wood still has a lot to offer although I suspect CF will take over. I would like to work with the inside taper of the tube.

Hu
 
ShootingArts said:
Took me over a month and over a dozen shaft blanks to make the same discovery. Shafts are amazingly sensitive to how far you bring down the butt's matching taper into the shaft and the type of transition you use. A plain curve into the slow taper part of the shaft will work, an S curve often called a parabolic taper, works a lot better.

I found it amazing how much an inch or so of stiffer taper near the joint makes. Wood still has a lot to offer although I suspect CF will take over. I would like to work with the inside taper of the tube.

Hu
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I too was startled by the difference extending the original shaft diameter a little further than most other cue makers use.
It was a subtle difference, not one where you think….Oh, wow! The tactile feel is just different than with other shafts. I think I noticed it faster because my cues have the same specs and tips. I could tell right away Bob’s cues felt better. And I am comparing my Owen cues with a Tim Scruggs and Ed Prewitt custom cue and a couple of great Jerry R.cues. Bob came up with this nuance difference in shaft design and darn, he discovered it matters a lot. I’m one of Bob’s few customers that noticed he even uses a different cue shaft shape. Most Owen cue owners just enjoy the real difference this makes.
 
I noticed when I got my Owen I liked one shaft over the other .....both are 12.8 mm with med kamui tips . Look like twins but play a bit different .

Chuckg
 
Bavafongoul said:
I too was startled by the difference extending the original shaft diameter a little further than most other cue makers use.
It was a subtle difference, not one where you think….Oh, wow! The tactile feel is just different than with other shafts. I think I noticed it faster because my cues have the same specs and tips. I could tell right away Bob’s cues felt better. And I am comparing my Owen cues with a Tim Scruggs and Ed Prewitt custom cue and a couple of great Jerry R.cues. Bob came up with this nuance difference in shaft design and darn, he discovered it matters a lot. I’m one of Bob’s few customers that noticed he even uses a different cue shaft shape. Most Owen cue owners just enjoy the real difference this makes.
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I was working on other things too but "my" shaft taper and profile were on my mind for a month or more. I was amazed how much subtle changes not obvious to most people changed how a shaft performed.

A few shafts that looked just like others performed entirely differently. I am not into destroying equipment but I snapped a shaft in the middle of Buffalo's pool hall before throwing it in the garbage. It was so bad I didn't want my name ever associated with that shaft! Brand new shaft, heads turned when it hit the trash!

Although we aren't particularly aware of it a shaft has to flex much like a fishing rod, more at the tip and gradually stiffer. The shaft I snapped didn't flex until maybe 14" behind the tip where the "pro taper" section ended. The entire pro taper section stayed straight. By far and away the worst shaft I ever turned. I was learning though and sometimes a little blood has to be spilled to learn!

Hu
 
chuckg said:
I noticed when I got my Owen I liked one shaft over the other .....both are 12.8 mm with med kamui tips . Look like twins but play a bit different .

Chuckg
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ShootingArts said:
I was working on other things too but "my" shaft taper and profile were on my mind for a month or more. I was amazed how much subtle changes not obvious to most people changed how a shaft performed.

A few shafts that looked just like others performed entirely differently. I am not into destroying equipment but I snapped a shaft in the middle of Buffalo's pool hall before throwing it in the garbage. It was so bad I didn't want my name ever associated with that shaft! Brand new shaft, heads turned when it hit the trash!

Although we aren't particularly aware of it a shaft has to flex much like a fishing rod, more at the tip and gradually stiffer. The shaft I snapped didn't flex until maybe 14" behind the tip where the "pro taper" section ended. The entire pro taper section stayed straight. By far and away the worst shaft I ever turned. I was learning though and sometimes a little blood has to be spilled to learn!

Hu
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That happened with one shaft that I ordered from Viking. 11.75mm. Same as a few others I own, but it played like shit! I broke it in half just like Hu and ordered another. I might not like the 12.5mm mentioned before because all my players have been 12mm or less for a long time. I’m used to the bit of extra give they offer. That 11.75 played stiff as hell compared to the rest of them. Kind of like a chunky house cue. If I want a house cue hit I’ll grab one off the wall or buy another Joss.
 
Willowbrook Wolfy said:
That happened with one shaft that I ordered from Viking. 11.75mm. Same as a few others I own, but it played like shit! I broke it in half just like Hu and ordered another. I might not like the 12.5mm mentioned before because all my players have been 12mm or less for a long time. I’m used to the bit of extra give they offer. That 11.75 played stiff as hell compared to the rest of them. Kind of like a chunky house cue. If I want a house cue hit I’ll grab one off the wall or buy another Joss.
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Funny thing, when I gambled nightly for ten or twelve years I never took my hinged cue with me. Late sixties to eighties that marked you. Now everybody totes one so no big deal. I still enjoy playing off the wall. In general house cues are much better these days and there is a freedom to leaving case and cues behind. A tiny square of scotchbrite or sandpaper, a BRAD tool, rock and roll!

Hu
 
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