Break cue questions

renard

renard

Play in these conditions?
Silver Member
About 12 years ago I purchaced (for cheap) a Cuetech Earl StricklandJump/Break Stick. It's 21oz. and soon after I bought a cheap stick that was 16oz. to test for myself if the lighter weight would make any differance on my break. The results were inconclusive as the ferrule mushroomed the wood of the shaft and eventually I gave the stick away (it broke later.)

I keep telling myself I'm going to purchase a good break stick. I think nows the time I'm gonna pull the trigger on that notion. My question to the all knowing forum is:

1) I really didnt feel much differance in weight what weight would you purchase?

2) There are many break sticks out there list your top five in order. With a brief description of the pros and cons of each (no matter how minute the detailed description.)
 
I have a 19.5 ounce sledgehammer. i like the weight. i dont like really light break cues because of loss of control and i dont like really heavy break cues because of loss of power. i think 19.5 is perfect for me. for me its the perfect balance of power and control. JMHO FWIW.
 
cgfx said:
I have a 19.5 ounce sledgehammer. i like the weight. i dont like really light break cues because of loss of control and i dont like really heavy break cues because of loss of power. i think 19.5 is perfect for me. for me its the perfect balance of power and control. JMHO FWIW.
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What type of tip does the Sledgehammer have on it? Is it 13mm? Also is the butt of the cue a smaller more slender diameter? Again is it evenly balanced, forward balanced, or butt heavy?
 
i dont know the exact diametet but its over 13. it is kind of buttheavy. the handle on mine is kind of thin.
 
i have an 18oz sledgehammer i really like.......the tip is phenolic, its supposed to be unbreakable and last forever i think. To me, I can break harder with a lighter stick, and it seems like i can not break as hard, with much more control, and get same or better results than a heavier stick. Another thing i really like about the sledge is its an excellent jump cue.......i can jump over a full ball thats just a piece of chalk away.......or i can jump over a full ball thats 2 foot away, and b4 I bought this cue I wasnt good at jumping at all.
 
I've had several....

Sledgehammer 19oz
CueTec J/B 21oz
Custom Sneaky w/ Phenolic tip 18.75oz
Custom Specialized J/B w/ Phenolic tip 17.75oz with 14mm tip
Mace 19.5oz
Predator BK


Everything was pretty much the same for the breaking...the one notable exceptions is the Custom Specialize J/B is the greatest jump cue I've ever used (I like it better than the stealth jumper which used to hold that spot).

Right now, I'm breaking with an 18oz Dufferin sneaky, with a treated (soaked in urine) and pressed (in a vice for 20 minutes) sumo tip, and it breaks as good as all the rest, and I have better cueball control than I did with the phenolic tips....

I did try one thing, on one of the J/B's with the phenolic tips, I cut small grooves in the end of the tip (sort of like treads on a tire) it didn't help with holding chalk, but I did seem to get a little more cueball control out of it (could have all been mental though.).

Hope this helps, though it will probably confuse you more.
 
cgfx said:
i dont know the exact diametet but its over 13. it is kind of buttheavy. the handle on mine is kind of thin.
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I like a thin butt, and I really don't know if a buttheavy cue would be an adverse feel for me. I'm hearing that some break cues have the 14mm shaft along the lines of the jump cues and I wonder if this makes a differance.
 
Pigcarver said:
I've had several....

Sledgehammer 19oz
CueTec J/B 21oz
Custom Sneaky w/ Phenolic tip 18.75oz
Custom Specialized J/B w/ Phenolic tip 17.75oz with 14mm tip
Mace 19.5oz
Predator BK


Everything was pretty much the same for the breaking...the one notable exceptions is the Custom Specialize J/B is the greatest jump cue I've ever used (I like it better than the stealth jumper which used to hold that spot).

Right now, I'm breaking with an 18oz Dufferin sneaky, with a treated (soaked in urine) and pressed (in a vice for 20 minutes) sumo tip, and it breaks as good as all the rest, and I have better cueball control than I did with the phenolic tips....

I did try one thing, on one of the J/B's with the phenolic tips, I cut small grooves in the end of the tip (sort of like treads on a tire) it didn't help with holding chalk, but I did seem to get a little more cueball control out of it (could have all been mental though.).

Hope this helps, though it will probably confuse you more.
Click to expand...

Thanks, you have a lot of info in your post. It seems you prefer a break stick along the lines of your playing cue in weight. I have a phenolic tip on my jump cue and its tough to keep chalk on it. So i'm sort of leary of the phenolic's but I believe results will outweight any reservations I might have.

So what your saying is just the tip on a Dufferin sneaky gives you the same results as the Sledge, Predator, etc. Or results close to-but with better control.
 
scottycoyote said:
i have an 18oz sledgehammer i really like.......the tip is phenolic, its supposed to be unbreakable and last forever i think. To me, I can break harder with a lighter stick, and it seems like i can not break as hard, with much more control, and get same or better results than a heavier stick. Another thing i really like about the sledge is its an excellent jump cue.......i can jump over a full ball thats just a piece of chalk away.......or i can jump over a full ball thats 2 foot away, and b4 I bought this cue I wasnt good at jumping at all.
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Do you control the stick jumping with a normal grip? Or do you throw it spear-like when your jumping balls? Is your regular cue 18oz.?
 
renard said:
Thanks, you have a lot of info in your post. It seems you prefer a break stick along the lines of your playing cue in weight. I have a phenolic tip on my jump cue and its tough to keep chalk on it. So i'm sort of leary of the phenolic's but I believe results will outweight any reservations I might have.

So what your saying is just the tip on a Dufferin sneaky gives you the same results as the Sledge, Predator, etc. Or results close to-but with better control.
Click to expand...

I think what I'm saying is more....a well built stiff hitting cue with a hard tip will give you the same results breaking as a Predator/Sledge/Mace etc.

When it comes down to it, the Phenolic tip makes little or no difference on the breaking for a J/B other than a loss of cueball control (this is assuming that you have a very hard tip on your break cue, and it is cut down to a minnimum). The Phenolic part is just for the jumping, and even then, you don't need it...the best jump cue I've jumped with (stealth...props to Ned Morris) has nothing more than a compressed water buffalo.

If you want to go phenolic, or more "high tech" if you will, a buddy of mine bought one of those x-breakers, and it breaks and jumps pretty damn well if you ask me.

Just remember what Earl says "all the phenolic tips and short cues in the worl ain't gonna make you a champ if you ain't got no stroke"

Quite elegant...

Use a well built cue...a hard tip that is not too tall....and work on your stroke....work on speed to the cueball....work on hitting the one ball completely square and controlling the rock....otherwise, when they actually do have a REAL governing body for pool someday, and they outlaw all this stuff, you're gonna kick yourself for not learning how to jump with your playing cue...
 
Jump a couple ..

Tried a Sledge and a BK, didn't notice much difference
than a custom Sneaky with a hard leather tip.

I have done quite a bit of research on the XBreaker.
A couple of reports on them on other forums has been
good. One guy was convinced that they had produced
a superior product.

and I have decided to get one in a couple of months.
I want it as much for the jump stick as the break.

I don't buy unless I'm convinced that I will get bang for the buck.
 
Oh, and along the lines of weight of the cue....

Yes, I like them the same weight or a little lighter....I think Bob Jewett demonstrated on several occasion that a lighter cue is indeed superior for breaking (provided your stroke is well tuned)...the lighter cue is more difficult to control, because it's moving faster...a heavier cue, the weight helps a bit, but it is offset by the fact that you can't move it anywhere near as fast (unless you're Larry Nevel)

As far as what's right for you....go to a pool hall....start breaking racks with every house cue you can find....when you find one that feels good, and you're getting the results you want (break wise) get the cue weighed...it'll probably be the right weight for you to break with.
 
I am glad to hear that someone on this forum like the X Breaker. Thank you.

Speaking of stroke, I met Larry Nevel in the US Open and he could draw the cue ball table length with the Xtreme Tip(which is harder than any phenolic tip)! He made it look so easy it blew my mind away! If you want to watch the video, it is posted on the X Breaker site here.

Thank you.

Richard
 
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nipponbilliards said:
I am glad to hear that someone on this forum like the X Breaker. Thank you.

Speaking of stroke, I met Larry Nevel in the US Open and he could draw the cue ball table length with the Xtreme Tip(which is harder than any phenolic tip)! He made it look so easy it blew my mind away! If you want to watch the video, it is posted on the X Breaker site here.

Thank you.

Richard
Click to expand...

Does this tip hold chalk pretty well?
 
nipponbilliards said:
I am glad to hear that someone on this forum like the X Breaker. Thank you.

Speaking of stroke, I met Larry Nevel in the US Open and he could draw the cue ball table length with the Xtreme Tip(which is harder than any phenolic tip)! He made it look so easy it blew my mind away! If you want to watch the video, it is posted on the X Breaker site here.

Thank you.

Richard
Click to expand...

In all the years that I've played I have not found a break stick that fairs as well as a house stick. I should try one.
 
renard said:
Does this tip hold chalk pretty well?
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Good question.
For a very long time, phenolic tip has known to have the problem of not holding chalk. Most player would use tip pik or other kinds of scuffing tools to make chalk stay better but usually it does not really work very well. The tip is also very noisy and sounds like broken glass.
When you think about it, a very hard tip can never be porous at the same time. If it is porous, it would have a low density and therefore will not be very hard. If it is not porous, how can chalk stay?
At Xtreme Billiard Concepts, we have come up with our patented Xtreme tip to solve this problem. The Xtreme tip holds chalk very well and it has a very quiet hit. The reason is because the Xtreme tip can bond with the Ca 2+ ion in chalk via a eletrostatic force. Although the Xtreme tip is much harder than any phenolic tip, it does not require any tip piking or scuffing. When you chalk your X Breaker, you will not hear the broken glass sound you normally expect to hear with a phenolic tip.
It is hard for me to explain this in a few sentences. Please check the data chart here. I know some of you may find this hard to believe or comprehend, you may want to watch the videos and listen to how quiet the tip sounded. Here is the FAQ section which you may find helpful.
I hope this would help to answer your questions. Thank you very much for your interest in the X Breaker.

Richard
 
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My break stick is a Cuetec Strickland J.B. / 18oz. / waterbuffallo tip / works perfeclty for me. I'm a small dude 5'6" / 150lbs but I can waste the rack if needed.

My only other comment would be, I rarely break as hard as I can. I will use a controlled cut break, or maybe a little off speed to gain cueball control at all cost! I've beat alot of guys when I was breaking half speed with control, and they were unleashing the cannon, and scratching, or jumping off the table.....G
 
pete lafond said:
In all the years that I've played I have not found a break stick that fairs as well as a house stick. I should try one.
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And I, in all my years, have never found anything to work as well for a smooth shaft as simply having clean and dry hands.

Once I clean my hands, the shaft glides like a well oiled piston. I need no lubricants, no teflon, no gloves, and no additives of any sort.

Now, I know many people for whom this method does not work as well and so they are very happy to have gloves and shaft treatments. They are very glad that someone took the time to develop these things.

I know many people who are very happy that some people have taken the time to study the dynamics of the break and the jump shots in order to build cues for those purposes. I, myself was very happy breaking with my cue, a house cue or any cue for that matter. Until I decided to actually use a break/jump cue and noticed the difference for myself.

Brings to mind the old saying, don't knock it until you have tried it.

John :-)
 
nipponbilliards said:
Good question.
For a very long time, phenolic tip has known to have the problem of not holding chalk. Most player would use tip pik or other kinds of scuffing tools to make chalk stay better but usually it does not really work very well. The tip is also very noisy and sounds like broken glass.
When you think about it, a very hard tip can never be porous at the same time. If it is porous, it would have a low density and therefore will not be very hard. If it is not porous, how can chalk stay?
At Xtreme Billiard Concepts, we have come up with our patented Xtreme tip to solve this problem. The Xtreme tip holds chalk very well and it has a very quiet hit. The reason is because the Xtreme tip can bond with the Ca 2+ ion in chalk via a eletrostatic force. Although the Xtreme tip is much harder than any phenolic tip, it does not require any tip piking or scuffing. When you chalk your X Breaker, you will not hear the broken glass sound you normally expect to hear with a phenolic tip.
It is hard for me to explain this in a few sentences. Please check the data chart here. I know some of you may find this hard to believe or comprehend, you may want to watch the videos and listen to how quiet the tip sounded. Here is the FAQ section which you may find helpful.
I hope this would help to answer your questions. Thank you very much for your interest in the X Breaker.

Richard
Click to expand...

Actually, any phenolic tip will hold chalk very well and allow for maximum spin to be applied to the cueball. I play pool and gamble using a break jump cue with a phenolic tip. One night in Vegas I tortured several UPA "pros" using the Fury Jump Break Cue only for several hours on the bar box. Granted, the guys I played weren't household names but they could run out - and they could not believe that I was running out effortlessly with the phenolic tipped cue. This was without any preparation to the tip. If you use a TipPik then it can hold more chalk but I found it to be unnecessary, as I got the same performance either way.

John
 
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