break stick important?

[dr_dave]

I have always broke well with my play cue and was wondering how important you think it is to have a break cue?

I think the most important characteristic of a break cue is it's natural pivot length. If the pivot length matches your preferred bridge length for the break, your break accuracy and consistency will be much better. For more info, see my November '07 Billiards Digest article and NV B.71 - Back-hand English (BHE), from VEPS II.

Regards,
Dave

 

[QMAKER]

Denali break cues

Here is some info I received this morning that might help.

Priority: Normal Date: Saturday, September 10, 2011 2:47 AM Size: 21 KB

Hello Bob ,

got the cue yesterday and the cue looks fantastic .
In the evening i gave it a try and i can say i was impressed .
Hits way better then my BK2 and the cueball control is excellent .
If i knew 7 months earlier i would have bought also a playing cue from you
but back then i ordered
a Keith Josey that is coming my way in about two weeks time .
But maybe in the future who knows ?????

Thanks for a great breaker ,

Christoph

 

[RRfireblade]

Its as important as you want it to be.

Can you break with your player? Sure.
Cue off the rack? Sure.

Thing is for me, I want to feel comfortable laying into the break when I want to and not worring about hurting my player. Smashing the tip,cracking an Ivory ferrule,stressing the joint. Let be honest , something things don't always go as planned.

Yet consistancy and accuracy on the break is as important as any other shot IMO and I'd also prefer to break with a cue I 'know' as well as my player.

Therefore.... I have a dedicated break cue.

So......

I've had quite a few and honestly I don't theres a ton of 'performance' to be gained. In fact, theres no "power" in a break cue anyway, only possibly power to be lost. So give me a stout shaft, wood on wood joint and a hard tip and I'm good to go.

Of course since I'm vain I have a custom built perfectly matched break cue to match my player. Its a stunning selection of exotic woods and fine craftmanship and cost way more than a break should be hey , what the hell are we in it for anyway.

 

[Cues R Fun]

Personal choice

I think it all comes down to your own personal choice as to what you want to break with.

However, I do believe it depends on what your playing cue has as a shaft/tip to help determine your choice.

If you have a full sized (13 mm) low flex (laminated) shaft with a hard tip, it will probably break just fine. If you have a smaller shaft, you may have to be more accurate in hitting the cue ball. If you play with a standard maple shaft, you would get more flex and vibration, which may take something off the hit as compared to a stouter shaft. If you have a soft to medium tip on your playing cue and break with it, over time you may be losing some life of the tip and have to replace it sooner.

I play with a 11.75 mm Predator Z2 shaft or OB-2 (I switch around sometimes) with a medium tip on my playing cue. So, I don't feel that comfortable breaking with it. I don't have as much control on the break. So, I use a Mezz PB DI to break with and I love it. So does everyone I meet that tries it out. It seems to ram through the rack much harder with less energy than a play cue needs. You can feel and hear the difference on the impact of the break. If I am playing for several hours, where I may be breaking a lot, my shoulder feels much better afterward if I use the break cue as opposed to a playing cue. (I have a torn rotator cuff, so, it helps the wear and tear on my shoulder).

JMHO