who's rockin it? what are your specs? why do you like/dislike it?
I hear pat johnson's footsteps out there...
I hear pat johnson's footsteps out there...
conical taper for pool
- Thread starter evergruven
- Start date
Yep...
I have a conical taper because my tip's narrow (10mm) and I like a stiff hit. Feeling the shaft get thicker as it slides through your bridge isn't for everybody*, but with my open bridge (and loose closed bridge**) I don't notice.
pj
chgo
* Some even claim they don't hit the CB where they planned - I don't believe that's a real problem.
** I don't believe a tight closed bridge does anything useful (except psychologically).
I use the same taper on my snooker and pool cues....modified conical.
....snooker 10.4 mm....pool 12.2 mm
I favor a closed bridge...the base is solid but the loop is flexible....
...so the pressure of my fingers on the cue is constant.
I think the perfect shape for any billiard game should be gradual from butt to tip.
I’ve seen a lot of pro taper cues warp right where the pro taper starts in the shaft...
...it becomes the weak link.
....snooker 10.4 mm....pool 12.2 mm
I favor a closed bridge...the base is solid but the loop is flexible....
...so the pressure of my fingers on the cue is constant.
I think the perfect shape for any billiard game should be gradual from butt to tip.
I’ve seen a lot of pro taper cues warp right where the pro taper starts in the shaft...
...it becomes the weak link.
Conical for me too. Tip ends about 12.7mm. Like them a bit on the thicker side.
I play with both a pro taper and one that has a bit less...is stiffer
No hugedifference, but definitely notable.
,
No hugedifference, but definitely notable.
,
I don't mind the feel, hit, or play of a conical taper, but I use a closed bridge on almost every shot and I don't like the way they "snag" on my follow through.
I use a very tight bridge and the fast "rise" causes me to have to loosen my bridge some.
I use a very tight bridge and the fast "rise" causes me to have to loosen my bridge some.
Is there a practical difference in outcome (not just personal preference) with your tight closed bridge vs. the looser one?
pj
chgo
I "feel" that I can "feel" the hit better with my tighter closed bridge and it gives me better control of the cue ball.
It is what is the most comfortable for me and I think it is a more sturdy bridge for ME.
I have played pool for over 50 years and I worked in a pool hall and have tried almost every type of taper available. For ME, I like a tight closed bridge and a pro taper. The taper can increase a bit, gradually, though my stroke length, but I don't like a sudden rise.
Also, when I'm sighting down the shaft, I like a gradual "glide slope" to the tip...I don't like looking down a fat shaft to a sudden drop off with a real skinny tip. A visual thing. I have shafts like that and they stay in the bag.
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I have played snooker and billiards with a pool cue. I have played pool with a snooker cue and a billiard cue.
I have played billiards with a pool cue and a snooker cue.
I prefer a pro taper but adapt to whatever.
Why do I prefer it? Played with it the most, that's all.
I do like a stiff cue. Probably those that don't really wouldn't like a conical taper. Just that simple.
I do like mixing it up and play with all my cues. Really shows the difference when you get them side by side.
.
I have played billiards with a pool cue and a snooker cue.
I prefer a pro taper but adapt to whatever.
Why do I prefer it? Played with it the most, that's all.
I do like a stiff cue. Probably those that don't really wouldn't like a conical taper. Just that simple.
I do like mixing it up and play with all my cues. Really shows the difference when you get them side by side.
.
With you here i am exact same way! Well stated!
hey, nice to see a few of y'all out there working with a cone ^_^
I like the hit of a house cue, but haven't yet invested seriously in a conically-tapered cue- still philosophizing over design and specs.
are you all using a standard cue length (57-58")? anyone lean towards a shorter length for control's sake? a la snooker, carom, etc..
pat, if you're reaching out on the cue ball, do you find that the chance of miscueing less, more, or the same with a smaller tip?
would you say that with the smaller tip, your cue isn't unlike a snooker cue, dimension-wise?
I like the hit of a house cue, but haven't yet invested seriously in a conically-tapered cue- still philosophizing over design and specs.
are you all using a standard cue length (57-58")? anyone lean towards a shorter length for control's sake? a la snooker, carom, etc..
pat, if you're reaching out on the cue ball, do you find that the chance of miscueing less, more, or the same with a smaller tip?
would you say that with the smaller tip, your cue isn't unlike a snooker cue, dimension-wise?
A little about tapers
I have a cue lathe laying around somewhere and once had a river of wood. Shafts cost me around fifteen dollars or so complete and ready to play with so I could experiment. I had to experiment in order to get my unique taper. Not that it is much different than others but it takes very little to change a hit and it would be no class to steal another builder's design even if it couldn't be proven.
I tried fourteen inches of zero taper, cylinder shaped. As expected it flexed just before where the taper started, almost fourteen inches from the tip. The area from the tip to 10-12" from the tip didn't flex but moved back and forth mightily since all of the flex was behind this section. Likewise, the tapered section didn't flex so basically I had a few inch pivot point, all of the shaft that was flexing.
A shaft should flex like a fishing rod, a little more all of the time as we get closer to the tip. We can't really tell that is what is happening hitting with it, or I can't. Sure could tell the one that flexed a foot back wasn't flexing like a fishing rod. Everyone in the pool hall heard my opinion of that shaft. SNAP! I didn't want to risk that shaft being dug out of the garbage and running around loose with my name on it. It was that bad! Perhaps some of the miracle shafts can get away with a straight cylinder shape in the pro section because of what is happening on the inside, I don't know. Honest maple won't allow it to work. I do find one to two millimeter a foot in the "pro taper" section to be enough to make the shaft flex properly.
european taper shafts or cone taper shafts, usually grow larger from right behind the tip but still don't have a constant taper all the way from tip to buttcap from what I have seen. These play great with open or closed bridge with one little caveat, when selecting the spot on the cue ball to hit you have to get the tip close to the cue ball. Some people are used to having the tip well away from the cue ball when selecting their target on the cue ball. When doing this, the tip will move slightly away from the strongest area of your bridge by the time it hits the cue ball, usually the bottom. Having a little problem drawing the rock, this may be why.
Everything I have said about the european taper shafts applies even more so with the evenly tapered cone shafts from tip to butt. These are easy to see, if perfect they will roll without daylight from tip to butt when checking them for straightness. I have played with house cues made like this. I didn't like them but it has been so long I don't remember why. Might have been the particular cues which were only a few, might have been the design. I would like to hit with a one piece cue made like this with a good ferrule and tip on it to form a more valid opinion. Also, "I didn't like them" with no reason why isn't much help to anyone else other than to possibly tell them to proceed with caution, hit with one before buying one.
When building a shaft I like to carry the butt taper down into the shaft for a ways. Then I like to use what has been called a parabolic taper which just means I put an "S" curve shape in the shaft. This allows for a very smooth transition from the taper at the joint to the taper in the section our hands ride on be it pro taper, modified pro taper, or modified cone. I have never done the math to see what size joint a pool cue would have if a constant taper design was used, perhaps that is why snooker cues are built with the joint closer to the three-quarter distance than half and half.
There is a book that could be written about shafts but I figure even this chapter is a bit long for internet consumption!
These are my thoughts based on my past mileage. As always, other's mileage may vary.
Hu
I have a cue lathe laying around somewhere and once had a river of wood. Shafts cost me around fifteen dollars or so complete and ready to play with so I could experiment. I had to experiment in order to get my unique taper. Not that it is much different than others but it takes very little to change a hit and it would be no class to steal another builder's design even if it couldn't be proven.
I tried fourteen inches of zero taper, cylinder shaped. As expected it flexed just before where the taper started, almost fourteen inches from the tip. The area from the tip to 10-12" from the tip didn't flex but moved back and forth mightily since all of the flex was behind this section. Likewise, the tapered section didn't flex so basically I had a few inch pivot point, all of the shaft that was flexing.
A shaft should flex like a fishing rod, a little more all of the time as we get closer to the tip. We can't really tell that is what is happening hitting with it, or I can't. Sure could tell the one that flexed a foot back wasn't flexing like a fishing rod. Everyone in the pool hall heard my opinion of that shaft. SNAP! I didn't want to risk that shaft being dug out of the garbage and running around loose with my name on it. It was that bad! Perhaps some of the miracle shafts can get away with a straight cylinder shape in the pro section because of what is happening on the inside, I don't know. Honest maple won't allow it to work. I do find one to two millimeter a foot in the "pro taper" section to be enough to make the shaft flex properly.
european taper shafts or cone taper shafts, usually grow larger from right behind the tip but still don't have a constant taper all the way from tip to buttcap from what I have seen. These play great with open or closed bridge with one little caveat, when selecting the spot on the cue ball to hit you have to get the tip close to the cue ball. Some people are used to having the tip well away from the cue ball when selecting their target on the cue ball. When doing this, the tip will move slightly away from the strongest area of your bridge by the time it hits the cue ball, usually the bottom. Having a little problem drawing the rock, this may be why.
Everything I have said about the european taper shafts applies even more so with the evenly tapered cone shafts from tip to butt. These are easy to see, if perfect they will roll without daylight from tip to butt when checking them for straightness. I have played with house cues made like this. I didn't like them but it has been so long I don't remember why. Might have been the particular cues which were only a few, might have been the design. I would like to hit with a one piece cue made like this with a good ferrule and tip on it to form a more valid opinion. Also, "I didn't like them" with no reason why isn't much help to anyone else other than to possibly tell them to proceed with caution, hit with one before buying one.
When building a shaft I like to carry the butt taper down into the shaft for a ways. Then I like to use what has been called a parabolic taper which just means I put an "S" curve shape in the shaft. This allows for a very smooth transition from the taper at the joint to the taper in the section our hands ride on be it pro taper, modified pro taper, or modified cone. I have never done the math to see what size joint a pool cue would have if a constant taper design was used, perhaps that is why snooker cues are built with the joint closer to the three-quarter distance than half and half.
There is a book that could be written about shafts but I figure even this chapter is a bit long for internet consumption!
These are my thoughts based on my past mileage. As always, other's mileage may vary.
Hu
Most players prefer the compound taper now.
The stroking section usually has one to three linear tapers.
The joint down closely matches the cue's forearm taper.
The most preferred taper is gradual up to some 2mm taper to the middle of the shaft. 2mm taper to the middle is considered stiff these days.
A conical taper would some 4mm taper to the middle.
Few custom makers like SW make curved taper.
The stroking section usually has one to three linear tapers.
The joint down closely matches the cue's forearm taper.
The most preferred taper is gradual up to some 2mm taper to the middle of the shaft. 2mm taper to the middle is considered stiff these days.
A conical taper would some 4mm taper to the middle.
Few custom makers like SW make curved taper.