Cue Maker Tip Choices

Shooter08

Shooter08

Runde Aficianado
Silver Member
If a experienced custom cue maker uses a specific tip on their SS joint cues and another different specific tip on all of their phenolic joint cues it would seem to me they feel that the tip they have chosen for each is the ideal tip for the hit they want to achieve.

If you go and change the tip to something else it would seem you are no longer achieving the hit that the custom builder was striving for. I tried several tips after the original wore out on my playing cue and did not like how any of them performed, so I went back to what the builder originally had installed and I'm back to being happy even though the tips I tried are generally considered to be "better" for lack of a another term.

Am i just over thinking this and bias because I liked how the cue played initially or does the cue maker prefer you to use the tip they recommend and install by their own choice?

What makes me curious is if I test another custom cue and it does not have the tip of choice of the builder installed am I really getting the hit intended by that maker? The tip by itself could lend me to not like the cue even though it may play great with the tip the builder intended it to have. Does this make sense to anyone else, or am I over analyzing?
 
cue warantee

good customer, finds a crack in the shaft of a cue i sold him, gets in touch and i tell him to return the cue and i will take care of the problem.

cue arrive and i look at the shaft and there is a crack, so i start cutting a replacement.

getting ready to match the shaft to the butt, i notice the bumperless cue now has a compression bumper, i notice the cue is much lighter, i remove the bumper and there is a 3/4 inch hole about 3 - 4 inches long and a 1/2 inch hole much deeper.

the 19 oz cue is now 17.6 oz.

there was no filler in the hole, what are the chances the butt will crack because of the big empty drilled hole and the compression bumper, what if the guy slams the butt on the floor ?

i waranteed the shaft, but sent a message the butt was now his problem.
 
Chuck, do you install or recommend a specific tip on your cues, or just put whatever the customer wants on and how do you feel about this personally? THx, Tom
 
I would NEVER tell someone what kind of tip they should use. Either on a cue I built, or one that someone else did. And I'd probably never deign to assume I could somehow match a tip to the joint of a cue. :confused:
Way over-analyzing, IMO. Find a tip you like, and use them!
 
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I'm with Sheldon regarding recommending a tip based on a joint. I can't fathom that...over thinking.

I do sometimes recommend or give my preference of tip with a certain ferrule. For example, I prefer a hard tip with an antler ferrule, and a medium with something like melamine. That doesn't mean my preference would be the customer's though. Customer gets whatever tip he prefers without any coercion from me.
 
Is there such a thing as a "general" formula for matching a tip to a ferrule? For example, is a harder ferrule usually matched with a harder tip or the opposite? Do you use a softer tip with a softer ferrule?

I haven't experimented with ferrules as much as I have tips, so I don't have a "hands-on-playing" feeling of the various combinations that can be used.

I use a Pooldawg milk dud on my Meucci Pro shaft at the moment and it gives ME a BETTER feel for the ball than the original tip did. Actually, it subdued some of the "accidental" spin I was putting on the ball from my stroke not being as good as it should be.

I have a couple cues that I want to experiment with, but I don't want to spend $20 or more a tip just to play around. I have a custom Mike Pancerny shaft that he made for me when he converted my old Titlist and I want to to "tighten" up the cue ball a bit from all the spin the Black Kamui SS tip gives it. I haven't played with this shaft much so I may be able to do it by cutting the tip down some...it sits SUPER tall. I think I'll try cutting about half of it off and seeing if that helps. I assume this will change the playing characteristics quite a bit. If not, I'll go to something harder.
 
HawaiianEye said:
Is there such a thing as a "general" formula for matching a tip to a ferrule? For example, is a harder ferrule usually matched with a harder tip or the opposite? Do you use a softer tip with a softer ferrule?

I haven't experimented with ferrules as much as I have tips, so I don't have a "hands-on-playing" feeling of the various combinations that can be used.

I use a Pooldawg milk dud on my Meucci Pro shaft at the moment and it gives ME a BETTER feel for the ball than the original tip did. Actually, it subdued some of the "accidental" spin I was putting on the ball from my stroke not being as good as it should be.

I have a couple cues that I want to experiment with, but I don't want to spend $20 or more a tip just to play around. I have a custom Mike Pancerny shaft that he made for me when he converted my old Titlist and I want to to "tighten" up the cue ball a bit from all the spin the Black Kamui SS tip gives it. I haven't played with this shaft much so I may be able to do it by cutting the tip down some...it sits SUPER tall. I think I'll try cutting about half of it off and seeing if that helps. I assume this will change the playing characteristics quite a bit. If not, I'll go to something harder.
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I will reply to this since I broached the subject. I don't know of a general rule. All I know is the subtle differences I prefer. For me, it is how it feels. I won't make any claims about extra spin or removing unintended spin.

I prefer a hard tip on an antler ferrule because I think antler is very solid but not as pingy or hard hard hitting as a melamine. That is why I would prefer a medium tip on a melamine ferrule...to sort of even things out. It's pretty subtle though. It could also just be in my mind.
 
I also agree with Sheldon concerning a customers tip choice.

BTW, I tend to agree with most things he comments on and have learned a lot from his posts over the years.

Rick
 
There is a feel that I like in a cue. And the tip I use to achieve that feel does go good with the ferrule I use. Now if I changed to a different ferrule I might also change tips. But having said that. Not everyone will like the feel of the normal tip I use. So they are free to use whatever they want.

A top rated player from Missouri had one of my cues and I heard he quit using it. The next time I talked to him I asked him why and he said he had someone install a new tip on it and no longer cared for the way it played. So I put him another tip like the original one on it and he went right back to using my cue. As far as I can tell the only difference in the tips was that the other guy did not re-press his tip before installing.
 
Most of my cues come with pressed triangles. I like the way they play and are a good medium tip. Also because the triangles are cheap. I figure half the people will replace the tips on a new cue. To what ever tip they are used to playing with. Why put a $30 tip on when half will get cut off anyway.

Larry
 
Cueman, that is exactly what I was talking about, the cue hitting the way the builder intended. I loved the way my Runde cue played with the original tip, tried a few different tips and it just wasn't the same. Went back to the original brand of tip and now I'm back to loving how it plays again. It stands to reason that a long time cue maker would have a go to tip that they feel is best for the cue they built when it goes out the door.
 
Shooter08 said:
What makes me curious is if I test another custom cue and it does not have the tip of choice of the builder installed am I really getting the hit intended by that maker?
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You bring up some really interesting points and you are spot on, IMO. The tip is one of many contributing factors to how the cue will hit. That said, everybody likes different things. I personally prefer a rock hard tip. Many of my buyers do not. They change the tip immediately to something softer, and they love it. Just because they like the stiffness and action doesn't mean they like the jack hammer feel. I'm ok with that. If somebody else tries the cue with a soft tip on it and it turns them off to my cues because it's not hard enough for them, then it is what it is. IMO, it's very shallow and a bit ignorant for a player to characterize a cue maker by trying one single cue. You really need a sampling of at least a few cues before you can draw a solid conclusion.
 
Lexicologist71 said:
A shallow and ignorant player? Never heard of one of those.
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That's the vast majority of our target market focus group. My biggest mistake in cue making was that before I began, I didn't make a pros & cons list. There are infinitely more reasons to steer clear of cue making than there are to give it a shot. Obviously yall made that same mistake :thumbup:
 
I did it because I had so many ideas in my head that I couldn't sleep at night until I finally made some cues.
 
I use a certain tip on the majority of my cues. Its mainly because of my construction technique I feel this tip is best for the hit that I am going for. Now if a customer comes in and orders a cue and wants a certain tip. i will gladly use it. Because he may not like the same hit that I like.
 
I have a selection of tips for the customer to try, and get them to tell me what they like the best on that cue. If they have a tip they wish to try, I just mount it up for them and let them try away.
It never is easy finding the right tip for the cue for any particular person.
Surprisingly it was so for the jump cues as well.
Neil
 
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