Dead Blow Cue

[Biloxi Boy]

Fair Warning: I have been doing some deep thinking about a subject which I know very little about. If that's not enough to scare the living bejeezus out of you, come on along.

There is a tool called a dead blow, or dead fall, hammer. The idea behind it is that when it strikes an object, it stops DEAD -- no rebound, sliding, etc. My understanding is that they are used by machinists to achieve very precise blows. I was introduced to this tool back in my offshore supply boat days, and it has always amazed me (Gladly, it does not take a whole lot.)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dead-blow_hammer

So, while contemplating the meaning of the universe, it occurred to me that if the qualities of such a tool might be married to a pool cue or ferrule, a very happy result might be produced. What do y'all think?

 

[garczar]

Get ready for EPIC levels of deflection if this theory was applied to a cue. would not be a good thing. might be ok for breaking but not playing and using spin.

 

[boogieman]

Fair Warning: I have been doing some deep thinking about a subject which I know very little about. If that's not enough to scare the living bejeezus out of you, come on along.

There is a tool called a dead blow, or dead fall, hammer. The idea behind it is that when it strikes an object, it stops DEAD -- no rebound, sliding, etc. My understanding is that they are used by machinists to achieve very precise blows. I was introduced to this tool back in my offshore supply boat days, and it has always amazed me (Gladly, it does not take a whole lot.)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dead-blow_hammer

So, while contemplating the meaning of the universe, it occurred to me that if the qualities of such a tool might be married to a pool cue or ferrule, a very happy result might be produced. What do y'all think?

Eww. I'd quit pool if I had to use something like that. I like feedback and to feel a sweet shot through the cue. A dead blow takes away feedback.

We get the same effect as a deadblow with a light grip. It's just your hand/fingers absorbing the blow instead metal filings/shot.

Interesting idea though.

 

[triley41395]

It's not that far out of an idea. Not saying it would or wouldn't work but there's been lots of things tried over the years. Cues with ball bearings that move, liquids inside capsules, liquid with ball bearings and let's not forget the ol limbsaver.

 

[Jimmy_Betmore]

It's not that far out of an idea. Not saying it would or wouldn't work but there's been lots of things tried over the years. Cues with ball bearings that move, liquids inside capsules, liquid with ball bearings and let's not forget the ol limbsaver.

Did any of you guys ever try the Limbsaver? If so, what kind of effect did it have and was it noticeable compared to your standard bumper?

 

[garczar]

Did any of you guys ever try the Limbsaver? If so, what kind of effect did it have and was it noticeable compared to your standard bumper?

pure gimmick was all it was.

 

[Bob Jewett]

Did any of you guys ever try the Limbsaver? If so, what kind of effect did it have and was it noticeable compared to your standard bumper?

The LS worked by killing all of the vibration in the stick after the ball was gone. It had no physical effect on the cue ball's action.

As for making a stick that stops dead at impact, the easy way to do that is to make a six ounce cue.

 

[Cuebuddy]

The LS worked by killing all of the vibration in the stick after the ball was gone. It had no physical effect on the cue ball's action.

As for making a stick that stops dead at impact, the easy way to do that is to make a six ounce cue.

That might be tough. I would need to add about 5.5 ounces.

 

[chasrwest]

These exist already. I saw them in Las Vegas at a tournament. These guys use a liquid damped series of magnets as weight. The hit is very strange, IMHO, but your milage may vary.

Cues | Liquid Weight Cues

Billiard Cues with Moving Weight Systems. Patent Pending Liquid Weight Cues.

www.cuetrader.org

 

[fastone371]

Fair Warning: I have been doing some deep thinking about a subject which I know very little about. If that's not enough to scare the living bejeezus out of you, come on along.

There is a tool called a dead blow, or dead fall, hammer. The idea behind it is that when it strikes an object, it stops DEAD -- no rebound, sliding, etc. My understanding is that they are used by machinists to achieve very precise blows. I was introduced to this tool back in my offshore supply boat days, and it has always amazed me (Gladly, it does not take a whole lot.)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dead-blow_hammer

So, while contemplating the meaning of the universe, it occurred to me that if the qualities of such a tool might be married to a pool cue or ferrule, a very happy result might be produced. What do y'all think?

I don't think a cue comes to a dead stop when it hits the cue ball, if it does the dwell time is probably too short for the movable shot inside to be effective.

 

[Biloxi Boy]

Having had absolutely no exposure to the disciplines of higher math and hard science, I am sadly reduced to reliance upon anecdotal analysis. Given such limitation, when considering the potential of a hypothetical dead blow cue, it occurs that the benefits are obvious on both a break or stun shot.

I am not a "jumper", so I have no basis for consideration. What do you jump shop artists think would occur?

When it comes to an understanding of deflection, I am woefully deficient -- every time I think I understand it, either I am proven wrong or another phenomenon, such as "swerve", is brought to bear and clarity devolves. As I can appreciate deflection, however, the truer a cue's follow through, the less deflection occurs. If this is true, what deflection should result from a cue with no, or diminished, follow through? The effect on spin should go without saying.

 

[SmoothStroke]

If you made a cue the diameter of the mallet guys still couldn't find center cue ball.

 

[Jimmy_Betmore]

pure gimmick was all it was.

Considering how quickly they disappeared I kind of figured that was the case. I also remember wondering why anyone would need a shock dampener on a cue. It's not like we were breaking with a tungsten cueball two thousand times a day.

 

[DeeDeeCues]

The advantage of a deadblow hammer or mallet is in the fact that they are used to hit things that don't move much. Instead of the hard hammer bouncing off the heavy/immovable item, the impact is transferred to the hit object over a longer duration of time. Think of it as the same as a time-release gelcap for hitting things.

This is not how hitting a cueball works. The impact between the cue and ball is very close to an impulse reaction in that the stick slows down and the ball moves in the same instant. What you would achieve is that the stick would lose speed on impact, but then accelerate when the energy of the weights transferred back into the cue. That is the absolute best case scenario if the weight was actually not in the forward end of the chamber at impact. All of this would happen after the tip and ball have separated, so the only thing that would happen is it would feel weird after the hit.

I had this idea 30yrs ago when I was a teen starting to make cues. About four months later my engineering courses taught me that this was a fool's errand.

 

[JolietJames]

"My understanding is that they are used by machinists to achieve very precise blows."

This is untrue. We use them to seat a workpiece in a vise without having the hammer rebound into our foreheads. Mechanics use them for the same reason. There in no added level of precision to a dead blow hammer.

 

[Paul_#_]

I don't think a cue comes to a dead stop when it hits the cue ball, if it does the dwell time is probably too short for the movable shot inside to be effective.

What you would achieve is that the stick would lose speed on impact, but then accelerate when the energy of the weights transferred back into the cue. That is the absolute best case scenario if the weight was actually not in the forward end of the chamber at impact. All of this would happen after the tip and ball have separated, so the only thing that would happen is it would feel weird after the hit.

I think the above are right ---- the dampening of the dead blow hammer is a result of some of the initial force being held back and then hitting contact surface shortly thereafter. That is too late to impart force to the cue ball. It imparts less force on cue ball than a regular cue stick.

As far as the Black Blade cues, see AZBilliards post below where the company owner says they don't make that moving-weight system that is like a dead blow hammer. They now tout cues with more weight toward the shaft end than the butt end of regular cues. Some newer players like it while the older players tend not to. Still, Black Blade has a liberal try-out guarantee---try one yourself and report back.

We no longer make the moving weight system. I

See

Forward Weighted Cues

Has anyone seen or played with the Black Blade Carbon, forward weighted cues?

forums.azbilliards.com

 

[Paul_#_]

Does the McDermott Defy shaft act like a dead-blow hammer?

YouTube videos show wood shafts bounce when dropped on tip on pool table while the McDermott Defy carbon fiber shaft does not.

Isn't the Defy shaft acting like a dead-blow hammer?

Is the Defy shaft better than the wood shaft because of this?

Do Revo, Cynergy, and Rhino carbon fiber shafts bounce?

See

 

[DeeDeeCues]

This is turning about as dumb as the 'bullets are pointy, my to should be pointy' thread.

Just because something exists and works well for other endeavors doesn't mean it will be good for a cue. Cf, dead blow, astrolube, you can try it all, but I won't believe any of it until I see valid testing.

 

[Texas Carom Club]

dead blows used in machine shops are mostly for when you need to center a part in a lathe and you need to hit it hard without marking the surface of a finished side
or if your trying to pound a part in a vice to get the parallels to sit tight

theres no reason at all youd need to hit a pool ball that hard

 

[DeeDeeCues]

dead blows used in machine shops are mostly for when you need to center a part in a lathe and you need to hit it hard without marking the surface of a finished side
or if your trying to pound a part in a vice to get the parallels to sit tight

theres no reason at all youd need to hit a pool ball that hard

How hard are you pounding things into your vise? I have never used more than a 12oz deadblow on my vise and I don't swing it as hard as I swing my cue on a break.

Not all deadblow hammers are soft faced. Not all soft faced hammers are deadblow.