I don't think it does, but I have a Jacoby break cue that smashes the balls better than any other cue I have tried and it has a big, healthy butt. It is much bigger in diameter than my playing cue.
Does the butt matter?
- Thread starter theyonger
- Start date
Hu...You already KNOW this. Technique is much more important than the construction of the butt (it's a piece of wood afterall). Perhaps at the elite level one pro can tell a slight difference between butts, on a break cue...but the "feel" of something is so subjective from person to person, that the OP's question, I thought, was directly at the general group of players...so NO, it doesn't matter. I have seen champions break with a house cue, with great technique, timing and results. I have also seen players break poorly, because of poor technique and timing, no matter what cue they break with.
Scott Lee
www.poolknowledge.com
Scott Lee
www.poolknowledge.com
Tramp Steamer...I disagree. The three key ingredients are tip, shaft and joint. Those matter much more (for the "feel" of the cue), than what wood is in the butt.
Scott Lee
www.poolknowledge.com
Scott Lee
www.poolknowledge.com
I use house cues
Scott,
Until I get around to making a break cue for myself I always break with house cues when hard breaking. They are among the most finely constructed cues made in terms of function. Few two piece cues are their equal for transmitting a load. I'm willing to spend less than an hour working on a house cue and challenge any of the break cues in testing. It just isn't real practical to tote house cues around.
There is no argument from here that technique is most important for a good break. However, the same person can increase or decrease the force of their break by changing cue butts which is what I took the original question to be. Butts make far more difference that I thought before doing a little testing for myself. Due to a combination of things some butts transmit force far better than others. If two cues weigh the same thing then the real mass is identical I believe and a person can move both cues at the same speed. However, construction can change the effective mass of the cue in the tiny fraction of a second that the cue is in contact with the cue ball. Some cue butts absorb more energy than others; effectively they are both lighter and slower than a cue butt of the same weight that absorbs less energy during the time the tip is in contact with the cue ball. That is the advantage of a phenolic tip, it absorbs less energy during this critical time.
We can't buy a good break by running out and getting the latest whiz bang break cue but the materials and construction of a cue both have an effect on the force we are able to break with.
Hu
Scott,
Until I get around to making a break cue for myself I always break with house cues when hard breaking. They are among the most finely constructed cues made in terms of function. Few two piece cues are their equal for transmitting a load. I'm willing to spend less than an hour working on a house cue and challenge any of the break cues in testing. It just isn't real practical to tote house cues around.
There is no argument from here that technique is most important for a good break. However, the same person can increase or decrease the force of their break by changing cue butts which is what I took the original question to be. Butts make far more difference that I thought before doing a little testing for myself. Due to a combination of things some butts transmit force far better than others. If two cues weigh the same thing then the real mass is identical I believe and a person can move both cues at the same speed. However, construction can change the effective mass of the cue in the tiny fraction of a second that the cue is in contact with the cue ball. Some cue butts absorb more energy than others; effectively they are both lighter and slower than a cue butt of the same weight that absorbs less energy during the time the tip is in contact with the cue ball. That is the advantage of a phenolic tip, it absorbs less energy during this critical time.
We can't buy a good break by running out and getting the latest whiz bang break cue but the materials and construction of a cue both have an effect on the force we are able to break with.
Hu
No.
You can use all poplar butt and just add lead weights.
Or broom handle.
You can use all poplar butt and just add lead weights.
Or broom handle.