Does this old man need weight?

[CaptainJR]

If you think I'm asking for a spot, your wrong. I never do.

What I am asking about is the weight of me brake stick. I have a 17 oz. brake stick. One that the butt comes off to use as a jump stick. I like it. What I've always been told and believed is, you can move a lighter stick faster, so you get a stronger brake with a light stick. However, at my age I'm not as strong or as fast as I use to be. And it seems that when I try to be strong and fast I'm not as accurate anymore either.

Occasionally, when I've went to the basement to practice, I've left the brake stick in the bag and just grabbed the 21 oz. house stick off the wall. I've had some tremendous brakes with this stick. Not swinging very hard either just sort of letting the stick do the work, like I use to let the club do the work in golf. Some of my biggest hits in golf have been some of my easiest swings.

I'm not disputing that a lighter stick is better. I'm just wondering if you all think that there is a point where if your hit gets soft enough, the extra weight might be beneficial?

CaptJR

 

[Snapshot9]

Brreak stick

I used to shoot with a 21 oz. for years and years (been shooting 42 years) and break with a 21-22 oz.. I now shoot with a 20.2 oz. and break with a 20 oz..

I would say if you are not strong for your size (muscular or wirey), then use a 20-22 oz. cue to break. If you are pretty strong, use an 18-20 oz. cue to break.

I use to 'overpower' a lot of my breaks with a 21 oz, and jump the table a lot, but I took about a year to work on my break and went to a 20 oz. 'Sneaky Pete' type break stick with SS joint. (firm believer in stainless steel joints) and it has improved my accuracy and I break harder now without jumping the table. I think it is important to use a break stick that is not bottom heavy and has good balance.

By the way, I am only 5'7", about 156 lbs, 56 years old, have been told many many times that I have one of the hardest breaks in town (about 500,000 people here). I am strong for my size (always been an athlete and weight lifter), but I try to get the weight of my body behind my break when I break with forward movement of my hips and legs on the final stroke before breaking. A lot depends on your breaking form and delivery. We have a good looking mid 20's woman here that is rated a 3 skill level (really a 4) that breaks as well as a 7 skill level because someone took the time to show her the right form and follow through when she breaks, and she is slender.

Awhile back in Billiards Digest, they had a big article on breaking by Franco Bustemante (D'Jango). It was very good, and I would highly recommend it.

 

[shakes]

If you think I'm asking for a spot, your wrong. I never do.

What I am asking about is the weight of me brake stick. I have a 17 oz. brake stick. One that the butt comes off to use as a jump stick. I like it. What I've always been told and believed is, you can move a lighter stick faster, so you get a stronger brake with a light stick. However, at my age I'm not as strong or as fast as I use to be. And it seems that when I try to be strong and fast I'm not as accurate anymore either.

Occasionally, when I've went to the basement to practice, I've left the brake stick in the bag and just grabbed the 21 oz. house stick off the wall. I've had some tremendous brakes with this stick. Not swinging very hard either just sort of letting the stick do the work, like I use to let the club do the work in golf. Some of my biggest hits in golf have been some of my easiest swings.

I'm not disputing that a lighter stick is better. I'm just wondering if you all think that there is a point where if your hit gets soft enough, the extra weight might be beneficial?

CaptJR

You pretty much nailed it. Without getting into any amount of physics, the speed of the cue ball is going to be affected by the speed of your stick at the moment it strikes the ball multiplied by the mass of your stick. So if your speed is limited for whatever reason, BUT you can make a heavier stick move at the same speed as a lighter stick, then you would have a FASTER (not necessarily better) break speed. I like a heavier breaking cue simply because I can focus more on where I strike the ball and not make extra movements to increase my arm speed. HTH.