Short story: I did not buy the Joss today and probably won't.
Long story: My original shooter was my first - a McDermott. Someone gave me a 23 year old McDermott shaft one day that was so fabulous I started a thread about it here. Within 2 days I replaced the tip with a crappy rubber Ram tip and everything went to crap and when the tip guy never came back, and I didn't know another tip guy, I put the shaft away and went back to my standard McD shaft.
Husband got a sweet deal on a Lucasi/Predator for $150 so I stepped up to his Viking/Gcore, and I didn't realize it until today that I never really liked that cue. The Gcore made it slightly stiffer so I convinced myself it was a better cue and just dealt with it (which applies to the Heretic thread). My game eventually got so bad that I walked away for two weeks and considered my ambitions to be simply "good" a joke.
Then I had a dream. I met my husband for pool, pulled my cue out of the case and it was this ugly, splintered thing I'd never seen before. I freaked out and started running down the streets to the other rooms we had been to asking about my cue. But the cue I was looking for was my old McD - not the Viking I had been shooting with for over a year. I finally found it and kissed it I was so happy. Husband interpreted this dream as "You lost your Mojo and you got it back..." So I remembered my fondness for the McD and decided to get that crappy Ram tip replaced and give that "shaft I really liked" another try.
HENCE why I showed up at the pool hall with no cue (I expected it to be ready) and played with the Joss/Tiger.
Today, before I approached the guy with the Joss, I got my old McD shaft back with a new Tiger Emerald tip and shot with it. Damn. Pretty f-ing amazing. What the hell. So after about 30 min I borrow the Joss/Tiger and started using the two cues intermitently and could tell NO DIFFERENCE. I knew that there just had to be a difference. This is a TigerX shaft! I shot the same shot with each cue, noticing first what I could feel in my hand, then again noticing what was actually happening at the end of the cue. I grant you that I am a novice, but I could tell no difference. I don't know what McD was doing to their shafts 20 years ago but that sucker is impressive.
So... all the agony was for naught. Thanks for all the advice - it's great to be able to talk here when friends eyes glaze over when you talk about what you love.
Long story: My original shooter was my first - a McDermott. Someone gave me a 23 year old McDermott shaft one day that was so fabulous I started a thread about it here. Within 2 days I replaced the tip with a crappy rubber Ram tip and everything went to crap and when the tip guy never came back, and I didn't know another tip guy, I put the shaft away and went back to my standard McD shaft.
Husband got a sweet deal on a Lucasi/Predator for $150 so I stepped up to his Viking/Gcore, and I didn't realize it until today that I never really liked that cue. The Gcore made it slightly stiffer so I convinced myself it was a better cue and just dealt with it (which applies to the Heretic thread). My game eventually got so bad that I walked away for two weeks and considered my ambitions to be simply "good" a joke.
Then I had a dream. I met my husband for pool, pulled my cue out of the case and it was this ugly, splintered thing I'd never seen before. I freaked out and started running down the streets to the other rooms we had been to asking about my cue. But the cue I was looking for was my old McD - not the Viking I had been shooting with for over a year. I finally found it and kissed it I was so happy. Husband interpreted this dream as "You lost your Mojo and you got it back..." So I remembered my fondness for the McD and decided to get that crappy Ram tip replaced and give that "shaft I really liked" another try.
HENCE why I showed up at the pool hall with no cue (I expected it to be ready) and played with the Joss/Tiger.
Today, before I approached the guy with the Joss, I got my old McD shaft back with a new Tiger Emerald tip and shot with it. Damn. Pretty f-ing amazing. What the hell. So after about 30 min I borrow the Joss/Tiger and started using the two cues intermitently and could tell NO DIFFERENCE. I knew that there just had to be a difference. This is a TigerX shaft! I shot the same shot with each cue, noticing first what I could feel in my hand, then again noticing what was actually happening at the end of the cue. I grant you that I am a novice, but I could tell no difference. I don't know what McD was doing to their shafts 20 years ago but that sucker is impressive.
So... all the agony was for naught. Thanks for all the advice - it's great to be able to talk here when friends eyes glaze over when you talk about what you love.
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You have to remember that 20+ years ago not so many were making cues as today, and so the available maple for those shafts was closer to the 'old growth' shafts of today. Those old shafts just sing, IMHO. I am letting my partner use my 24 yo Helmstetter cue currently...but he knows I will never give up the cue to him...as it just 'sings' in the hand. I am a Josey owner, and it is my daily player. Sometimes I play with the standard Josey shaft, and other times I play with the old growth lake submerged Timeless Timber shaft...love the cue. But every so often, I gotta pull the ol Helmstetter out and play with it...it moves the ball just about as well as my Josey does.