Help! My son keeps destroying break tips...
- Thread starter Otterman
- Start date
Maybe you can help Shane with his break too, since his cue ball gets some air on the break?
From what I see, the kid has a great break. Great power and good control. If he can be consistent, then I don't see any reason to change.
Thanks for compliment. Micah idolizes SVB and tries to emulate his break. And yes, he's remarkably consistent; usually contacts the 1 ball very squarely from all breaking positions.
There was a reason I posted this thread in the "Ask the Cuemaker" forum: to solicit the advice of knowledgeable cuemakers on why my son has broken 2 break tips and 1 break shaft in less than 1 week's time, and how to prevent those things from happening in the future. To that end, it is certainly helpful and appropriate to point out stroke characteristics that might cause those problems (such as following through down into the table).
Any other critical comments regarding my son's break are neither requested nor appreciated. If we need help in that regard, I'll post a thread in the "Ask the Instructor" forum. I'll consider working with him on his "no good stroke" when somone produces another 11 or 12 year-old with a better break.
Every time Shane breaks hard I see the cue ball pop a bit. The purpose of my sarcasm was to point out this man simply was wondering how his boy was breaking tips, not for critique on his son's(outstanding) break.
Many greats had less than "ideal" technique. Keith and King Kong swing side arm and they play....OK.
Like the OP said, he wasn't looking for advice on the boy's stroke.
I'll take HIS break every day of the week and so would every pro on the planet. Next time you see Shane, show him the video and ask him...
I have never had a Sammy break into pieces, but I have had one pop off. There is a thread in here somewhere about that issue...
I've used a Samsara break tip for over a year (well over 4,000 breaks) and no problems. I break VERY hard (harder than anyone I know) and the tip has not mushroomed in the least and I've not had to dress it up once since the first time I did it. I would think that there's a problem with either the supplier of the tips or the install.
BTW, your son breaks like a beast...would love to see a video of him running a rack or two...very impressive regardless of his age!
BTW, your son breaks like a beast...would love to see a video of him running a rack or two...very impressive regardless of his age!
Thanks for the compliment! I'll be getting some video up soon of Micah running racks. He's gotten to the point where he runs racks every day now, so I just need to get some video, hopefully with a decent HD camcorder than the POS I've been using.....
4000 breaks is probably Micah's 45-day quota! Literally. Guess I didn't really consider the math. A tip every couple months probably isn't that bad.
Thanks again, and Happy Holidays!
I watched the video of your sons various breaks. He definitely has a great break. The one off the side rail where he bends the shaft on the table after completing his stroke may be a cause of damaging the shaft. Delaminating could also be caused by that bending of the shaft as that puts a lot of sideways pressure on the tip and shaft that is not natural. This would increase the likelyhood of some laminated shafts splitting. Also on shafts with the ferrule stem going down into the shaft it would massively increase the chances of splitting one of those.
As far as the tip breaking down it could just be the power he has. I know of a trick shot artist that does masse and power shots and he says he can destroy a tip in one or two shows. So you may just have to replace his tips more often than others would have to. A few thousand breaks out of a tip is not all that bad. That would take most people many months if not years to break that many times.
I can relate as my son has been known to split chunks out of tips in the past with his break. I can use the same tip for years and he only gets a few months out of a tip if that.
As far as the tip breaking down it could just be the power he has. I know of a trick shot artist that does masse and power shots and he says he can destroy a tip in one or two shows. So you may just have to replace his tips more often than others would have to. A few thousand breaks out of a tip is not all that bad. That would take most people many months if not years to break that many times.
I can relate as my son has been known to split chunks out of tips in the past with his break. I can use the same tip for years and he only gets a few months out of a tip if that.
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Thanks again, Chris. You are absolutely correct. He's probably getting plenty of use out of his tips (maybe even the shafts). When you practice the break as much as he does, a couple months isn't that bad for a tip. I'll just have to adjust my expectations for break tip duration, stock up on tips and back-up shafts, and get a lathe in the near future.
Merry Christmas to you and your family!