Help with ferrule material

[CeaseLess]

I know it's a long shot but I had to give it a try. A couple years back I bought an old, factory, two piece Canadian dufferin cue. I didn't think much of it but it turned out to be my favorite hitting cue. It was soft and bouncy feeling, which I didn't know is how I like a cue to hit. The ferrule was loose, so I took it in and, not knowing any better I had them throw an ageis ferrule on it. The hit was now crisp and stiff, I never really cared for it after that. I'm trying to narrow down the possibilities of what ferrule material it could have been. I have 4 dufferin Canadian house cues, 2 of them have that ferrule. It's hits soft and absorbent but still had feel, unlike some ferrules. It is not resistant to dirt, chalk, or scratches (I can literally scratch it with my nail if I press hard enough), and it is not a super smooth/ slick surface. Like I said, it's soft, pliable, you can even see in one of the pictures that the ferrule is smushed on one side. And the reason I had to change it in the first place is because all of them seem to swell, and loosen over time. Any ideas boys?

 

[j2pac]

I know it's a long shot but I had to give it a try. A couple years back I bought an old, factory, two piece Canadian dufferin cue. I didn't think much of it but it turned out to be my favorite hitting cue. It was soft and bouncy feeling, which I didn't know is how I like a cue to hit. The ferrule was loose, so I took it in and, not knowing any better I had them throw an ageis ferrule on it. The hit was now crisp and stiff, I never really cared for it after that. I'm trying to narrow down the possibilities of what ferrule material it could have been. I have 4 dufferin Canadian house cues, 2 of them have that ferrule. It's hits soft and absorbent but still had feel, unlike some ferrules. It is not resistant to dirt, chalk, or scratches (I can literally scratch it with my nail if I press hard enough), and it is not a super smooth/ slick surface. Like I said, it's soft, pliable, you can even see in one of the pictures that the ferrule is smushed on one side. And the reason I had to change it in the first place is because all of them seem to swell, and loosen over time. Any ideas boys?View attachment 893372View attachment 893373View attachment 893374

Whatever is was, I wouldn't put it back on. There are many options out there now that would be more suitable...Tomahawk, Juma, XTC, Hydex/Isoplast, etc.
Best regards
j2

 

[CeaseLess]

Whatever is was, I wouldn't put it back on. There are many options out there now that would be more suitable...Tomahawk, Juma, XTC, Hydex/Isoplast, etc.
Best regards
j2

That's a reasonable take, but I'm not looking for suitable, I want that same hit. It was perfect to me. I've tried most of those options, the only one that was close was xtc.

 

[j2pac]

That's a reasonable take, but I'm not looking for suitable, I want that same hit. It was perfect to me. I've tried most of those options, the only one that was close was xtc.

I see.
Good luck with your search.

 

[CeaseLess]

I see.
Good luck with your search.

Thanks. Hopefully I get somewhere with it, if not xtc and abs has been suggested to me, might have to just go that route.

 

[iusedtoberich]

I think they are generically called "fiber ferrules". If you go to Chris Hightower's site (cuemanbilliards) he sells them. (Or used to 15 years ago last time I checked. He will know for sure what they are.

 

[j2pac]

Thanks. Hopefully I get somewhere with it, if not xtc and abs has been suggested to me, might have to just go that route.

XTC is one of the cheapest "house plastics" you can use. Obviously, if you felt that it came close to re-creating the feel you were after, then go with what works best for you, regardless of opinion. It may leave a bit to be desired in terms of durability, but it's certainly cheap enough to change if it should fail.

 

[CeaseLess]

I think they are generically called "fiber ferrules". If you go to Chris Hightower's site (cuemanbilliards) he sells them. (Or used to 15 years ago last time I checked. He will know for sure what they are.

Thanks man, that's very helpful. I've had a couple people say they'd guess fiber or cotton fiber. Not sure if they're the same thing.

 

[CeaseLess]

XTC is one of the cheapest "house plastics" you can use. Obviously, if you felt that it came close to re-creating the feel you were after, then go with what works best for you, regardless of opinion. It may leave a bit to be desired in terms of durability, but it's certainly cheap enough to change if it should fail.

Yea, that's what I figured, if it hits like I remember but I have to change it every 5 years or so, so be it. What's a house plastic?

 

[j2pac]

Yea, that's what I figured, if it hits like I remember but I have to change it every 5 years or so, so be it. What's a house plastic?

Basically a similar style plastic that you would find on a house cue...

 

[garczar]

That's a reasonable take, but I'm not looking for suitable, I want that same hit. It was perfect to me. I've tried most of those options, the only one that was close was xtc.

regardless or what you choose it will be different. you'll get used to it fast.

 

[Jimmy_Betmore]

ABS or PVC (very similar to Meucci's ferrule material) or Juma would probably be the closest things you could find that are commonly used today. ABS and PVC are, by ferrule material standards, very soft with Juma being slightly harder. A capped ABS/PVC ferrule with a padded tip will hit very softly compared to most modern cue setups. The pad can also help with keeping the ferrule from squishing because it help spread the impact over the face of the ferrule.

If that doesn't get you where you want to be, I'd just start looking at plastic supplier's sites for softer plastics. I worked in a plastics fabrication shop in college and we had some stuff called Komatex. It's pretty darn soft. I don't know if it's available in rods, but you could get a sheet, cut out a small square, and have that bored and turned round.

And, yes. I know ABS and PVC aren't the same thing. But for a ferrule, they might as well be.

 

[Mensabum]

I know it's a long shot but I had to give it a try. A couple years back I bought an old, factory, two piece Canadian dufferin cue. I didn't think much of it but it turned out to be my favorite hitting cue. It was soft and bouncy feeling, which I didn't know is how I like a cue to hit. The ferrule was loose, so I took it in and, not knowing any better I had them throw an ageis ferrule on it. The hit was now crisp and stiff, I never really cared for it after that. I'm trying to narrow down the possibilities of what ferrule material it could have been. I have 4 dufferin Canadian house cues, 2 of them have that ferrule. It's hits soft and absorbent but still had feel, unlike some ferrules. It is not resistant to dirt, chalk, or scratches (I can literally scratch it with my nail if I press hard enough), and it is not a super smooth/ slick surface. Like I said, it's soft, pliable, you can even see in one of the pictures that the ferrule is smushed on one side. And the reason I had to change it in the first place is because all of them seem to swell, and loosen over time. Any ideas boys?View attachment 893372View attachment 893373View attachment 893374

Paper micarta??

 

[Cue Alchemist]

Your options are limitless, so many to chose from, juma, strong but soft hit, masons micarta has very unique hit, but is softer than linen micarta. All the others like malamine, ivorine have very hard crisp hit.
Tomahawk is very light wight but super strong,very crisp hit.
The original ones your looking for, is the cotton fiber stuff. McDermott had them too in the 80s.
Good luck

 

[CeaseLess]

Your options are limitless, so many to chose from, juma, strong but soft hit, masons micarta has very unique hit, but is softer than linen micarta. All the others like malamine, ivorine have very hard crisp hit.
Tomahawk is very light wight but super strong,very crisp hit.
The original ones your looking for, is the cotton fiber stuff. McDermott had them too in the 80s.
Good luck

Do you know of fiber ferrules and cotton fiber ferrules are the same thing?

 

[CeaseLess]

ABS or PVC (very similar to Meucci's ferrule material) or Juma would probably be the closest things you could find that are commonly used today. ABS and PVC are, by ferrule material standards, very soft with Juma being slightly harder. A capped ABS/PVC ferrule with a padded tip will hit very softly compared to most modern cue setups. The pad can also help with keeping the ferrule from squishing because it help spread the impact over the face of the ferrule.

If that doesn't get you where you want to be, I'd just start looking at plastic supplier's sites for softer plastics. I worked in a plastics fabrication shop in college and we had some stuff called Komatex. It's pretty darn soft. I don't know if it's available in rods, but you could get a sheet, cut out a small square, and have that bored and turned round.

And, yes. I know ABS and PVC aren't the same thing. But for a ferrule, they might as well be.

Do you know what the difference in feel is between abs and pvc? I have a cue that I think has an abs ferrule, it is soft but it also plays kind of dead, not a lot of "feel"on a shot

 

[Cue Alchemist]

Do you know of fiber ferrules and cotton fiber ferrules are the same thing?

as you know, the material you have absorbs moisture, so it expands and shrinks, why they always look loose. I don't know if the material is the same now, but i wouldn't risk, buying the fibre stuff, if you can find some old ones. Or a trusted source, Theres your winner
Could you not just put the original one back on?
Here is an interesting thread on it, look at chris Hightower post 5:

Thread 'ferrule material'

Jan 2, 2017

what is the name of the ferrule material that was used forever on Hubler, McDermott,
almost all house cues and production cues. We always just called it fiber. I liked the
way it played. I know that it swelled and got dirty and whatever else but it is still
my favorite. Ever billiard supply used to sell them in 3/4 or 1'' size. I don't know maybe
they still do
thanks jack

• jackpot
• Replies: 5
• Forum: Ask The Cuemaker

 

[Bavafongoul]

I’d look into using a ferrule made of LBM (Linen Based Melamine) for a softer hit like you prefer.

 

[CeaseLess]

as you know, the material you have absorbs moisture, so it expands and shrinks, why they always look loose. I don't know if the material is the same now, but i wouldn't risk, buying the fibre stuff, if you can find some old ones. Or a trusted source, Theres your winner
Could you not just put the original one back on?
Here is an interesting thread on it, look at chris Hightower post 5:

Thread 'ferrule material'

Jan 2, 2017

what is the name of the ferrule material that was used forever on Hubler, McDermott,
almost all house cues and production cues. We always just called it fiber. I liked the
way it played. I know that it swelled and got dirty and whatever else but it is still
my favorite. Ever billiard supply used to sell them in 3/4 or 1'' size. I don't know maybe
they still do
thanks jack

• jackpot
• Replies: 5
• Forum: Ask The Cuemaker

Thanks man! I wonder if they have a new cotton fiber material that doesn't swell anymore. That would be the tits.

 

[mikemosconi]

Juma will be close to older Dufferin ferrule hit characteristics