High quality cue vs. Low quality cue?

In my experiences, I have done anything with a cheapo cue that I have done with my custom cues. The difference is that I don't like as much the FEEL the cheaper cues offer me as opposed to the cues that were made either to my specs, or were built to specs that I prefer.

Example: In my home cue rack there are eight cues. Now, I didn't want company or friends that don't have their own cues to use my trusty playing cues for fear of dings and scratches, so I filled the home cue rack up with cheap Rage, Viper, and Tournament Choice brand cues. Sometimes if I feel like popping a few balls around but I'm just too lazy to dig my cue out of the case and screw it together (not to mention the j/p's), I'll grab one off of the house rack. I've come to find out after 5-plus years of doing this, that I shoot just as well with these cheapo "house" cues as I do with my best cues. The difference once again is that they just do not feel as good in my hands or offer the feedback/vibrations that I want to feel from a cue. But as far as putting the balls in the hole, they are just fine.

I cannot, in my honest opinion, ever recommend someone purchasing a high-dollar cue for the sake of becoming a better ball pocketer, as there is no assurance that that will happen. All one really needs is a decent, straight butt with a shaft of good maple, tapered to one's preference, and a tip of one's choosing that holds chalk and doesn't deform every game or two.

FTR, a few of the cheapo cues I own actually have some fairly decent shaft wood on them. I've had (since sold) some Viper cues that I bought at Academy Sports & Outdoors that had really nice shafts and the butts were nothing to turn your nose up at (if you can see past the decals ;)). I'm talking about cues that were under $50 here. Had some Players cues that were well built with nice shaft wood (like I said in a previous post, I still have one that I will probably never sell). The people I eventually sold these cues to were estatic with them.

People are different. Not everybody will feel the same way as I do about what a person needs in cues. But, when it gets down to the real nitty-gritty, a pool cue has never missed a shot :rolleyes:!!!

Maniac
 
Last edited:
It's all about confidence. If a new cue will make you feel confident at the table, go for it. But don't expect to be a world beater because you bought a new cue.

I know plenty of guys with cues worth well over 3k that cant run a rack.
 
Hello, I was wondering if it really matters when shooting with a high or low quality cue? For example I shoot with a players sneaky pete with a Tiger onyx tip and love it but Im wondering if im selling myself short by not having say a Joss, Predator, Or an Ob cue. Do you guys think it makes a huge difference? A little background may help, I have been playing for 18 years and i have always shot with a sneaky pete of the lower quality, first i had a 95-1 Meucci, then my current cue i purchased 10 years ago. I am a B+ to A player, 8 out of 10 times i have a clear shot i have the run out. I am thinking very hard about buying a Higher quality cue because i think it may make a difference, what do you think?

The Players HXT shaft is probably my favorite mass market low defelction shaft. The only one that I liked equaly was Mike Webb's LD shaft. I have a "low quality" Player's shaft on my $1,200 custom cue, and have no issues with showing it off to pleople.

Don't confuse low cost with low quality. My son used to play with my 90s Joss Limited cue with both the original and a Predator shaft, when he wanted his own cue, I got him a Players HXT with a wood to wood joint and he loves it. He plays better with it than the Joss which is technically higher quality and is about 3-4 times pricier. Cue collectors with several pricy cues ask me and him what cue he is playing with all the time, it looks good, hits great, and was cheaper than most shafts you can buy.

If you like the feel of the cue, the only thing you may want to mess around with is maybe the tip. Try different ones, see which has the best hit for you.
 
I play better with my bar cue than I do with my old setup with Predator shaft. The tip is now an Elkmaster, I think, instead of the Kamui on the other stick. It's a really light stick and just over an inch or so short of standard length. I like the roughness of the shaft, it gives me more feel on how I'm stroking and when a stick is smooth as glass it seems kinda artificial to me.

If just playing with more expensive cues made my game go up, I'd be all over it. That bar stick called out to me and my other cue gathers dust..
 
Find a broomhandle and lets play some then.

:rotflmao1:


You can bet it will be high quality, top of the line broom handle.

It will not be a cheap one.

I haven't seen anyone playing for money or winning any tournaments with a Ollies Outlet Store Sportcraft cue yet.


:sad:
 
I haven't seen anyone playing for money or winning any tournaments with a Ollies Outlet Store Sportcraft cue yet.

Just because you haven't seen it doesn't mean it hasn't happened. People hustle all the time (well, they USED to) using cheap, decal cues while hiding their speed. Heck, just poke your nose around long enough in Houston pool tournament history circa 1985 (Red's Open) and ask people in the know on this forum how much the winner, Cesar Morales :wink:, paid for his cue. I've heard $10, and I've heard $15. Either way, Efren....er I mean Cesar beat out a LOT of seasoned pros in that tournament with that cheap cue.

Maniac
 
Last edited:
:rotflmao1:


You can bet it will be high quality, top of the line broom handle.

It will not be a cheap one.

I haven't seen anyone playing for money or winning any tournaments with a Ollies Outlet Store Sportcraft cue yet.


:sad:

About a 6 or so weeks ago, there was a tournament mostly between one in-house BCA league and another, along with a few extra people.. was about 40 or something total. I played in the finals against somebody also using a bar cue. Mine was cut, his was off the wall.

I'll be playing in our BCA regional in a few weeks with that same cue. There will be money games and the only way I don't see myself placing is if I manage to poke an eye out. :eek:
 
Just because you haven't seen it doesn't mean it hasn't happened. People hustle all the time (well, they USED to) using cheap, decal cues while hiding their speed. Heck, just poke your nose around long enough in Houston pool tournament history circa 1985 (Red's Open) and ask people in the know on this forum how much the winner, Cesar Morales :wink:, paid for his cue. I've heard $10, and I've heard $15. Either way, Efren....er I mean Cesar beat out a LOT of seasoned pros in that tournament with that cheap cue.

Maniac
:thumbup:

Yeah...I was at the Red's tournament and beat Sammy Jones and Mark Jarvis. I lived it and I was there. Used to go bar hopping with Earl. Used to play at Allen's weekly tournaments and won 10 out of 11. Let my brother win one....:D The girls called me Easy and the guys called me the hustler.

The cues from the Philippines are cheap, but they hit the balls real good. I have close to 100 of them stored in a closet here. They maybe cheap but hit real good.

Back in 1985, Meucci was the best cue made if you wanted to win.

I wasn't using my Budweiser Cue in that tournament though. I retired that cue when I made the decision to be a real pool player and not a hustler. :smile:
 
:thumbup:

Yeah...I was at the Red's tournament and beat Sammy Jones and Mark Jarvis. I lived it and I was there. Used to go bar hopping with Earl. Used to play at Allen's weekly tournaments and won 10 out of 11. Let my brother win one....:D The girls called me Easy and the guys called me the hustler.

The cues from the Philippines are cheap, but they hit the balls real good. I have close to 100 of them stored in a closet here. They maybe cheap but hit real good.

Back in 1985, Meucci was the best cue made if you wanted to win.

I wasn't using my Budweiser Cue in that tournament though. I retired that cue when I made the decision to be a real pool player and not a hustler. :smile:

I bet you've got some good stories you could tell, eh??? :wink:

Maniac
 
I bet you've got some good stories you could tell, eh??? :wink:

Maniac
:D

Yeah...a lot of my stories I can not talk about.:D All pool players have stories. I really miss the old days when there was a professional tournament every other week. East Coast always had tournaments and West Coast had tournaments. Then every once in a while...(like the U.S. Open), both the East Coast Players could play the West Coast players. Of course some players like Keith was everywhere.

I was better than the local yokel, but not like the 15 best pro players. You always knew one of the 15 would win the tournaments. Me...I was just a smuck that was getting better and really getting there. I think alcohol was my downfall.

When I played at Red's, I got there a couple days early and would practice and all the older local guys thought I was local since I sounded...talked with a southern drawl like I was from Texas. After a few days, when they found out I was from PA, they never talked to me again. I needed to back my car in every parking spot so people didn't see my PA license plate. I had a new 1984 Nissan 300ZX, 50th Anniversary model, silver with the black trim with Turbo written in gold on the side. One night I drove through a bar parking lot to check things out and some guys saw my license plate...then started throwing rocks at my car yelling damn Yankee. Then after that...I learned that anything North of Texas makes you are a damn Yankee.

I might still have my Red's jacket. All the players (I think) got a free jacket for playing in the tournament.

I just wanted the jacket....:)


In 1989 I kind of disappeared and then resurfaced again around the year 2002 when me and Rachael won the PA State Scotch Doubles Tournament.

Having her as a partner was like hustling again. She borrowed one of my cues to play.:wink:
 
Back
Top