How to test cue?

Personally I like to shoot a few games with the new cue and also some select shots (e.g. Stroke shots, extreme English etc.)
 
I always freeze 5 or 6 balls on the end rail and head to the foot rail and see how close to my normal aim it is for cutting them in at different distances.......
 
playing with it

I think the best way to test a cue is to play like you have played with any other cue. The things I look for in a cue is the hit that word could be very
subjective and more a personal matter. I think the hit has a number of
factors to consider, number one is sound I listen for a good solid sound
I don't like a high pitch or the ping sound. I hate a cue that has a rattle.
Next would be the feed back from the hit, is the feel desirable and comfortable to you. The quality and playability is it whippy or is it over stiff. I try as most others to find a mid range as not to be over the edge either way not to stiff or whippy. Can you adjust with ease to the difference of the deflection from one cue to another. And as we all know the characteristic of most any cue can be changed by a different tip
and a weight change. My personal preference in a cue is 191/2 oz
balance point 17-18 inches from bumper with shaft screwed in place.
med tip with a 5 cent cut. I like a good straight grain shaft tight pattern with a 13mm tip and about a 14-16 taper. The old school look and a thicker butt than some of the newer cues. The best way to tell if a cue suits you is if you have a cue you don't want to lay down. I have about 30 cues and out of the 30 there are four that I always go back to. JMO . Take care, john
 
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I test them on cue feedback, deflection, amount of spin it generates as well as whether the cue can be used to punch the cueball
 
I go by hit first. The hit is slightly adjustable with various tips and ferrules. If I like the hit of the of the cue the next is balance. The balance is easily adjustable and can be done at home if you have simple tools and a little patience.
 
mrskyhero said:
When people get new cues, they always test it first..

But how do you like to test it? And why?
Click to expand...
Eddie Robin discussed this one time. As I recall, he said that the single thing that would keep him from playing well with a borrowed (or new) stick was not the weight, or balance, or tip diameter. It would be the amount of squirt or deflection the stick had. This is something that will affect every shot you shoot with side spin and it varies so much among sticks that if a stick is very far from what you are used to, your game will be crippled until you relearn the english part of your game for that stick.

First the stick has to be solid. Shoot straight up and down the middle of the table with just the cue ball and see if you can hit the far rail three times. Next try "The Renfro"'s suggestion above about long cuts with side spin to test for squirt. Then try a range of the position shots you often play with various amounts of side spin.
 
One problem with trying to test a cue is the tip. Since the tip determines a very large part of the "hit experience" it can mask the real nature of the stick. I got a cue and it felt like shattering glass on every shot. I had to change the tip twice before that feeling went away and the hit felt "solid."
 
Bob Jewett said:
One problem with trying to test a cue is the tip. Since the tip determines a very large part of the "hit experience" it can mask the real nature of the stick. I got a cue and it felt like shattering glass on every shot. I had to change the tip twice before that feeling went away and the hit felt "solid."
Click to expand...

The most important part of the cue is the tip. Can you hear me Mr JB Cases?
 
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