Is there that much difference in playability, cheap cue, high priced.
- Thread starter ron3
- Start date
I think it matters on what you like. For instance, my current cue was under 200, and is a custom sneaky. It plays really well.
Schmelke cues play really well, and for the most part are under 150.
You can easily get a bad 1k+ cue, or a great 200 dollar cue. I think for the most part, you are better off looking for good cuemakers. Production cues Mezz, Schon, Joss all are good cues, along with the before mentioned schmelke.
Schmelke cues play really well, and for the most part are under 150.
You can easily get a bad 1k+ cue, or a great 200 dollar cue. I think for the most part, you are better off looking for good cuemakers. Production cues Mezz, Schon, Joss all are good cues, along with the before mentioned schmelke.
Try a lot of cues. When you find one that you can achieve 90% of what you are trying to do with it, buy it...don't worry about the price.
The other 10% will never be achieved, no matter how much you pay for the cue.
The other 10% will never be achieved, no matter how much you pay for the cue.
Inexpensive Vs. Expensive Pool Cues.......Any Difference?
Probably not as long as the $200 cue has the cue specs you prefer to play with or something really close. To better illustrate, ivory ferrules typically not found on any $200 cues I've seen..
This is rhetorical question for ron3..........Do you know what you prefer in a cue such as weight, balance, shaft sizes, tips, etc? Again, just rhetorical questions........because if you do,
then you can embark on more refined cue specs........such as ferrule material, shaft size and taper type and length. After that, you can consider things like the type joint & screw and also
the butt weight, and the type wrap for the best feel. The look or design of the cue hasn't a thing to do with how it feels or plays for you. So usually when you are buying a $200 cue,
you don't get to specify how the cue was built and those little refinements I attempted to point out as considerations become pretty important for some players. Now I'm not saying those
players couldn't compete as well with a $200 cue vs. say their $2,000 custom cue. Their skills and overall talents would allow them to pretty much shoot a competitive game.
But ask those players if they thought they'd have played better with their own cue built to their specifications and the vast majority will say "yes". It's not just because of familiarity
with their cue either. When cues are made the way you found you prefer the cue to be.....a certain weight or shafts or ferrules or joint or balance, etc....the considerations are numerous....
anyway, you will tend to play better. It's the same way with golf clubs.
You can buy clubs off the display floor with standard lofts and lies and if you are a low handicapper, you'll probably play competitively but not nearly as well as with your own custom fitted clubs
that might be 2 degrees upright and 2 degrees strong in the short irons and 1 degree weak in the long irons with a 1 degree upright loft instead of 2 degrees. And also a driver that has the loft
and 1 degree closed face you prefer........having custom fitted clubs helps your game......so does having a cue that meets your specs and it doesn't have to cost a lot of money. You simply need
to know what you prefer and find such a cue.
I have never been able to do that......my cue specs are pretty tight and it's rare I find a cue that has my specs........been collecting cues for 5 decades and it's happened less than 1/2 dozen times.
That's why I have custom cues made which are all the same........pretty much all my ivory joint cues have identical specs and I have a couple of more custom cues being made with the same specs
which match my other cues. If I could find these same type cues on the open market, believe me when I say I'd be buying them instead of having to wait a year.
So what happens....at least for me......is when you order a custom cue, forgetting again what it might look like, there's the natural temptation to tinker with the design. I mean the cue is being built
anyway so why not tweak the design a little....but those tweaks can become addictive and in turn expensive. So the $700 custom ultimately turns out to be a $2,000 custom.......which doesn't play
any better or different than the $700 version before you started tinkering with the appearance. So the most important thing is to try and figure out what you like best in a pool cue. It's taken me
awhile to settle upon what works best for me or let's just say what I like.
I played with my Palmer for 13 years before I ordered my first custom which was a 1985 Runde Schon weighing 20.5 ozs........15 years later I radically changed my cues specs a bunch and
started playing with cues 2 ounces lighter and flat ivory joints which are difficult to locate in the secondary market.......my cue butt weight needs to be on average 14.5 ozs, and I want specific
shaft weights & sizes & taper so that's why I had to go the custom cue route. I like my cue shafts to be 12.75mm, weigh >3.8 (sans any brass of course since the joint is flat faced) & 16" taper.
Anyway, that's how I view the subject and why my small collection of cues have the same specs.......changing cues seems easier and my game remains more steady & reliable with my approach.
Matt B.
Probably not as long as the $200 cue has the cue specs you prefer to play with or something really close. To better illustrate, ivory ferrules typically not found on any $200 cues I've seen..
This is rhetorical question for ron3..........Do you know what you prefer in a cue such as weight, balance, shaft sizes, tips, etc? Again, just rhetorical questions........because if you do,
then you can embark on more refined cue specs........such as ferrule material, shaft size and taper type and length. After that, you can consider things like the type joint & screw and also
the butt weight, and the type wrap for the best feel. The look or design of the cue hasn't a thing to do with how it feels or plays for you. So usually when you are buying a $200 cue,
you don't get to specify how the cue was built and those little refinements I attempted to point out as considerations become pretty important for some players. Now I'm not saying those
players couldn't compete as well with a $200 cue vs. say their $2,000 custom cue. Their skills and overall talents would allow them to pretty much shoot a competitive game.
But ask those players if they thought they'd have played better with their own cue built to their specifications and the vast majority will say "yes". It's not just because of familiarity
with their cue either. When cues are made the way you found you prefer the cue to be.....a certain weight or shafts or ferrules or joint or balance, etc....the considerations are numerous....
anyway, you will tend to play better. It's the same way with golf clubs.
You can buy clubs off the display floor with standard lofts and lies and if you are a low handicapper, you'll probably play competitively but not nearly as well as with your own custom fitted clubs
that might be 2 degrees upright and 2 degrees strong in the short irons and 1 degree weak in the long irons with a 1 degree upright loft instead of 2 degrees. And also a driver that has the loft
and 1 degree closed face you prefer........having custom fitted clubs helps your game......so does having a cue that meets your specs and it doesn't have to cost a lot of money. You simply need
to know what you prefer and find such a cue.
I have never been able to do that......my cue specs are pretty tight and it's rare I find a cue that has my specs........been collecting cues for 5 decades and it's happened less than 1/2 dozen times.
That's why I have custom cues made which are all the same........pretty much all my ivory joint cues have identical specs and I have a couple of more custom cues being made with the same specs
which match my other cues. If I could find these same type cues on the open market, believe me when I say I'd be buying them instead of having to wait a year.
So what happens....at least for me......is when you order a custom cue, forgetting again what it might look like, there's the natural temptation to tinker with the design. I mean the cue is being built
anyway so why not tweak the design a little....but those tweaks can become addictive and in turn expensive. So the $700 custom ultimately turns out to be a $2,000 custom.......which doesn't play
any better or different than the $700 version before you started tinkering with the appearance. So the most important thing is to try and figure out what you like best in a pool cue. It's taken me
awhile to settle upon what works best for me or let's just say what I like.
I played with my Palmer for 13 years before I ordered my first custom which was a 1985 Runde Schon weighing 20.5 ozs........15 years later I radically changed my cues specs a bunch and
started playing with cues 2 ounces lighter and flat ivory joints which are difficult to locate in the secondary market.......my cue butt weight needs to be on average 14.5 ozs, and I want specific
shaft weights & sizes & taper so that's why I had to go the custom cue route. I like my cue shafts to be 12.75mm, weigh >3.8 (sans any brass of course since the joint is flat faced) & 16" taper.
Anyway, that's how I view the subject and why my small collection of cues have the same specs.......changing cues seems easier and my game remains more steady & reliable with my approach.
Matt B.
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Every cue is little different. You can find excellent cue under 100$ if you are lucky, maybe 10-20% chance. Cheap cues are made fast and wood is not so well hanged and how its gonna keep it straightness is mystery. Only time will tell.
If you buy 150-300$ you probably get cue that keeps straightness well but normally they have little bit poorer finish. Here your chances to find excellent cue go up quite a lot.
300$ + you got about 90%+ chance to get cue that keeps it straightness if you treat it well. Normally finishing touches are a lot smoother but playability is not necessary any better. Unless you looking for low deflection.
Just my opinion. I had my first cue really good about 100$ but it fell apart after 5 years hard use. It was straight still.
After that i played mostly Bear(400$) and Falcon(400$) and sometimes with my testing different cues from my friends if I could find better but not yet.
If you buy 150-300$ you probably get cue that keeps straightness well but normally they have little bit poorer finish. Here your chances to find excellent cue go up quite a lot.
300$ + you got about 90%+ chance to get cue that keeps it straightness if you treat it well. Normally finishing touches are a lot smoother but playability is not necessary any better. Unless you looking for low deflection.
Just my opinion. I had my first cue really good about 100$ but it fell apart after 5 years hard use. It was straight still.
After that i played mostly Bear(400$) and Falcon(400$) and sometimes with my testing different cues from my friends if I could find better but not yet.
I have owned almost all production cue brands but no customs so I can't give any advice on the custom side.
Within the same brand you are mostly paying for design and inlays for the more expensive models (not all as some have different shafts on the more expensive ones).
From brand to brand there are differences. These are mostly subjective as they have to do with how the cue hits. That said, you may actually prefer the hit of the less expensive cues. Best advice is to try a few if possible and see what you like.
Edit - just saw you have some itrader and my post may not be too helpful as you have owned a few already
Within the same brand you are mostly paying for design and inlays for the more expensive models (not all as some have different shafts on the more expensive ones).
From brand to brand there are differences. These are mostly subjective as they have to do with how the cue hits. That said, you may actually prefer the hit of the less expensive cues. Best advice is to try a few if possible and see what you like.
Edit - just saw you have some itrader and my post may not be too helpful as you have owned a few already
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63kcode......the Gina Bill has on Cornerstone Cues.....the serpent cue.....that's the one I want.
I only have until 7/1/16 before the new CA ivory ban conceivably takes effect....it's gonna be tough.
Anyway, that's the Gina I want and I know what you mean.....the cues Ernie produces are amazing.
Matt B.
I only have until 7/1/16 before the new CA ivory ban conceivably takes effect....it's gonna be tough.
Anyway, that's the Gina I want and I know what you mean.....the cues Ernie produces are amazing.
Matt B.
This ^^^^^
Personal specs can be overrated in the whole scheme of how a cue plays. Good players can adjust to a huge variety of "specs"...The most important part to ANY cue is how it feels when you hit the cue ball. Just about ANY custom maker can make you a cue to your specifications BUT will it play well? There's no guarantee on that...For the most part, either a maker can make a good hitting cue or he can't. It has to feel right not only striking with center ball but especially with english...After THAT in most cases you can make adjustments. Find a maker who has a cosintently good formula and THEN worry about tweaking it to your liking.. Good makers, in most cases, can perform the adjustments needed to make ya happy...
Now, to answer the OP's question.. Sometimes yes sometimes no...
Larry,
playing with my Schick made me rethink as well till I started playing with the custom sneaky Keith made for me..
:smile:...
Now, to answer the OP's question.. Sometimes yes sometimes no...
Larry,
playing with my Schick made me rethink as well till I started playing with the custom sneaky Keith made for me..
:smile:...
Just find a cue you like, it really doesn't matter in my opinion. One of the best players I know, doesn't even own a cue. He uses a house cue.
It's been said a million times~ It's the indian, not the arrow.
I was buying an expensive cue and a guy I was with literally pulled a mop off the wall and unscrewed it. He told me to shoot with the handle. Ya know what? I made balls!
I digress though…. you asked about the playability… maybe? Find a cue you like, use it…I have about ten cues, I primarily only use the one I like. It's a Sneaky Pete. Nuthin' fancy…I just like the way it feels in comparison to my others.
It's been said a million times~ It's the indian, not the arrow.
I was buying an expensive cue and a guy I was with literally pulled a mop off the wall and unscrewed it. He told me to shoot with the handle. Ya know what? I made balls!
I digress though…. you asked about the playability… maybe? Find a cue you like, use it…I have about ten cues, I primarily only use the one I like. It's a Sneaky Pete. Nuthin' fancy…I just like the way it feels in comparison to my others.