Joe Tucker’s Third Eye Stroke Trainer

CoolChicky

CoolChicky

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The plastic part that fits on the tip of my cue is too small. How do you get it to fit on an 11.8mm shaft? I don’t want to force it because it looks brittle.
Or, should I stick to the coke bottle?
 
CoolChicky said:
The plastic part that fits on the tip of my cue is too small. How do you get it to fit on an 11.8mm shaft? I don’t want to force it because it looks brittle.
Or, should I stick to the coke bottle?
Click to expand...
I never found that stuff helpful.

Practicing on the rail where the cloth meets the wood, if you have your own table for a few minutes before practice.
Mighty x drill
Practicing shots between the side pockets( follow, stop, draw, follow/draw stuns) all while perfecting pre shot routine
A piece of paper with a straight line on it on the kitchen table

These have helped me, ymmv
 
Maybe something like this if you really enjoy those type of tools.
1735090218014.jpeg
 
CoolChicky said:
The plastic part that fits on the tip of my cue is too small. How do you get it to fit on an 11.8mm shaft? I don’t want to force it because it looks brittle.
Or, should I stick to the coke bottle?
Click to expand...

Choices:
Mount it in your mill and open up the hole with a boring bar in a boring head.
Mount it in the chuck of your lathe and open the hole up with a boring bar.
Buy 11.8mm chucking reamer
Buy 11.8mm Drill
Round file
sand paper on an 11.5mm wood round
Dremel Tool
...
 
couldnthinkof01 said:
I never found that stuff helpful.

Practicing on the rail where the cloth meets the wood, if you have your own table for a few minutes before practice.
Mighty x drill
Practicing shots between the side pockets( follow, stop, draw, follow/draw stuns) all while perfecting pre shot routine
A piece of paper with a straight line on it on the kitchen table

These have helped me, ymmv
Click to expand...
Also try taking a good look at the cue ball while you're at it. :D
 
CoolChicky said:
The plastic part that fits on the tip of my cue is too small. How do you get it to fit on an 11.8mm shaft? I don’t want to force it because it looks brittle.
Or, should I stick to the coke bottle?
Click to expand...

Bottles restrict your vertical stroke too, not a good thing. I would polish up the plastic then give it a minute or two in hot water. Talk to Joe first off. A good guy. His advice would be best. Seems odd that it is real tight on an 11.8mm shaft to begin with. I used it on much bigger shafts with no issues long ago.

Hu
 
It’s a good tool. Coming from someone who used it. People who dismissed it don’t know what it is, and probably just don’t like training aids in general.
 
Joe Tucker is probably a library of pool. Still, anybody that would abandon Contact Point Geometry gets pushed aside for later, if that.
 
nataddrho said:
He is my original coach. Only good things to say.
Click to expand...
Nothing personal. Can't relate to that one switch. Personally I think once you get the geometry there's nothing to sell so they all move on to something curriculizable.

Dunn appear he did anything wrong with you.
 
CoolChicky said:
The plastic part that fits on the tip of my cue is too small. How do you get it to fit on an 11.8mm shaft? I don’t want to force it because it looks brittle.
Or, should I stick to the coke bottle?
Click to expand...
ShootingArts said:
... Seems odd that it is real tight on an 11.8mm shaft to begin with. I used it on much bigger shafts with no issues long ago.

Hu
Click to expand...
I agree with Hu. They fit on much larger shafts than 11.8. Just put some pressure over the plastic opening and it will expand enough to go directly onto the ferrule wherever you want it. Or slide it onto the shaft past the tip and it will expand enough to fit on the ferrule. The second way may be safer if you are worried about it being brittle.
 
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CoolChicky said:
The plastic part that fits on the tip of my cue is too small. How do you get it to fit on an 11.8mm shaft? I don’t want to force it because it looks brittle.
Or, should I stick to the coke bottle?
Click to expand...
You can try to stretch it out over something else, a sharpie marker or something similar. I tried it for a bit, but found it pretty worthless. I let it set in a drawer for a few years, thought I'd try it one more time before tossing. Ended up putting a ding in my shaft when installing the damn thing. Promptly tossed it.

Honestly if you want the same benefits in practice just feather your cue and see if the tip wobbles. At some point when your stance is correct and you're on the shot line the tip will not waver back and forth. While practicing your stroke you can focus on CB last to get a good view of what's going on. When the feathering shows everything is straight you can stroke the ball. Be sure to follow through straight.

I did the feathering for about 3 months while playing and my stroke is pretty straight. I end up having to use different stances due to a bad back. I'll occasionally have to do the feathering until I get "in stroke" with that stance. At this point I've kind of just made it part of my PSR. I don't even care about practice strokes but the feathering is a reliable way to confirm you're on the shot line and your body/mechanics are on the line.

But for real, don't try to force it on your stick until you've stretched it out over something you don't care about because it can dent your shaft. You may have better luck starting it on the ferrule, but the stick I had was ferrule-less.
 
Patrick Johnson said:
Are "feathering" and practice strokes different things?

pj
chgo
Click to expand...
To me they are. 😅 Feathering is a quick short back and forth motion. Maybe 1/2" or so. It's a fine tuning at approximately the apex of your stroke. Practice strokes are the classic full back and forth. You can feather, then practice stroke.

It's pretty hard to explain with words. Here's a spot where he is doing feathering. I've not watched the video so no idea on it's quality or message, but this little snippet shows feathering. Mine looks a bit different, but basically the fine motion makes it easier to see if something is off. A full on practice stroke may be harder to see if you're off a little bit. Being off a even a little bit can cause steering and other issues.

I'm not a biologist but to me feathering uses small or very little muscle groups, it's just kind of a fine little motion. With practice strokes you're using more muscle groups. With the feathering it's easy to see if/when you're on line so it's a good place to be before you're starting the more traditional practice strokes. It can be more difficult to feel/see if your stroke is wavering with full on practice strokes.

Feathering is a small confirmation you are set up correctly, the practice strokes are getting you ready to stroke. Feathering gets you in line, practice strokes help set the feel for the speed etc.
 
boogieman said:
Feathering is a quick short back and forth motion. Maybe 1/2" or so. It's a fine tuning at approximately the apex of your stroke. Practice strokes are the classic full back and forth. You can feather, then practice stroke.

It's pretty hard to explain with words. Here's a spot where he is doing feathering. I've not watched the video so no idea on it's quality or message, but this little snippet shows feathering. Mine looks a bit different, but basically the fine motion makes it easier to see if something is off. A full on practice stroke may be harder to see if you're off a little bit.
Click to expand...
I will try the feathering as a means of ensuring good aim. I will watch the English fellow on YouTube, too.

As far as the full-on practice stroke not being able to detect if I am off or not? The full-on practice stroke seems to give me a better idea if the cue stick is aligned with aiming line or is cockeyed with it. If I only have short strokes---feathering---that doesn't tell me if the cue is aligned to the shot line.

It seems the feathering detects wobbles at the cue ball that seem innocent enough during feathering and not as likely when there isn't the back-and-forth of feathering when the shot is made.
 
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