Jump Cues - Wood-Carbon Fiber - Science?

BarTableMan

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Is good jumping more a product of skill or is there a science behind what the shaft is made of in order to get good cue ball flight? I have a maple shaft jump cue...am I fighting the wood? Does carbon fiber jump more easily?
 
IMO I don’t think ones really better then the other, It’s which ever you feel more comfortable with. Science will probably say carbon fiber bc it’s stiffer. I prefer fat maple shafts to jump with but I need a hard tip on it with a quarter radius or nickel radius shape at the smallest. I’ve never been good at jumping with dime radius’s. I had a buddy who had a fiber glass jump cue shaft and he was able to get some air with that thing. Me, not so much.
 
The short answer is yes good jump technique/skill plays a big part (but is easy to acquire that skill in my opinion), and the cue plays an even bigger part I would say depending on how you choose to gauge it. Carbon fiber and wood shafts can both be made into good jumpers. Neither is really inherently better per se because it really depends on how a particular shaft was constructed, although an inexperienced/unknowledgeable shaft maker may have better success with wood since you can often get away with a little less design thought since it the naturally heavier material.

The page below has links at the top to all the detailed information you could want that answers all of the questions you have now and will have later.
 
The important cue qualities for jumping seem to be lightness, stiffness and hardness. I think CF has the potential to combine those qualities better than wood can, but I don't know if it's been done.

pj
chgo
 
The important cue qualities for jumping seem to be lightness, stiffness and hardness. I think CF has the potential to combine those qualities better than wood can, but I don't know if it's been done.

pj
chgo
Jump shafts have a different job than low end mass shafts.
They need to be stiff and heavy at the front.
Totally opposite of what low squirt shafts.
 
Jump cues need to be light, so the tip pivots away from the rising CB immediately after impact. {second moment of inertia stuff}

The first 6"-or so of the shaft (near the tip) need to be stiff and resilient. This portion of the shaft should not be "low deflection". {compressional Young's modulus stuff}
 
Personally, I think the air rush is the best jump cue on the market at the moment. I’m not sure if it’s the makeup of their carbon fiber shaft or the extra length of the cue, but it seems to jump much easier than any other jump cue I’ve tried. And this is coming from someone who doesn’t particularly care for predator products.
 
The tip also helps. I changed a few cues to the white diamond tip and it improved the jumping on them just with that. From trial with a bunch of jump / break cues my son and I sorted out that the white diamond is great for jumping but he does not like it as much for breaking with.
 
The heavy stiff diamond wood jump cues jump easier than a light stiff jump cue but won't jump close very good. I make my jump cues with a stiff Spectraply shaft and a light 13" Spectraply handle so it will jump short well. I then have a heavier back handle, so you can jump easier and have more control on long jumps. I use Taom jump/break tips, if someone wants to get maximum air and Odega tips if someone wants more control.
 
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