Let's Talk Chalk...

Agent 99

Agent 99

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Everyone loves to talk about sweet hitting and rare cues, myself included, but Chalk needs it's fair place too.

Now the fact of the matter is the tip and the chalk is where the rubber meets the road.

Tips are subjective to the feel and preference of the player, but not the Chalk. That's because chalk has to do the same job for us all -- stick the tip on the Cue Ball and never, no matter how extreme the English, ever allow us to miscue.

Chalk is important, and the best part about it is it's cheap, or it certainly should be.

I'm going to kick this ball by making a few statements...

(1) Master chalk sucks the high heavens and should never be used, unless you are playing against me.

(2) Kamui chalk is a joke -- I mean really? What does their chalk price out at per shot? I guess about 75 cents. This is a bullshit company and this chalk is the proof. What the hell are their tips really about?

(3) The best chalk I have ever used, and have used exclusively for many years, is Blue Diamond. It's made in Italy by Longori and you are in for a real treat the first time you try it.

Ok, I think I've said enough ... so what do you think?
 
I love my Predator chalk and i use it when playing in pool rooms.

I have master tan chalk at home because my table cloth is tan/gold. The chalk do have problems sticking to the tip.

I'm going to try other brands and see what I like for home use. But I'm sticking with Predator for tournaments.
 
I will have to try some Predator Chalk

osama said:
I love my Predator chalk and i use it when playing in pool rooms.

I have master tan chalk at home because my table cloth is tan/gold. The chalk do have problems sticking to the tip.

I'm going to try other brands and see what I like for home use. But I'm sticking with Predator for tournaments.
Click to expand...

Thanks, I'm going to order some Predator Chalk. I've never used it, but soon will ...

For your home table I might suggest balabushka Blonde chalk. I have been checking it out now for about 3 weeks. As far as I can perceive it's the same as Blue Diamond. I highly suspect that Longori is private labeling their Blue Diamond product under a different wrapper.

I'm currently looking into this and will update on this thread.
 
Been using Master for years and it has never done me wrong....I just got a couple pieces of the Predator chalk to try and I like it so far. I do believe that Kamui is over priced but there are people willing to pay it...It may be a superior chalk but I'll probably never find out for $27 per piece...The way I look at it is as long as I don't miscue then just about any of the chalk works just fine and has no bearing on the level at witch I play.
 
Agent 99 said:
For your home table I might suggest balabushka Blonde chalk. I have been checking it out now for about 3 weeks. As far as I can perceive it's the same as Blue Diamond. I highly suspect that Longori is private labeling their Blue Diamond product under a different wrapper.
Click to expand...

Yes, I have already ordered some balabuska chalk and I'm just waiting for delivery. I will update you once I get some milage on them. :)
 
Last edited:
I'd imagine a block of Kamui is good for several hundred applications, hence less than 10c per shot.

If it truly allows hitting with significantly more offset, say 0.5mm, I'd seriously consider using it for extreme english shots when they come up, particularly the low nip draw and power draw.
 
If you have trouble miscuing, your stroke probably needs work.

Its a poor craftsman that blames his tools.

Master chalk on a nice Ultraskin tip is all you need.
 
Chalk Talk

Good Subject and one of the least talked about

I have used Master for many years mainly because I somehow ended up with 3 boxes of it

about 10 years ago , and really have no complaints

I cant quite get my head around paying 27 dollars for a cube of Kamui , but obviously they are not going broke selling it.

I think any decent Chalk works fine , Master , Triangle, Diamond but I have to admit I never really looked into the differences between them

Now I have seen some really cheap chalk that did not work a damn , this is the stuff they must sell for like a couple bucks for a cubic yard of it , usually you see this stuff in bars where they buy the absolute cheapest stuff they can because the majority walks off in peoples pockets.
 
Kamui Chalk

Rackemep said:
Been using Master for years and it has never done me wrong....I just got a couple pieces of the Predator chalk to try and I like it so far. I do believe that Kamui is over priced but there are people willing to pay it...It may be a superior chalk but I'll probably never find out for $27 per piece...The way I look at it is as long as I don't miscue then just about any of the chalk works just fine and has no bearing on the level at witch I play.
Click to expand...

at 27 dollars a piece , it will dang sure make sure you don't walk out and forget it on the table at the hall
 
desmocourtney said:
If you have trouble miscuing, your stroke probably needs work.

Its a poor craftsman that blames his tools.

Master chalk on a nice Ultraskin tip is all you need.
Click to expand...

There are shots when the lower you can hit it the better. Regardless of the stroke, it's an advantage to be able to aim lower and wider in such situations, and good to know there is more margin for error.

Anyone who never miscues, is likely not going near the boundaries in CB control.
 
Chalk Talk

Agent 99,

Good topic.

I to, am not immune to the marketing power and peer influence of the world. I've played with every brand of chalk over the last 27 years and the only one that makes sense to me is Blue Diamond. It's the only chalk I've ever purchased. But that's because I'm a pool geek.

However, in the name of intellectual honesty, let me also add:

I've been watching way too much pool since 1986. I mean I watch pool more than most people watch the big four sports in N.AM. I can tell you that Earl, Buddy, Efren, Varner, Howard, Hippy Jimmy, Sigel, Archer, Davenport and I could go on forever were winning world championships and PBT finals using whatever the hell was on the table. Mostly Master chalk. I have video evidence. In addition, I've watched good players warm up for 20-30 minutes and never chalk the cue. ( like me, never straying more than a half tip from the axis).
 
Netherton said:
Agent 99,

Good topic.

I to, am not immune to the marketing power and peer influence of the world. I've played with every brand of chalk over the last 27 years and the only one that makes sense to me is Blue Diamond. It's the only chalk I've ever purchased. But that's because I'm a pool geek.

However, in the name of intellectual honesty, let me also add:

I've been watching way too much pool since 1986. I mean I watch pool more than most people watch the big four sports in N.AM. I can tell you that Earl, Buddy, Efren, Varner, Howard, Hippy Jimmy, Sigel, Archer, Davenport and I could go on forever were winning world championships and PBT finals using whatever the hell was on the table. Mostly Master chalk. I have video evidence. In addition, I've watched good players warm up for 20-30 minutes and never chalk the cue. ( like me, never straying more than a half tip from the axis).
Click to expand...

Efren is currently using Cosmo chalk from Japan.
 
PocketPooler said:
$27??!! For Chalk???!!! If you're that big of a sucker, we need to match up...
Click to expand...

Have you tried it? I am an old guy who is the first to call something a scam but this stuff is not. I have a system where I use the Kamui in combination with Predator. I use the Kaumi as sort of a treatment every second rack or so and I use the Predator just as I would use any piece of chalk.

I pretty much never miscue and have a level of confidence on any shot I didn't really have before. You can nip the cue ball or spin it with complete confidence. The biggest problem are people wanting to borrow it once they try it. The real sucker is the person who is so closed minded they deny themselves something without even knowing what it is.

Using the Kaumi as a tip treatment as I do one piece will last you a few years. I don't do it my way because I am trying to preserve the chalk, I am in the habit of chalking frequently and don't like waiting so many shots to chalk up. This has worked for me.
 
Last edited:
I see you only have 29 posts so far. There is a pretty long Chalk Thread that comes up every few months. If you do a search on the forums you can read for hours.

To reply to yours.

1) - Wrong
2) - A bit Wrong, quite a few like their chalk and many like their tips. Kamui Soft is probably the best overall tip I tried since the original Moori tips.
3) - A bit Right

I pretty much have a cut and paste reply to any "What is the best chalk" thread, along with "what is the best tip" and "what is the best shaft" and "what is the best cue under $200".

Agent 99 said:
Everyone loves to talk about sweet hitting and rare cues, myself included, but Chalk needs it's fair place too.

Now the fact of the matter is the tip and the chalk is where the rubber meets the road.

Tips are subjective to the feel and preference of the player, but not the Chalk. That's because chalk has to do the same job for us all -- stick the tip on the Cue Ball and never, no matter how extreme the English, ever allow us to miscue.

Chalk is important, and the best part about it is it's cheap, or it certainly should be.

I'm going to kick this ball by making a few statements...

(1) Master chalk sucks the high heavens and should never be used, unless you are playing against me.

(2) Kamui chalk is a joke -- I mean really? What does their chalk price out at per shot? I guess about 75 cents. This is a bullshit company and this chalk is the proof. What the hell are their tips really about?

(3) The best chalk I have ever used, and have used exclusively for many years, is Blue Diamond. It's made in Italy by Longori and you are in for a real treat the first time you try it.

Ok, I think I've said enough ... so what do you think?
Click to expand...
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top