I really like my OB-1
I have been real happy with my OB-1. Here is my OB-1 story and my take on what is different in using OB-1.
I am an amateur. 20 years ago I used to consider my self good and about 4 months ago I started playing again. I joined my local APA and I practice at least every other day.
When I first started back I was using house cues and in between practice I was studying everything I could find online to break down the dynamics of playing pool and trying to control how I was affecting the cue ball.
With a house cue, I'm assuming it is the same with most cues, it came down to Back Hand English and learning to control that as the impact of the cue on the cue ball would also create curve and squirt or deflection.
I was fortunate to meet John Schmidt at 9 Mile Billiards here in Pensacola. I had not a clue who any one was in Professional Pool when I met him in January much less what an OB-1 was about. It took a couple of weeks and me running across information about John online before I really got a clue that he might know what he is talking about and that he was some body that actually knew what he was talking about.
As the weeks passed and I kept practicing with house cues and learning pool, even going as far to learn the evils of Snooker,lol, I started paying attention to how John was shooting and was watching some of the really sick things he was making the cue ball do when he practiced.
It is great to watch a great quality player during a match that has cue ball control in regard to speed and placement with mapping out runs, what I'm talking about though is being there when they tell someone, "watch this shot" and then seeing cue ball control that more or less defies logic and normal reasoning of what can be done.
I started talking to John about technical aspect of the game as well as I got too over hear conversations he was having with others about his OB-1 cue and why he could get that much out of the cue ball.
For a while I avoided being interested in OB-1 and I dared not to ask to shoot with one because I already knew I wanted one and didn't want to spend the money. Not that they are pricey, I'm just poor and cheap,lol.
Finally I gave in and ask John if I could shoot with one and that was the end that. I now had to have one.
To me when I hit with an OB-1, it literally feels like the tip of my cue is grabbing the cue ball.
I more or less had to stop and re-evaluate how I shot. I had to unlearn the Back Hand English techniques I had been using for cue ball reaction and readjust my shots for the lack of deflection or squirt.
Having made those adjustments has given me more cue ball control as I'm not using the BHE, the amount of squirt is so much less that where my bridge is, is much less of a factor in how the cue ball responds to my stroke. I rarely ever miscue anymore.
My shots are now about what I'm doing to the cue ball and not very much about what I'm doing with the cue.
I still have a long way to go in my game with my lack of consistency, but those are more about how I'm standing and how I'm gripping the cue and speed.
Not having to spend time calculating so much about deflection or squirt or having to use BHE means I can focus more on enjoying the game and each shot.
If you are new to OB-1 or if you get one, I recommend spending time just practicing doing drills with nothing on the table but the cue ball and check out what you can make the cue ball do off each rail by starting each shot in a straight line and then adjusting about a half tip in any or every direction until you reach the limits of the outside of the cue ball to the point of miss cuing. You will be amazed at how much top right or left you can get or how long the English will carry the cue ball if you pop the ball instead of just hitting it.
After playing with just the cue ball I practiced doing other drills where I placed object balls at either end on the points where the diamond lines intersect. Starting with the cue ball in the center of the table, I try making shots and bringing the cue ball back to the center without disturbing any of the object balls except the shot I'm trying to make.
I think as a good analogy, going to an OB-1 is like going from a Volkswagen Beetle to a Porsche. They are both great but they are not the same. You learn to drive the Porsche by starting out slow and continuing to push the limits until you master it.
For those who have had trouble and gave up on the OB-1, I think you might be trying to drive a Porsche like a Volkswagen Beetle when it just needs to be driven like a Porsche.
Bluey2King,
Enjoy your new OB-1.
