OB cues shut down?

[FunChamp]

Yeah ok, use whatever you want. Why some people have to come on here and degrade others for their choice of playing equipment. Everyone here should be jumping for joy every time a low league banger buys a $500 shaft. This is what supports the industry who in turn supports the pro level tournaments. Without those suckers who buy things they don't need and won't help them, pool as we know it would be over. If we all just played with the same cue that would be pretty boring wouldn't it? Do you use a house cue every time you paly? If not, why not? The cue makes absolutely no difference correct?
As far as I know, there is nothing stopping anyone from playing with old basic maple shafts. There are no rules stating that you must use a LD shaft or a carbon shaft. So you could use your old equipment and nobody would say shit to you. It only seems to work the opposite way, the same people have to get on and bash anyone who embraces new things. Every time there is something new in the pool world we have to have a thread bashing it and the players who like it. And it is always the same argument, " I have always used x, I beat up on all the stupid league players using x, while they wasted their money on Y, therefore I am such a better human than the fools who like Y." Sound familiar?
Play with what you like, who gives a shit what anyone thinks about what you like.

Sigh.....please read my entire post before losing your mind. I was not bashing anyone. Notice where I said that they are fine cues and shafts and to play with what you like? What I was talking about with the poster was that imo they do not make the game any easier and I gave my reasons why. This entire website is based on folks opinions. lighten up

 

[chenjy9]

Yeah ok, use whatever you want. Why some people have to come on here and degrade others for their choice of playing equipment. Everyone here should be jumping for joy every time a low league banger buys a $500 shaft. This is what supports the industry who in turn supports the pro level tournaments. Without those suckers who buy things they don't need and won't help them, pool as we know it would be over. If we all just played with the same cue that would be pretty boring wouldn't it? Do you use a house cue every time you paly? If not, why not? The cue makes absolutely no difference correct?
As far as I know, there is nothing stopping anyone from playing with old basic maple shafts. There are no rules stating that you must use a LD shaft or a carbon shaft. So you could use your old equipment and nobody would say shit to you. It only seems to work the opposite way, the same people have to get on and bash anyone who embraces new things. Every time there is something new in the pool world we have to have a thread bashing it and the players who like it. And it is always the same argument, " I have always used x, I beat up on all the stupid league players using x, while they wasted their money on Y, therefore I am such a better human than the fools who like Y." Sound familiar?
Play with what you like, who gives a shit what anyone thinks about what you like.

People just don't like change and some feel compelled to fight against it, no matter how irrational that fight sometimes is. You should see the hate I get from folks sometimes because I choose to drive an EV.

 

[FunChamp]

People just don't like change and some feel compelled to fight against it, no matter how irrational that fight sometimes is. You should see the hate I get from folks sometimes because I choose to drive an EV.

I was hating on anyone or degrading or bashing. I was simply stating that they dont' make the game easier as someone said they did. we had a different opinion and we discussed it. wth

 

[buckshotshoey]

People just don't like change and some feel compelled to fight against it, no matter how irrational that fight sometimes is. You should see the hate I get from folks sometimes because I choose to drive an EV.

I won't hate you for your choice to drive an EV. More power to ya. Pun intended.

I get pissed when otherS want to shame me to buy an EV. Agree or not, that's exactly what is going on.

 

[leto1776]

Yeah ok, use whatever you want. Why some people have to come on here and degrade others for their choice of playing equipment. Everyone here should be jumping for joy every time a low league banger buys a $500 shaft. This is what supports the industry who in turn supports the pro level tournaments. Without those suckers who buy things they don't need and won't help them, pool as we know it would be over. If we all just played with the same cue that would be pretty boring wouldn't it? Do you use a house cue every time you paly? If not, why not? The cue makes absolutely no difference correct?
As far as I know, there is nothing stopping anyone from playing with old basic maple shafts. There are no rules stating that you must use a LD shaft or a carbon shaft. So you could use your old equipment and nobody would say shit to you. It only seems to work the opposite way, the same people have to get on and bash anyone who embraces new things. Every time there is something new in the pool world we have to have a thread bashing it and the players who like it. And it is always the same argument, " I have always used x, I beat up on all the stupid league players using x, while they wasted their money on Y, therefore I am such a better human than the fools who like Y." Sound familiar?
Play with what you like, who gives a shit what anyone thinks about what you like.

There’s a lot of snobbery going on not only on this particular forum, but basically any forum that gathers hardcore fans of pretty much anything you can think of. Sometimes it’s good, sometimes it’s bad. Gatekeeping hobbies is great to an extent, but a lot of what I see on here is angry old boomers hating that things don’t suck anymore, or hating that things don’t cater to them.

An example, years ago, when I was first active on here, so snob wanted a separate forum in the WTB sub forum, so “all the “production junk” doesn’t clutter the WTB.” Not sure if this particular boomer was someone who sold cues himself, or one of the hangers on of one of the bigger sellers on here (an even bigger class of weirdo). Now, you point out that there are very few pros who use custom cues by their precious custom makers, and they’ll just retort “that’s because they play with whoever pays them.” It’s like, that’s the point. The “production junk” cue makers are the people sponsoring tournaments, sponsoring players, sponsoring leagues that bring in new players, etc. I think some people on here would only be happy if there was nothing left of pool but them and their precious customs (speaking as someone who owns both “production” cues and several customs).

 

[hang-the-9]

Sigh.....please read my entire post before losing your mind. I was not bashing anyone. Notice where I said that they are fine cues and shafts and to play with what you like? What I was talking about with the poster was that imo they do not make the game any easier and I gave my reasons why. This entire website is based on folks opinions. lighten up

LD shafts do make shots easier; I have seen it with many many players that shot with LD shafts and compared it with their old ones, and they make aiming easier since you don't need to learn to adjust nearly as much and spend 5 years learning to aim for every speed and distance and cut angle you face in a game. The only truth is that just by getting a new shaft a player won't get better without practice with that new shaft. But they can very well become better than they were if they stuck with using their old equipment.

The only players I have ever seen say that LD shafts are not an improvement are those that spent decades playing with normal shafts and did not try long enough or put in enough practice time to adjust or simply failed to do so. I have seen pretty much the same players poh-poh the template racks also and just stick with using the triangle rack even though it's been 100% shown the template racks create a much better break and are easier to setup.

My template for newer and weaker players is "get a good shaft that helps you instead of makes you struggle more, make sure mechanics are solid, learn to shoot a stop shot from short to long range, don't be stubborn". I don't believe in "starter cues" or "just buy equipment to make you instantly better", but I do believe that in many cases changing to a more advanced shaft will help way more than sticking stubbornly with what a player is using unless they are already very strong, like 650+ Fargo strong. After a period of time that includes proper practice and instruction. I know that many players I see miss shots simply because they don't understand deflection, they shoot in pretty straight in shots without spin fine, but soon as they have any sort of stoke flaw that swipes the cueball or aim with spin on purpose they are missing by 1-2-3 inches. With an LD shaft that is a much closer miss they can learn to adjust for easier, or a made ball.

 

[chenjy9]

I won't hate you for your choice to drive an EV. More power to ya. Pun intended.

I get pissed when otherS want to shame me to buy an EV. Agree or not, that's exactly what is going on.

I actually don’t want too many people switching from ICE vehicles. I simply believe our current infrastructure cannot support a huge amount of people using EVs and we are all too cheap to make the necessary upgrades.

 

[hang-the-9]

I actually don’t want too many people switching from ICE vehicles. I simply believe our current infrastructure cannot support a huge amount of people using EVs and we are all too cheap to make the necessary upgrades.

A friend of mine got a Tesla a bit ago, cost of electricity has gone up so much past few months he hates driving anywhere. Now when we go for lunch, I get to take my fossil fuel burning car to kill the environment LOL Also the charge times when not using a dedicated high-power charger, and even then, are really annoying. I shot pool with a guy a few weeks ago who had a Tesla as a rental, he left the pool hall at 12:30 AM, could not find a fast charger and spent an hour waiting and charging his car at whatever place he did find with a charger on way home. Who the hell wants to sit in some place for an hour at 1 AM to get back home? It's as inconvenient and annoying as getting a flat tire, and even then a flat tire swap to a spare is half of that time or less.

The world is not ready for a large number of electric cars being used as main cars for a large portion of the population with how we live and travel. What are they going to do with the NY high rises with charging stations? You need one for every household to swap to electric as the law seems to mandate. Who is going to stick a high-power electric charging station in every single parking lot in a NY project area? They will be all vandalized in days, never mind the initial cost. And try telling India, Russia, China or African countries that they need to use fancy expensive electric cars vs their poorly maintained and very polluting cars they have with the state their electric grid and economy is.

Electric cars will be the toys of the upper middle and upper classes for decades, much like SUVs were when they came out.

 

[FunChamp]

LD shafts do make shots easier; I have seen it with many many players that shot with LD shafts and compared it with their old ones, and they make aiming easier since you don't need to learn to adjust nearly as much and spend 5 years learning to aim for every speed and distance and cut angle you face in a game. The only truth is that just by getting a new shaft a player won't get better without practice with that new shaft. But they can very well become better than they were if they stuck with using their old equipment.

The only players I have ever seen say that LD shafts are not an improvement are those that spent decades playing with normal shafts and did not try long enough or put in enough practice time to adjust or simply failed to do so. I have seen pretty much the same players poh-poh the template racks also and just stick with using the triangle rack even though it's been 100% shown the template racks create a much better break and are easier to setup.

My template for newer and weaker players is "get a good shaft that helps you instead of makes you struggle more, make sure mechanics are solid, learn to shoot a stop shot from short to long range, don't be stubborn". I don't believe in "starter cues" or "just buy equipment to make you instantly better", but I do believe that in many cases changing to a more advanced shaft will help way more than sticking stubbornly with what a player is using unless they are already very strong, like 650+ Fargo strong. After a period of time that includes proper practice and instruction. I know that many players I see miss shots simply because they don't understand deflection, they shoot in pretty straight in shots without spin fine, but soon as they have any sort of stoke flaw that swipes the cueball or aim with spin on purpose they are missing by 1-2-3 inches. With an LD shaft that is a much closer miss they can learn to adjust for easier, or a made ball.

I love template racks. I play equally well with standard, ld or cf. That's why imo it doesn't make it easier. But as you pointed out it must make it easier for some people. Any of them are good choices as long as it suits the player.

 

[lfigueroa]

There’s a lot of snobbery going on not only on this particular forum, but basically any forum that gathers hardcore fans of pretty much anything you can think of. Sometimes it’s good, sometimes it’s bad. Gatekeeping hobbies is great to an extent, but a lot of what I see on here is angry old boomers hating that things don’t suck anymore, or hating that things don’t cater to them.

An example, years ago, when I was first active on here, so snob wanted a separate forum in the WTB sub forum, so “all the “production junk” doesn’t clutter the WTB.” Not sure if this particular boomer was someone who sold cues himself, or one of the hangers on of one of the bigger sellers on here (an even bigger class of weirdo). Now, you point out that there are very few pros who use custom cues by their precious custom makers, and they’ll just retort “that’s because they play with whoever pays them.” It’s like, that’s the point. The “production junk” cue makers are the people sponsoring tournaments, sponsoring players, sponsoring leagues that bring in new players, etc. I think some people on here would only be happy if there was nothing left of pool but them and their precious customs (speaking as someone who owns both “production” cues and several customs).

Why are you picking on Boomers?

We're not the ones who got "participation trophies," lol. We were raised on Vince Lombardi saying, "Winning isn't everything, it's the only thing." And Patton saying, " Americans love a winner and will not tolerate a loser." No Boomer who bought a Szamboti, or Gina, or Tascallera ever thought the cue was going to make them play better. Boomers bought them because they could appreciate the workmanship -- the quality of materials and the time invested in making an astonishing piece or work that was a custom pool cue. And that was the case, whether a house, a car, clothes, or just a watch.

So now you have another generation who has been sold on the PR and hype of the deadly "accuracy" of carbon shafts. Great. Enjoy. And us Boomers are laughing our asses off because the vast majority of you don't play well enough for it to make squadoush when it comes to a difference in your game ;-)

Lou Figueroa
don't care what you play with
just sayin'

 

[leto1776]

We're not the ones who got "participation trophies," lol.

Neither was I, or anyone I know. Nice try though, boomer

 

[Shannon.spronk]

Why are you picking on Boomers?

We're not the ones who got "participation trophies," lol. We were raised on Vince Lombardi saying, "Winning isn't everything, it's the only thing." And Patton saying, " Americans love a winner and will not tolerate a loser." No Boomer who bought a Szamboti, or Gina, or Tascallera ever thought the cue was going to make them play better. Boomers bought them because they could appreciate the workmanship -- the quality of materials and the time invested in making an astonishing piece or work that was a custom pool cue. And that was the case, whether a house, a car, clothes, or just a watch.

So now you have another generation who has been sold on the PR and hype of the deadly "accuracy" of carbon shafts. Great. Enjoy. And us Boomers are laughing our asses off because the vast majority of you don't play well enough for it to make squadoush when it comes to a difference in your game ;-)

Lou Figueroa
don't care what you play with
just sayin'

Boomers get blamed because for the most part they raised the millennials.

 

[Rimfirejunkie]

Neither was I, or anyone I know. Nice try though, boomer

I like how you think that’s a put down. Haha

 

[Rimfirejunkie]

Boomers get blamed because for the most part they raised the millennials.

Uh no. No it’s not.

 

[RDeca]

Right around 12.5mm is the best all around shaft performance in my opinion.

A 13mm shaft can do some things better than a 12mm shaft and likewise if u flip it.

Less than 12mm and over 13mm are extremes and honestly un necessary for American pool games.

Long strait powerfull shots and if your style is where youo just kind of roll the cueball around table with minimal english using speed,13mm all day.

Finess shots with lots of pinpoint side spin..and slow rolling the ball with great accuracy 12mm all day.

12.5mm is best of both worlds ...I feel that anyone can use it and be comfortable almost immediately.

find the taper and tip profile you like as well as the balance and weight you prefer and stick with it. That's whats gonna be the best cue for you.

Ps there is no magic wood. Anything between 300 and 600$ will last usually forever. Anything less than 300 and build and wood quality can be a concern. Their are a few outliers but in general this is true. Plaines of Janes Joss can be had around 250 and it's all the cue anyone ever needs really

Anything over $650 is just an emotional purchase...it's not good or bad it's just your spending extra for whatever it is that's in the cue.

For example players brand cue feel and play great when new for 110 bucks and are probably perfectfor a casual player (5 racks a month.) If you play 15 20 racks a day, more than likely the cue won't hold up over time. Warpage.. rattles... pin issues ect... ect. Definitely don't break with it if it's your main playing cue.

Anything over 650 and you cry when it gets dinged or left behind or stolen. Some of these cues are stupid expensive anymore. Crazy to pay more for a custom cue that's not even that fancy just because of the makers name than u did your pool table. Imo but to each their own.

PS IT SUCKS THAT OB IS CLOSING. I dont have anything from them but I know lots of guys use their shafts. Their stuff was priced fair.

template racks should be outlawed in competition. You should have to rack your own balls. It takes skill to rack balls well.

 

[garczar]

Right around 12.5mm is the best all around shaft performance in my opinion.

A 13mm shaft can do some things better than a 12mm shaft and likewise if u flip it.

Less than 12mm and over 13mm are extremes and honestly un necessary for American pool games.

Long strait powerfull shots and if your style is where youo just kind of roll the cueball around table with minimal english using speed,13mm all day.

Finess shots with lots of pinpoint side spin..and slow rolling the ball with great accuracy 12mm all day.

12.5mm is best of both worlds ...I feel that anyone can use it and be comfortable almost immediately.

find the taper and tip profile you like as well as the balance and weight you prefer and stick with it. That's whats gonna be the best cue for you.

Ps there is no magic wood. Anything between 300 and 600$ will last usually forever. Anything less than 300 and build and wood quality can be a concern. Their are a few outliers but in general this is true. Plaines of Janes Joss can be had around 250 and it's all the cue anyone ever needs really

Anything over $650 is just an emotional purchase...it's not good or bad it's just your spending extra for whatever it is that's in the cue.

For example players brand cue feel and play great when new for 110 bucks and are probably perfectfor a casual player (5 racks a month.) If you play 15 20 racks a day, more than likely the cue won't hold up over time. Warpage.. rattles... pin issues ect... ect. Definitely don't break with it if it's your main playing cue.

Anything over 650 and you cry when it gets dinged or left behind or stolen. Some of these cues are stupid expensive anymore. Crazy to pay more for a custom cue that's not even that fancy just because of the makers name than u did your pool table. Imo but to each their own.

PS IT SUCKS THAT OB IS CLOSING. I dont have anything from them but I know lots of guys use their shafts. Their stuff was priced fair.

template racks should be outlawed in competition. You should have to rack your own balls. It takes skill to rack balls well.

HOW can a 12mm shaft be preferred for 'slow rolling with great accuracy'?? There is absolutely nothing to back that up. The difference in the amount of tip that actually strikes the cb in 11.75 and 13mm shafts is next to nothing. Its far more a feel/preference as to any actual performance diff. I do think that 12.5 is a great size but so is anything from about 11.5 to 13.5 I had 14mm shafts with ivory ferules on my first Joss. I could do anything with those shafts. Soft,hard,spin, no-spin.

 

[RDeca]

I think a thinner shaft helps aiming accuracy slightly. It's an opinion....based on my own experience. If im gonna slow roll and finess balls around the table I want a thinner shaft. That's all. It doesn't need to be an argument....

Also if a coin op has the squiggle cougar cue ball and im gonna be playing with it all day I'm using a fatter shaft....

Pool is a game of fractions. Little bits make big difference.

 

[RDeca]

Grab you 14mm shaft and a 12mm shaft. Play certain shots with them over and over...you will most definitely walk away with preferences for one or the other in certain situations. If u don't think that's a real difference then idk what to tell u

 

[FunChamp]

I think a thinner shaft helps aiming accuracy slightly. It's an opinion....based on my own experience. If im gonna slow roll and finess balls around the table I want a thinner shaft. That's all. It doesn't need to be an argument....

Also if a coin op has the squiggle cougar cue ball and im gonna be playing with it all day I'm using a fatter shaft....

Pool is a game of fractions. Little bits make big difference.

Ooooops. There is where you messed up. You gave your opinion based on your personal experience. Apparently that is a huge NO NO on this website. I've been getting beat raped brutally the last few days for giving my opinion. Coincidentally my main player is a $250 black plain Joss with a 12.5 mm standard shaft and it's the best cue I've ever played with.

 

[RDeca]

They are great cues. And it's what I always recommend to youngsters or someone taking a liking and wanting to get into the game more.
Woman or youths with small hands thinner shaft.

350 pound man.. big hands fatter shaft heavier and longer cue is what I recommend