Do older cue butts hit harder? I was reading that older cues are more dense and thus hit harder. For example: a used cue that is 10-20 years old?
Older Cue Butts
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RidgeRaider
Active member
It really depends on the cue..
I've played with some older cues that felt like trash, and I've played with some that felt amazingly solid.
Depends who made and with what.
I've played with some older cues that felt like trash, and I've played with some that felt amazingly solid.
Depends who made and with what.
It depends on two things, first who built the cue, and second what materials were used in the cues construction. When you wanna talk about old wood, we have to mention the old Brunswick cues from the 1920s and 1930s. When I was building cues whenever I could buy one piece cues like that I would purchase them. And I would convert them in playing cues mainly sneaky Petes or break cues, but I would convert them. Because the wood was like you know 80 to 100 years old, and if it was still straight, it wasn't gonna warp because it had passed the test of time.
So basically, in my opinion when you're talking about old cues, you're talking about cues that are 50+ years old and those cues most of the time will hit very hard and they'll be very strong. However, the production cues of today that are made in China they'll never pass the test of time because of the materials in the craftsmanship in them.
I hope this helps
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Age has nothing to do with it.
It’s up to materials and construction methods.
I find that older cue butts are just flat out heavier than today or even the last couple of decades.
Back in the 20’s-40’s, 50’s, 60’s & 70’s, table cloths varied & were commonly woolen vs. worsted.
Balabushka design cues & cues of that period customarily used a lot wider butt sleeve with a bumper.
It was common to see butts weighing high 15 ozs to high 16 ozs. range & maple shafts in the mid 4 ozs.
The older cue butts were also just thicker, i.e., more wood, so all things considered, cues were heavier.
My ‘85 Runde Schon directly reflects this @ 20.5 ozs., plus piloted steel joints & 13 mm shafts seemed
to be the norm for most players. And it was a custom build Bob undertook after we met at a trade show.
Cues were a lot heavier during the periods earlier referred to & the reasons why no longer applies to cues.
Back in the 20’s-40’s, 50’s, 60’s & 70’s, table cloths varied & were commonly woolen vs. worsted.
Balabushka design cues & cues of that period customarily used a lot wider butt sleeve with a bumper.
It was common to see butts weighing high 15 ozs to high 16 ozs. range & maple shafts in the mid 4 ozs.
The older cue butts were also just thicker, i.e., more wood, so all things considered, cues were heavier.
My ‘85 Runde Schon directly reflects this @ 20.5 ozs., plus piloted steel joints & 13 mm shafts seemed
to be the norm for most players. And it was a custom build Bob undertook after we met at a trade show.
Cues were a lot heavier during the periods earlier referred to & the reasons why no longer applies to cues.
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a heavier cue will hit and feel harder. density wont be the factor. but may affect its weight.
as craig said old cues have stood the test of time and wont warp so right there that is the wood to use if you can get it.
but players now want looks in a cue rather than demanding hit.
as craig said old cues have stood the test of time and wont warp so right there that is the wood to use if you can get it.
but players now want looks in a cue rather than demanding hit.
Thanks very much for your kind words and yeah. I certainly agree with you that for some people the way a cue looks is more important than the hit.
If you look at select cue butts from makers like Gus Z and a few others in the 60s and 70s where birds eye maple was used, you can note, upon close inspection, often, not always,much smaller 'eyes' in the BEM. It was a denser wood then what you see later on in cue building. Cue butts of even similar diameters to cue butts made in later years were heavier.
im certain the op has been whopped upside the head a time or two if hes ever been in a pool room
well said. that's some funny shit right there.
I think it does. Have you tried to drive a nail through 100 year old Oak or Maple? Some wood gets harder with age. So it will have less flex in in it.
There's no direct correlation, it all depends on the cue. Where heavy cues with a larger diameter more common back in the day? Sure, but I don't think it's as easy as that. Most of what you feel will be from the shaft and it's often difficult to do a like for like test as there's so many variables. But it could be that you just like larger diameter cues, nothing wrong with that.
But aren't most woods used for cues kiln dried and aged?? Plus they are sealed when finished too, wouldn't that help keep the moisture level from changing a lot?? I don't know the answer to these questions, that's why I ask.
Still not going to change the 'hit' to any noticeable degree. As fastone said woods used in cues are already dried/aged before they're built. IF there is any further hardening its going to be tiny. Nothing anyone would ever notice using the cue. ADD: i just did a quick dig on this and once wood reaches what they call 'equilibrium' its aging/hardening is done. Any further aging can actually make it WEAKER over time if not sealed/stored properly. The initial drying process happens fairly quickly and when the dried/equilibrium state is reached further strengthening doesn't happen. With kiln-dried wood this equil. state is reached much quicker and the wood is not going to further harden with age.
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Go get a fresh kiln dried oak board and drive a nail through it. Try that with one that has been a floor board for 100 years. Then let me know if you still feel there is very little change. Check the stiffness on an old titleist house cue compared to a modern house cue.
It is not just moisture content that changes. The wood hardens with age.
Man, it’s great to have you posting again!
A genuine AZB asset.
Many people who have very good knowledge from toiling years in our genre
will never write a book to capture their learning.
Here you can dribble it out over time and really, really make a lasting contribution.
By the way, I agree with everything you wrote.
Thanks.
Will Prout
Thank you very much. Will, it's good to be back God it's been over 10 years. I really appreciate the kind words. I'll try to live up to that standard.
Thanks again well, I really appreciate it.
Craig