Say you were getting a BK3....

9Ballr

9Ballr

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Would you get it with the standard Predator phenolic tip or have Seybert's install another tip like Samsara? Extra 19 bucks but that's fine.
I've never had a cue with a phenolic tip so i don't really know much about them, for example do you scuff and chalk them like you do leather tips?
I'm mostly a 9-ball player.

Thanks
 
9Ballr said:
Would you get it with the standard Predator phenolic tip or have Seybert's install another tip like Samsara? Extra 19 bucks but that's fine.
I've never had a cue with a phenolic tip so i don't really know much about them, for example do you scuff and chalk them like you do leather tips?
I'm mostly a 9-ball player.

Thanks
Click to expand...

I had a BK2 that I bought from seyberts and had an icebreaker put onit. Phenolic with leather in the middle. really didn't like it; just went back to samsara and was happier. Just my 2 cents.
 
i have an ob with the samsara tip which i love. I tried a bk3 and loved it as well. i would try it out first before spending the money.
 
The phenolic tip combo was engineered by predator to increase break speed... They hold chalk fairly well and require very little maintenance.... IF I was buying a BK3 I would definitely start out with the phenolic and see how I liked it after giving myself with some time with it.....
 
I have the BK2. Used the original phenolic tip for about a year. Had Joe Blackburn put a Samsara on a few months ago. I like the Samsara I think I have more control with it. Power I think is about the same.
 
9Ballr said:
Would you get it with the standard Predator phenolic tip or have Seybert's install another tip like Samsara? Extra 19 bucks but that's fine.
I've never had a cue with a phenolic tip so i don't really know much about them, for example do you scuff and chalk them like you do leather tips?
I'm mostly a 9-ball player.

Thanks
Click to expand...

Phenolic hits as hard as any tip. That said, it usually doesn't hold chalk very well but since you usually only use it for one shot (the break) its not a big concern.

It really depends on how you break

For instance if you play in a 9 ball league where every ball counts for a point then you might consider a phenolic tip. Having the ability to really smash open the balls increases your odds of making one or two on the break. Cue ball control after the break is not quite as important in league play.

If you play more tournaments or 9 ball where the 9 is the money ball then you need more control of the cue ball after the break and increase your chance to run out. I'd go with the Samsara in that case.

None of this is to say that you cannot hit hard with a Samsara or cannot control the cue ball with a phenolic tip. You certainly can do either. Just food for thought.
 
The hardness of the tip on the BK3 is rated at a hardness level of 100 the samsara tip is leather and it is rated at 97 pretty darn close. I have the tip on the cue flatened out and a samara installed on top of it...better break more control nicer sound. I have done this on all of my break cues with that type of tip on it. The nice thing about it is that if you dont like it you can always pop the samara off and reround the original tip and there you go.

And that is my dimes worth
 
Thanks for the very helpful information.
Since the phenolic and the Samsara are so close I may as well keep the original and see how it goes. Leave the cue like that for a few months and give it a chance.
Just never had a break cue with a phenolic on it before so I don't exactly know what to expect.

Thanks again
 
Ask yourself this..."why would I want to hit the cue ball, at an object ball & have no control of the cue ball"?
 
If you can get a hold of a radar gun or the Predator Break Speed app for iPhone, I think you'll be surprised to see that tips don't make a world of difference in speed. In my humble opinion, the only thing the phenolic tip does is complicate things. It scratches cloth and balls. You can still miscue and in fact, you may miscue more. That's not to mention that you might not want to break full-speed most of the time. I like the idea of starting with the phenolic tip and if you don't like it, switch over. If Seyberts is offering to do this change for $19, they're really not doing you much of a favor. Most cue repairmen will do it for about that price anyway.
 
I have a BK2 with the factory phenolic tip. It holds the chalk well enough & has enough "control" that I can play a full rack with it. I've just gone ahead & run the rack after breaking because I was too lazy (& comfortable enough to spin the CB with it) to go get my shooting cue.
 
mosconiac said:
I have a BK2 with the factory phenolic tip. It holds the chalk well enough & has enough "control" that I can play a full rack with it. I've just gone ahead & run the rack after breaking because I was too lazy (& comfortable enough to spin the CB with it) to go get my shooting cue.
Click to expand...

I have had similar experience as you have. I've sometimes forgotten (when tired as heck) that I was still holding my break cue and played a full rack, with no problems. No miscues, no problem using English, no control issues. I realized after the rack was done that I was using my break cue. Control is generally not an issue with the BK2's factory phenolic tip.

I suppose if I had happen to have tried to apply more more extreme side-spin, I could have seen a miscue then. But for anything one would reasonably do in a break shot, there is no problem with control with Predator's phenolic tip. That being said, it's not for everybody, just as no other tip is for everybody; to each their own.
 
i hada friend put a Whit Diamond on my BK2 and I like it much more, not sure about the BK3. I just know I love White Diamond tips on break cues, isnt as hard as G10 or dont seem as hard, what ever the case i like it much more now that i switched out the tip.
 
Houstoer said:
I had a BK2 that I bought from seyberts and had an icebreaker put onit. Phenolic with leather in the middle. really didn't like it; just went back to samsara and was happier. Just my 2 cents.
Click to expand...

those ice breaker tips were a good idea that IMO didnt translate well from the idea into real life.
 
mosconiac said:
I have a BK2 with the factory phenolic tip. It holds the chalk well enough & has enough "control" that I can play a full rack with it. I've just gone ahead & run the rack after breaking because I was too lazy (& comfortable enough to spin the CB with it) to go get my shooting cue.
Click to expand...


Glen RKC the table fitter was at my house a couple years ago and grabbed the BK2 when it had the factory tip on it and started playing, he hit a power draw shot like Mike Massey where the rock sits there spinning before it came back to the bottom rail and to the top rail, just about 17' of draw. He had no idea what cue he was using, point is if you hit the rock right (he chalked it every shot) the tip aint that big of a deal. I can do the same with the BK2 when i chalk it, ya just have to hit the ball good. its just that easy, lol of course he has only been playing 40 years,
 
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