Searching for the holy grail, sort of...

Kickin' Chicken

Kickin' Chicken

Kick Shot Aficionado
Silver Member
Here's what would make me happy and if anyone can suggest a way to get it, I'd be in your debt, or at least, extremely appreciative.

A slender handled, 18 - 18.6 oz, true sneaky pete (no rings, no caps, no veneers, no visible joint), made from an old (pre 1960), full splice cue with points reasonably close in length.

Here's the main attribute I'm hoping for: A cue with a sharp note like a ping rather than a thwaap when striking whitey. Am I insane, you might be thinking? :grin: Nope, I'm just a man who knows precisely what he wants. :)

Cue must be straight together and apart and even if the cue is not in great shape cosmetically, as long as she can come back to near mint with a refinish, I'm good with that.

Any thoughts or suggestions?

Best,
Brian kc
 
yeah , I suggest you move this post to the wanted/for sale forums .

other than that , there are frequently posts in the for sale section for antique one piece cues . Send it to the cue builder of your choice , and have him add a piloted , collarless joint , and turn down the handle diameter.

The easiest way to get a custom cue that suits you is to have it custom made to your specifications .

viola - just what you asked for , except for the sound of the hit - and 'ping' & 'ting' usually signify loose parts.
 
I'll go ahead an disagree with the above post, my EY and a few other cues make the definitive "Ping" sound, and the only loose parts are between my ears.

Brian, I as well would love to find the same kind of cue you are searching for. Good luck with your quest.

Kevin
 
I had a cue that fits this description almost to a T. Except maybe the 1960's part. Though it may have been. It was an old perfectly matched Tim Scruggs. Grain even matched when screwed together. I sold it here on AZ but no idea to who.
 
Kickin' Chicken said:
Here's what would make me happy and if anyone can suggest a way to get it, I'd be in your debt, or at least, extremely appreciative.

A slender handled, 18 - 18.6 oz, true sneaky pete (no rings, no caps, no veneers, no visible joint), made from an old (pre 1960), full splice cue with points reasonably close in length.

Here's the main attribute I'm hoping for: A cue with a sharp note like a ping rather than a thwaap when striking whitey. Am I insane, you might be thinking? :grin: Nope, I'm just a man who knows precisely what he wants. :)

Cue must be straight together and apart and even if the cue is not in great shape cosmetically, as long as she can come back to near mint with a refinish, I'm good with that.

Any thoughts or suggestions?

Best,
Brian kc
Click to expand...

Brian:

You're not crazy. That "ping" sound you're looking for, is indicative of a cue that carries the resonance of the hit all the way through the joint to the back of the cue, much like the cue wasn't a two-piece at all.

The way this is achieved, is through a pure wood-to-wood joint. You certainly won't get this with a stainless steel joint, because that big block of steel acts like a vibration/resonance dampener -- the resonance of the hit travels up the shaft and bounces right off that big block of steel. (Thus, you get that "thwap" sound you mentioned.) The same thing occurs with certain joint collars and inserts -- if it's not wood, it disturbs the natural transmission of the resonance of the hit.

I have a nearly 30-year old Mali that I bought from Barry Behrman's old Q-Masters location (the one on Sewell's Point Road that burned to the ground). This Mali was nearly the last of the American-made Malis, before production was shipped overseas. It has a 3/8"-10 pin, and pure wood-to-wood (no collars and no inserts). It has a beautiful woody "ping" to it during the hit. I wouldn't trade this cue for anything (not only because of the hit/resonance, but also because of its sentimental value).

I know you're looking for something very specific, and I wish you the best of luck in finding it. But I was thinking that perhaps if you tweak your search just a bit, you might find something that gives the same woody "ping" resonant hit, but more commonly available, if you know what to look for (i.e. wood-to-wood joint with no collars nor inserts)?

Just a suggestion,
-Sean
 
I've been studying all morning. I may be bold to state this, but I think I can build you an iPhone app, where everytime the mic picks up the sound of a hit, it will play a Ping sound loud enough to mask the original hit.:grin:
 
Kickin' Chicken said:
Here's what would make me happy and if anyone can suggest a way to get it, I'd be in your debt, or at least, extremely appreciative.

A slender handled, 18 - 18.6 oz, true sneaky pete (no rings, no caps, no veneers, no visible joint), made from an old (pre 1960), full splice cue with points reasonably close in length.

Here's the main attribute I'm hoping for: A cue with a sharp note like a ping rather than a thwaap when striking whitey. Am I insane, you might be thinking? :grin: Nope, I'm just a man who knows precisely what he wants. :)

Cue must be straight together and apart and even if the cue is not in great shape cosmetically, as long as she can come back to near mint with a refinish, I'm good with that.

Any thoughts or suggestions?

Best,
Brian kc
Click to expand...

The hit you describe is the hit I enjoy in my cues as well. I just made a cue with an astounding ping. It is an ebony nose & butt sleeve / birds eye handled plain jane. You can try it out, and then if you like it, I can proceed in attempting to make you the cue as you described. It's no big secret that a cue is actually a percussion instrument, and there are several ways to achieve harmonic tones in your cue.... Some people actually hate vibrations in a cue, I happen to think it is the cue speaking to your senses during the stroke. (An invisible umbilical cord if you will)

Someone mentioned earlier that the ping is a result of harmonic tones vibrating all the way through the cue negating the possibility of the same ping with a steel joint. I must disagree. What causes the ping are several different things, and ivory ferrules and steel joints are among those factors. There are several ways to achieve different harmonic tones, and at the moment, this is what I have dedicated my cue making to.
 
Brian,

Good luck with your search. A couple suggestions:

Samsara & AE. The only cues that I have found that consistently have that "ping" is Samsara. Every one of their cues I have hit with (about 6) had a ping. I think Grady even talked about it years ago when he was affiliated with them, or sponsored, or whatever. AE cues from Colorado also have somewhat of a ping and a firmer hit.

Not sure if they would play like you want, but if "ping" is what you are after... However, you may have to supply the 30 year old sneaky blank.

Dave
 
Kickin' Chicken said:
Here's what would make me happy and if anyone can suggest a way to get it, I'd be in your debt, or at least, extremely appreciative.

A slender handled, 18 - 18.6 oz, true sneaky pete (no rings, no caps, no veneers, no visible joint), made from an old (pre 1960), full splice cue with points reasonably close in length.

Here's the main attribute I'm hoping for: A cue with a sharp note like a ping rather than a thwaap when striking whitey. Am I insane, you might be thinking? :grin: Nope, I'm just a man who knows precisely what he wants. :)

Cue must be straight together and apart and even if the cue is not in great shape cosmetically, as long as she can come back to near mint with a refinish, I'm good with that.

Any thoughts or suggestions?

Best,
Brian kc
Click to expand...


This actually would be a fun project for you to just do on your own - I'll explain exactly how below.

The early Scruggs sneakies fit the bill. Before buying blanks they were converting what I believe were old Challengers into sneakies. They put a very nice taper on the cues and added a few embellishments. I have two older ones and they have the hit you want.

Here's what I suggest doing. Find someone who has a supply of old Challengers or other Brunswicks and just try them out, or buy a couple on e-bay. Check them out for straightness and even points, etc. Most of them will be 57" but don't worry about that. You can reference the year by checking them against these catalogs on a site I'm working on:

http://www.palmercollector.com/Brunswick/BruswickCollectorHomePage.html

The older ones generally have well seasoned, denser woods.

Then find a cue maker locally or on here to add the joint (radial is my suggestion, or 3/8 X 10 if old school is a must) , update the ferrule and tip, clean up the shaft, re-taper the cue to your specs and weight. Have them add a short black buttcap to the cue and cut it to the length you want.

If you like the hit of the cue as a one piece, you'll like it as a two piece. That's why you want to keep the same shaft that came with it. The cost will probably run $50 for a good cue plus at least a couple hundred for whatever work you're going to have done, but it will be exactly to your specs.

There are still plenty of straight old Challengers out there, you just have to find them. Some pool rooms still have them hidden away. Many cue makers stock old cues too but usually they only use the handle.

Chris
 
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Guys;

Thank you all for your observations and suggestions. I decided to have Craig (Manwon - Full Splice Billiards) make me a cue from his stock of old Brunswicks. This is right up his alley. I'll keep you all informed and will show it off when completed. :smile:

Sean, your detailed explanation about resonance relating to the "ping" is very interesting. I will say, and it is confirmed by SK Custom Cues, I have my two main players (Scruggs & Olney) making the sweetest ping sounds and these are a ss jointed 5/16 14, and a phenolic jointed radial pin, respectively. And both with ivory ferrules which SK says also plays a part in achieving the ping in his experience. I have always heard that the very noticeable ping is pretty much a distinguishing characteristic of TS cues and they mostly come with ss 5/16 14 joints/pins.

Chris, your Brunswick page is incredible. That 1942 wartime Brunswick catalogue cover is the nuts! "Brunswick billiard's big opportunity because healthful recreation is vital to Victory!" And the old cues are magnificent. The 26 1/2 has alway been a favorite of mine. Just beautiful.

Thanks Kevin, Dave & Lee. And Terry, thanks for your pm, we were on the same exact page! :thumbup:

ctyhntr; your's may be the easiest solution of all. LOL!

Ridinda9; The "ping" I referred to has nothing to do with loose parts as you suggested. It's a desirable attribute.

Best,
Brian kc
 
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