Recently I seemed to have purchased by accident a shaft that is slightly above the 29 inch standard length. Not quite a 30 inch shaft but around 29 3/4 inches. My question to you guys is there any advantage or disadvantage that you all know of for playing with a longer shaft? I know there are a lot of people who choose to buy the 30 inch playing shafts for comfort and their wingspans, but beside that is there anything else that you would find different? Like do you all notice that you have to slightly cue further away from the ball? Or find that bridging on the rails is a little more awkward due to the extra length? Just curious as to why else people play with the longer shafts. Thanks.
Shaft Length
- Thread starter LHP5
- Start date
I am 6'2" and really like cues that are longer than 58". The additional reach has more value than I would have anticipate the extra inch or so to provide. IMO, the only downside would be if your table is so close to a wall that you might limit your ability to shoot from the rail. There should not be a need to shoot farther away from the cue ball than you normally play. Over the past several years of playing with longer cues, I have not found any negatives.
I have always heard the longer the better.
The taper and quality of wood used making the shafts has as much to do with the feel and playability of the shaft as the length of the shaft.....IMO.
I decided that I would buy a 60" cue to give me a little more reach, as I am 5' 6", and can't reach some of the long shots across the table. I found the balance awkward. So, I took the shaft and put it on a 29" butt. I found that this particular shaft gave me "forward" weight, and made a big difference in my game. Okay, that's the positive side. The negative is that I found myself fouling (touching the cue ball). It cost me several games. I had Jim Pierce make a couple of 29" shafts for me (right at or just above 4 0z). This gave me the forward weight I wanted, but did not give me any reach advantage. So, long story short, the experimenting DID teach me something, however I still use a 29" shaft.
