Soft tips - What is the best brand?

Kevin Lindstrom

14.1 Addict
Silver Member
I am looking for a soft or possibly medium tip that really holds chalk well. I have had some medium tips that glaze over very fast and then find myself miscueing. I hate having to work over the tip prior to everytime I play.

Help me find the brand of tip that holds the chalk best.

Thanks
 
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I don't think so....but I guess that's a matter of opinion. I find I rarely need to fix the tip after the initial mushrooming.

Speaking of which, if you dont have one already, be sure to get yourself a secondary cue for breaking. Breaking with a soft tip is not a good idea....
 
Kevin Lindstrom said:
I am looking for a soft or possibly medium tip that really holds chalk well. I have had some medium tips that glaze over very fast and then find myself miscueing. I hate having to work over the tip prior to everytime I play.

Help me find the brand of tip that holds the chalk best.

Thanks

I've been shooting with a OB1 shaft that has a Medium Talisman tip.

It feels like a medium tip, but plays like a soft tip (lots of CB action-spin).

After 6 months of heavy shooting, the tip got real hard. It mushroomed a little bit.

I didn't want to replace the tip because it was still had many layers left.

Some fellow AZers told me about Neatsfoot Oil (Cow bone oil). It softens the leather tip.

I couldn't find the oil, but found some Kiwi Saddle Soap (AZer suggested Dubbin wax).

The Kiwi stuff is a cleaner, softener. It clean my tip really well, and I left a layer of wax on the tip over night.

The next day, it was like new. Plays like a soft tip, again.

I had a Elkmaster soft tip once. It played great, but I had mushrooming and compression about every month or two....depending on how much I was playing.

But I tend to hit the balls hard.
 
Elk Master. Like said above they are cheap and play pretty well. I know a guy here in town that plays pretty well with them.
 
Get an elk master and press it in a C clamp overnight and then have it installed. It won't mushroom much and plays great. Holds chalk better than anything else. Uncompressed elks will mushroom, it's the nature of a soft tip not broke in. The pressing helps the break in process.
 
Elk Master if you want a solid tip or Sniper if you want a layered tip. My experience with Elk Master tips is they will mushroom at first and you need to trim them, but they play well once they are broken in. Earl Strickland swears by them.

James
 
Yep, Elk Masters are great. I use them on my house cues, and have had pretty good luck with them. I think you do have to shape/trim them a little more often, but they play great. Plus, you can get a gozillion of them for something like $17.
 
I just switched a Schon shaft and OB1 to a Talisman soft. Quite happy. After the first few games, no more mushrooming.
 
I was just about to post this topic myself.

I installed a Tiger Dynamite a few weeks ago and even though I've left it quite tall it still plays to hard for me. I've tried Moori S before and they glazed over all the time. I've been told that the Molavia S is probably the softest layered tip that you can get so I'm going to give them a try in the next week or two.
 
look up "Milk Duds"


this is what you need, IMO. These are compressed Elk Masters soaked in milk which gives them a unique feel and they hold chalk as well as any tip on the planet, probably the best.
 
I've used Elkmaster for 20 years.

As most have already said here, they to tend to mushroom.

When I put a new one on I taper the tip approx 5 degrees and in approx 10-20 hours playing time it mushrooms to straight and I never have to dress the tip for its whole life.

Unfortunately that life is only 4-5 months, but I think the improved whitey control and touch is well worth it.

Bernie P.
 
Best Soft Tip

The Kamui Soft tip is by far the best tip I have ever used. It holds chalk great and gives me the hit I want.

Put one on I guarntee you will like it. These tips last a long time also.

Sincerely,

Bob Olson
TWOFORPOOL
 
Black Diamonds

I have been using Black Diamonds for years and I love them. They are a mix of pig skin and cow hide. After the shaping and burnishing process, I can't think where I have had to do any real work on fixing problems with mushrooming.
 
I've been using a Moori Medium for about a year now. It mushroomed initially after about two weeks. Trimmed it and haven't had any problems since. On the average I shoot about 5 games of 8 ball almost daily and I really like the tip. Because of the price, I've just ordered a medium Wizard tip from a seller on this forum for a new house cue that has a LePro tip on it (dislike it because of the noise when you chalk it). I have high expectations for the tip based on the feedback also on this forum. Bear in mind that what tip to use is a very subjective topic. What I like may not be what you like. Good luck in finding the tip for you and a Merry Holiday Season to you and your family.
 
Elkmaster the best.
Although in each box there are only a few good ones.
Or you have to press it.
Mine never mushroom, i wet my thumb or finger during playing, and work around the tip.
This way it never mushrooms my opinion.

MH
HOB Weert
 
Hellfish sent me 2 Elk Master Milk Duds a couple of weeks ago. I like them very much as hellfish says.Holds calk well has not mushroomed as yet and pretty easy to shape. The best is that you get alot of english with the softer tip. So for it has held it's shape. Thanks hellfish for the tips.
 
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