I don't know if its just cost effective or what but over the years I've seen some stunning cues with glass like finishes beautiful point work and topped off with a hideous irish linen wrap that just spoils the whole look of the cue.I know some people that like linen but most don't,so why put so much sweat into a beautiful piece of art and down play it with a dull looking wrap.No disrespect to anybody but always wondered.Thanks Scott:smile:
Something that has always bugged me!
- Thread starter scsuxci
- Start date
Funny, I usually think the opposite.
Can't imagine why people leave the linen off or spoil a great cue with something other than it....and I thought most people liked linen.
It is in fact the only wrap that has the unique qualities needed for a pool cue, anything else is decoration IMHO.
Then again I may have been spoiled by genuine Cortland linen.....
I wonder what the cue makers think.....:smile:
Can't imagine why people leave the linen off or spoil a great cue with something other than it....and I thought most people liked linen.
It is in fact the only wrap that has the unique qualities needed for a pool cue, anything else is decoration IMHO.
Then again I may have been spoiled by genuine Cortland linen.....
I wonder what the cue makers think.....:smile:
I've been building and selling cues for sometime now and I can't give an Irish Linen cue away . wood handles and leather is were its at , anybody that knows me knows I build wood handle cues. I hate linen.
Double pressed black linen that you can barely see the spaces.
Shine her up and away you go.
There are some cues that lend themselves well to a wrap and others not.
I love the look of leather on a cue but dislike the feel myself.
Stack wrap is a different horse in my mind also. I love that, and may also try one of KJ's cork wraps soon.
Shine her up and away you go.
There are some cues that lend themselves well to a wrap and others not.
I love the look of leather on a cue but dislike the feel myself.
Stack wrap is a different horse in my mind also. I love that, and may also try one of KJ's cork wraps soon.
Tap, Tap, Tap
Not all leather is created equal.... ive had some nice lizard print blanks for 6 or 7 years i will never put on a cue cause it feels like cardboard
linen wrap
Some of the players hands sweat. Linen may absorb. Also if you have a slip stroke, it's more difficult if the finish grabs your hand or if leather does. Maybe the linen is better to shoot with for some people.
I used to be a linen player and refused anything else, now I've changed and use leather. ?? who knows,,,lol
Some of the players hands sweat. Linen may absorb. Also if you have a slip stroke, it's more difficult if the finish grabs your hand or if leather does. Maybe the linen is better to shoot with for some people.
I used to be a linen player and refused anything else, now I've changed and use leather. ?? who knows,,,lol
Well, if you happen to have such a thing laying around you can give it to me! :thumbup:
Linen versus leather
I was told at one time that the area where the wrap goes has to be cut slightly deeper to accomodate a leather wrap versus the linen wrap. I was told it is easier to go from linen to leather but a pain to go from leather back to linen because it would show especially at the ends. Or the cue would have to be tinkered with to get everything to line up correctly so the transition from wood to wrap is smooth and flush. Linen is also much cheaper that a good leather and wouldn't break your heart to remove the linen as compared to cutting off a nice piece of leather.
Maybe a cue maker can chime in on the first part and tell me if that is correct?
I was told at one time that the area where the wrap goes has to be cut slightly deeper to accomodate a leather wrap versus the linen wrap. I was told it is easier to go from linen to leather but a pain to go from leather back to linen because it would show especially at the ends. Or the cue would have to be tinkered with to get everything to line up correctly so the transition from wood to wrap is smooth and flush. Linen is also much cheaper that a good leather and wouldn't break your heart to remove the linen as compared to cutting off a nice piece of leather.
Maybe a cue maker can chime in on the first part and tell me if that is correct?
Another fan of wrapless or leather...just sayin...
Linen just ain't for me...
The folks that like traditional and or rare cues sure do tho!!!
To each his own. :smile:
Clint
Linen just ain't for me...
The folks that like traditional and or rare cues sure do tho!!!
To each his own. :smile:
Clint
What you were told is incorrect.
Linen is approx. .025" thick and is pressed down from there once on the cue.
Cue-suitable leathers are generally .020/.025" thick +/-.
One of the first things a CM or C/tec will do with either is to
adjust the wrap groove according to the thickness of the wrap being installed.
You can build it up or take it down, makes no difference.
Leather wraps can vary in thickness but Linen is pretty consistent.
There should be no concern with going from Linen to leather or back again if the CM knows what he's doing.
This has always bugged you? I don't know, using words like "Hideous and Spoiled the whole look" are a bit extreme. A cue is first and foremost a tool. There are a number of preferences for wraps including no wrap at all. But all should be towards satisfying the preference of the player, looks are certainly important but secondary.
I agree, I'm in the process of building my 1st cue for a friend of mine. He LOVES the feel of a linen wrap. Right now, I just sealed the cue and I think its looks great without the wrap. I'm trying to change his mind to go wrapless
but I feel it's whatever the customer wants. (especially if your just starting out)As for me, It doesn't matter if it has a wrap or not. As was stated before, it's a tool and I'll adjust. But my most recent playing cue is a Poison VX and that has a rubber grip to it. Takes some getting used to, but I like it.
Hmmmmm...I just looked back and in fact the OP said nothing about how it feels or plays, only how it looks......
I have one cue with leather. There is only one thing wrong with it.....it ain't linen.
It's nice when a cue maker has a larger canvas to show off his skills by decorating the handle with inlays, splices, rings, etc. It looks great. Works of art. But if it's just a piece of figured wood? I don't get that. He selected the wood, he didn't grow it. Maybe he had a better supplier or a lucky find. Maybe he has a better stash of wood. Maybe he had more money to buy a nicer piece. Hard to say. Matching and contrasting grains and tones does take the eye of an artist though, so credit is due there.
When I am playing I can't see any of that on the handle area. None. Nada. Zilch. It comes down to how it feels/plays/performs over time. How it interacts with the skin. Only linen has the unique properties that serve the purpose the way I see it.
I look at leather wraps the way I see vinyl tops on cars. It was a strange fad. I can understand a wrapless cue better, for those who are simply used to the "house cue" feel. But for pure form follows function performance, it's linen all the way IMHO.
But then I am not a pro, or a cue maker, heck I am barely even a player any more, and I'm not really a collector or dealer either...... Just an occasional banger with an unnatural relationship with an old JOSS that used to get played the way such a cue should....a long time ago.....in another life......before the internet.....when telephones had cords on them and there were antennas on TVs.......and linen on cues....... :smile:
I have one cue with leather. There is only one thing wrong with it.....it ain't linen.
It's nice when a cue maker has a larger canvas to show off his skills by decorating the handle with inlays, splices, rings, etc. It looks great. Works of art. But if it's just a piece of figured wood? I don't get that. He selected the wood, he didn't grow it. Maybe he had a better supplier or a lucky find. Maybe he has a better stash of wood. Maybe he had more money to buy a nicer piece. Hard to say. Matching and contrasting grains and tones does take the eye of an artist though, so credit is due there.
When I am playing I can't see any of that on the handle area. None. Nada. Zilch. It comes down to how it feels/plays/performs over time. How it interacts with the skin. Only linen has the unique properties that serve the purpose the way I see it.
I look at leather wraps the way I see vinyl tops on cars. It was a strange fad. I can understand a wrapless cue better, for those who are simply used to the "house cue" feel. But for pure form follows function performance, it's linen all the way IMHO.
But then I am not a pro, or a cue maker, heck I am barely even a player any more, and I'm not really a collector or dealer either...... Just an occasional banger with an unnatural relationship with an old JOSS that used to get played the way such a cue should....a long time ago.....in another life......before the internet.....when telephones had cords on them and there were antennas on TVs.......and linen on cues....... :smile:
scsuxci sayeth:
"I know some people that like linen but most don't"
...........................................................................................
Do you have any data to back up this claim?
I'm aware many players don't like linen, but MOST??
Most people I encounter prefer linen - and it must be the 'look'.
The old fashion linen was untreated, felt like linen not wood, and became
softer over time. Since the advent of pressed/polished linen wraps, none of the above applies.
In fact, most players seem to want it as smooth and slick as possible.
So, it must be the look.
Dale
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This was the case many years ago - Willie Hoppe days.
For quite some time now, leather wrap blanks have been just about
the same thickness as linen.
Dale
Why would I need data to back up what I said?I said I know some people that like linen but most don't so in other words the pool players I know only some like linen but most don't.I don't need data cause I know these people.Should I get them to sign a affidavit and post it that they don't like Linen?I only stated what I know around the players I know thats it.You seem borderline offended that I wrote that but it was just a harmless evaluation that linen brings down the look of some beautiful cues.Takecare Scott
In my experience (just observation over the years) good pool cues are like good cornbread, different things to different people. Some like them one way and some like them the other way, wrapped, unwrapped, leather, linen, hard hit, soft hit etc., etc.. But if a persons really likes his cue, if it feels good, he thinks its pretty and is proud of it, and it hits just like he likes a cue to hit, he will naturally play very well with it..
I built a cue for myself recently and had the linen to wrap it, but after I put the finish on it, the handle wood (plain maple) looked so good I didn't wrap it, after playing with if for a few days, I discovered that I like the way the bare wood feels and like the way it looks so I will leave it like it is. Next one I make I will use a better looking piece of wood for the handle
JMHO
I built a cue for myself recently and had the linen to wrap it, but after I put the finish on it, the handle wood (plain maple) looked so good I didn't wrap it, after playing with if for a few days, I discovered that I like the way the bare wood feels and like the way it looks so I will leave it like it is. Next one I make I will use a better looking piece of wood for the handle
JMHO