I am posting this in part out of curiosity raised from an excellent earlier thread regarding cues being staight.For those who have multiple shafts that are used as players, how many of them,when taken off the butt and rolled on a table,roll perfectly straight with no "wobble" or very slight warp whatsoever.I once heard a qoute that i believe was attributed to Mr Bludworth(forgive me if thats incorrect,Mr Bludworth) to the effect that;"Wood wanders" which i took to mean that a good many shafts move very minimally and unless it is enough to affect playability isnt cause for concern.I would really like some other folks input as my knowledge is admittedly very limited.Thanks,Mike S.
Straight shafts
- Thread starter whiteoak
- Start date
Hey Mike - I wish I had $10 for every rack of nine ball run, 8 and outs in 1P and bunches of balls run in straight pool with shafts that were "not straight."
I've heard many, many stories about guys winning tournaments with house cues that were so crooked it was almost a joke.
Perhaps dwelling on trying to play with a shaft that is not dead straight and thinking about it while you play might be a psychological challenge, unless it wavers during your stroke and you really notice it, it doesn't seem logical that it would affect pocketing balls.
Be good to yourself!
Keith
I've heard many, many stories about guys winning tournaments with house cues that were so crooked it was almost a joke.
Perhaps dwelling on trying to play with a shaft that is not dead straight and thinking about it while you play might be a psychological challenge, unless it wavers during your stroke and you really notice it, it doesn't seem logical that it would affect pocketing balls.
Be good to yourself!
Keith
KeithSirBanksALot said:
Good advice - be good to yourself. How many times as kids did you and I play in Phoenix and worry about straight shafts? I was young, dumb, broke and thought I had it made if I got to play with any stick other than a house cue. Of course today, if you have paid for a custom cue it needs to be the best - which means straight. Love your Marlin pix - hope to go fishing myself this summer. Not into ice fishing - not that we have any ice.
Jack
www.johnmaddencues.com
You say your shaft is Crooked?!?
Hey Mike,
I think as long as your shaft isn't as ?straight?crooked? as the one in my Avatar you probably should have no worries 
I think on older cues more shafts than not have a slight variance to them; a very subjective topic; it possibly could alter your point of contact on the cue ball but, IMO if the tip and joint don't come off the table they shoot just fine for me
Hey Mike,
I think as long as your shaft isn't as ?straight?crooked? as the one in my Avatar you probably should have no worries I think on older cues more shafts than not have a slight variance to them; a very subjective topic; it possibly could alter your point of contact on the cue ball but, IMO if the tip and joint don't come off the table they shoot just fine for me
Ken,That avatar shaft doesnt look so bad.It wouldnt affect my game anyway.Thanks for the reply,Mike S.krbsailing said:Hey Mike,
I think on older cues more shafts than not have a slight variance to them; a very subjective topic; it possibly could alter your point of contact on the cue ball but, IMO if the tip and joint don't come off the table they shoot just fine for me
Hey Yo Little Jackie Madden!
I know you don't remember it but I bought a low end Palmer at Modern Billiards in Phoenix and thought it was the greatest straightest shooting pool cue that could be had. I checked the straightness before I bought it and took it home. About six months later I noticed that the shaft had developed quite a bow. I made a pencil mark on the part of the shaft that kept the bow straight up and down, checked for that pencil mark every time I shot and it worked out just fine.
I caught that marlin in the Great Salt Lake!
Keith
Jack Madden said:
I know you don't remember it but I bought a low end Palmer at Modern Billiards in Phoenix and thought it was the greatest straightest shooting pool cue that could be had. I checked the straightness before I bought it and took it home. About six months later I noticed that the shaft had developed quite a bow. I made a pencil mark on the part of the shaft that kept the bow straight up and down, checked for that pencil mark every time I shot and it worked out just fine.
I caught that marlin in the Great Salt Lake!
Keith
Happy New Year Mike,I think for alot of us that a slight variance in a shaft will not make much difference
but, I do know that an older/experienced cuemaker/builder has stated before that wood does certainly move. Well sir, I can tell you that I've personally experienced that phenomena --just last week while I was stroking a shot.... a scantily clad gal walks by the table and, WTF the wood definitely moved and, I ended up miscueing
Take good care,
Ken
?????????????????
Anybody an everybody should know that a shaft that is not perfectly straight will cause you to miss balls or miscue at times. When somebody says shaft has slight wiggle but will not affect play thats total BS. Why handicap yourself when you don't have to.
Pinocchio
Anybody an everybody should know that a shaft that is not perfectly straight will cause you to miss balls or miscue at times. When somebody says shaft has slight wiggle but will not affect play thats total BS. Why handicap yourself when you don't have to.
Pinocchio
krbsailing said:
I think for alot of us that a slight variance in a shaft will not make much difference
Well sir, I can tell you that I've personally experienced that phenomena --just last week while I was stroking a shot.... a scantily clad gal walks by the table and, WTF the wood definitely moved and, I ended up miscueing
Take good care,
Ken
LoL, I to have experianced this phenomina, however its just a mental block, at times like those I try to think about something else, say, baseball...
SirBanksALot said:
Wow - didn't know it had marlin - but I guess the lake is more than big enough. I will be right on down -- or at least will stop on my way to Arizona.
Jack
www.johnmaddencues.com
Pinocchio said:
I have to respectfully disagree with you. With about 25 years of pool playing and a good solid 15 years of cue dealing under my belt I can tell you that it is all about delivery of the tip.
There is almost no shaft that is perfectly straight or perfectly round. When playing the only question that a true player has for himself regarding the cue is whether he can deliver the tip to the spot on the cueball that he wants to. Most good players can do this consistently even with cues that are very warped. Shafts that are slightly warped or slightly out of round pose absolutely no problem to play with and are also not a handicap in the least when it comes to playing pool.
What is more important is whether the tip is in good shape and that the cue is solid. But even then it's not the end of the world as I have personally played jam up and have seen a lot of players play good with bad tips, broken ferrules, and generally crappy cues.
I grant you that playing with a cue that requires more effort is putting extra pressure on yourself to perform. A warped shaft doesn't require more effort because you don't need to think about it, just deliver the cuetip to the cueball and that's that.
Pinocchio said:
Buba, you have a lot to learn, I would suspect that you are a beginner in this fine sport. If not, you must be making a joke
, because I truly believe that from you post alone that I could beat you with a mop handle. By the way, I also think that if you nose gets long much longer, I could beat you using it as a cue stick
Manwon
I agree with those who say the real effect of a slight warp is minimal and almost totally mental. If the shaft you have to play with isn't as straight as you think you need it to be, take SirBanksAlot's tip and place a mark on the shaft in the bottom of the bow and hold the cue the with the same orientation. Play better, worry about a well maintained tip, and buy ya a straight shaft if ya just can't stand it. good luck
whiteoak said:
Hello Mike, first of all not all wobbles in a shaft are from warp-age in the first place. Sometimes, if a shaft is tapered incorrectly they will also have a wobble. This wobble can be very bad to very minor depending on the tapering technique that was used.
Generally, a little warp-age or a taper wobble will not effect the way a cue plays in anyway, other than the mental games people with themselves.
I think this topic is very subjective, and how much is to much wobble / warp, can only be based on an individual view point, which in effect can not be measured to any great extent for all players.
Have a nice Night
manwon