SW too stiff....

M

mrinsatiable

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I recently got my ebony nosed cue back from having a custom shaft with 5/8" length ferrule * lower deflection made and and have been test hitting it.

I just realized that it almost feels too stiff. I'm not getting as much action from the ball as my daily player. Keep in mind my daily player is a bar cue with rosewood points and weighs 18 oz and balances at 18.75" and i get plenty of action from it , while my southwest is an ebony pj with a weight of 19 oz and balances at 19".

the current specs of the ebony sw : .829 at the joint and 1.21 at the butt cap *not sure of the A joint size*

my daily player is .850 at the joint and 1.20 at the butt cap

If I change my sw joint size to .825 and the A joint smaller than it is now will it make the cue ball have more action? If so how much more?

Am i stuck with the no action because the SW is an ebony cue? which is dense?


thanks
 
I think the easiest method is to re-taper the shaft? Either get a longer and smoother taper (more of a pro-taper profile) or retain the same type of taper, but with a slightly smaller tip diameter.

Thinking in terms of extremes, a Meucci with their straight 16" taper sure has a more nice soft hit with lots of action, while a standard SW tapered shaft has a much stiffer, but more controllable hit.

Another cheap way to change the hit is to change the tip. Switching out tips in my experience changes the hit more significantly than any other factor.

Both methods are cheaper, takes less effort and are much better options than reducing the diameter of the joint.

I don't think that ebony contribute much to the stiffness of the hit, only to how hard the cue hits. Feedback vs stiffness to me are different things.
 
i agree with stan,you probably have the original SW taper which is very stiff.you should have someone take out .050" or so over the first 12".
 
I would just have a new shaft made with the specs described above. Modifying the original shaft is a great way to de-value an expensive and collectable cue.
Mr H
 
Thanks for the suggestions. i'll try to have the tapered pull back a few more inches and hopes that it will bring "life" back to the cue ball.

My tip is already at 12.25"
 
typo.

sorry i meant. my tip is 12.25mm diameter. I"m not sure what my measurements are 12" from the ferrule as my cheap taiwanese digital caliper busted on me.

But the shaft is fairly meaty near the joint. i'm having a hard time finding someone to do a good job on my taper as the local cuemaker is too swamped with work to do it.

and i'm fairly picky about whom does my re-taper as it certainly affects the hit.

I'll be getting a new caliper one later this week. Just need a recommendation on whom can get theirs close to a sw taper.
 
Heres a thought, have you considered that it could be your stroke? Different cue, with a different balance point can change your stroke enough to make you hit the cb in a different spot than you are trying.
Chuck
 
Doug, have you tried the OB-2 (11.75mm)? The Gracio I got from you had a soft hit to me, so I had an OB-1 & 2 with a hard black kaumi tip and changed the hit to more firmer hit. Now I can get all the english anyone would want now and not over power my stroke.
 
Try changing the tip first, that would be the easiest & cheapest way to change the hit without significantly changing the originality or value of the cue. There is no need to retaper the shaft unless you absolutely have to.
 
Mr Hoppe said:
I would just have a new shaft made with the specs described above. Modifying the original shaft is a great way to de-value an expensive and collectable cue.
Mr H
Click to expand...


This sounds like very, very good advice. New shafts from Southwest are $375. It would be much cheaper in the long run to get another shaft made by your local cuemaker. If you ever planned to sell the cue in the future, you would have a very difficult time trying to sell it with a modified shaft taper from the original Southwest. Southwest cues are as popular as they are because of the entire package in the cue. A good example is like going to McDonald's for a Big Mac. You know exactly what to expect. Can you imagine if they changed the recipe? It just wouldn't be the same. This is just my humble opinion...

Good luck in whatever you decide,
Chris
 
This just sounds like another person who isn't willing to LEARN to play with their new cue. All this ".850 this" and "A-joint that" is BS. Go work on your stroke with your new cue.

-s
 
steev said:
This just sounds like another person who isn't willing to LEARN to play with their new cue. All this ".850 this" and "A-joint that" is BS. Go work on your stroke with your new cue.

-s
Click to expand...

Bingo..... why didnt I say that.
Chuck
 
An EBONY PJ won't transmit "feel" like a rosewood into mple FS bar cue even if you duplicated sft taper, tip, etc.

Hit enough balls with your SW to own it (i have to hit apprx 10k balls to "own" a cue, prior to that i just paid for it) or continue playing with your current player.

The last thing i would do is butcher the SW sft, if you must releive it send it back to SW.
 
I love SW's, but can't stand the thick "standard" taper. Although, I might like it ok if I had shafts like yours 12.3.

SW has 3 offered tapers. Standard (grows in your hand, hard, solid, unforgiving), standard pro (a little more relaxed taper), and pro (which is still stiff, but is their most "relaxed" taper. I had Laurie retaper, both of my SW to "pro", and they still hit "stiff".

I would leave your SW shafts alone, unless you had SW modify them. Instead, there are several cuemakers around that will make you a new shaft for probably under $150, that will taper it custom to your likes. All of my SW, have 4 or more shafts (or soon will have).


Doug
 
if the shaft is 12.25mm already,i really don't think thinning it out a foot back will hurt the value at all,and if the shaft is 12.25mm at the tip and say 14mm 12" back that may be why it isn't playing so great for you.i would have some blend the first 12" from the 12.25mm it is now to about 13mm at 12" and see if that helps.but that is just my opinion.
 
masonh said:
if the shaft is 12.25mm already,i really don't think thinning it out a foot back will hurt the value at all,and if the shaft is 12.25mm at the tip and say 14mm 12" back that may be why it isn't playing so great for you.i would have some blend the first 12" from the 12.25mm it is now to about 13mm at 12" and see if that helps.but that is just my opinion.
Click to expand...

Too stiff imo too.
 
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