The benefits of playing with a standard shaft?

there is one shot I can't execute with [a low-squirt shaft]. I call it a flinger, where I have to put an absurd amount of English on the cue ball

What's the shot?

pj
chgo
 
Last edited:
PKM said:
So has anyone figured out what are these mythical shots that can only be made with regular shafts?

Or is it just that people are used to shooting with their own shaft?
Try shooting a jump shot with a LD shaft. They jump as good as a white guy.
 
A smaller diameter shaft will always get more spin hitting closer to the center of the cueball no matter who makes it.

I don't think so. Some people think that if you aim the center of two shafts at the same place on the CB the smaller diameter shaft will hit farther from the CB's center - but this usually isn't true. Unless you're close to maximum sidespin or the tips are curved differently, they'll hit in the same place on the CB.

There's no reason that I know of for a smaller diameter shaft to give more spin for the same hit, and in fact tests show they don't.

pj
chgo
 
Shawn Armstrong said:
Try shooting a jump shot with a LD shaft. They jump as good as a white guy.

This is one difference I agree with (from my own experience), and I don't know why.

pj
chgo
 
PKM said:
So has anyone figured out what are these mythical shots that can only be made with regular shafts?

Or is it just that people are used to shooting with their own shaft?

I've never heard of one that checked out - except for jump shots.

I'm pretty sure it's just what people are used to.

pj
chgo
 
Patrick Johnson said:
I don't think so. Some people think that if you aim the center of two shafts at the same place on the CB the smaller diameter shaft will hit farther from the CB's center - but this usually isn't true. Unless you're close to maximum sidespin or the tips are curved differently, they'll hit in the same place on the CB.

There's no reason that I know of for a smaller diameter shaft to give more spin for the same hit, and in fact tests show they don't.

pj
chgo

Pat,

About your last sentence: for some reason, I seem to get more english on the cue ball when shooting with the smaller diameter shaft. I don't doubt that you are right, however. And ensuring actual tip placement when striking the cue ball seems easier with the smaller tip. Have you done any tests using similar shafts with the same tip size but with the difference in the shafts being a major difference either in weight (say a 1 ounce difference between the shafts) or a noted difference in the flexibility of the shafts?

Flex
 
AtLarge said:
Here's my take on why I currently prefer to use standard or regular-deflection shafts. (I've had lots of experience with both types (regular- and low-deflection shafts.) And my reason has nothing to do with how the two types of shafts "feel" when the cue ball is struck.

A low-deflection shaft is not a "no-deflection" shaft. The cue ball still deflects, or squirts, when it is hit with side spin with a low deflection shaft. It just squirts less than it would with a regular-deflection shaft.

So how can the player compensate for squirt in order to hit his intended target? One way is to use parallel english and aim enough off the target to allow the cue ball to squirt back and hit the target. If the player had no prior experience with pool, it should be easier to learn this compensation procedure by using a cue that squirts less than by using a cue that squirts more. But learning the proper amount of compensation using parallel english is difficult in either case, with either type of shaft (low-deflection or regular-deflection).

Another way to compensate for squirt is to not use parallel english for side spin, but, instead, to use back-hand english and/or front-hand english. With a low-deflection shaft, the pivot point of the shaft is generally farther from the tip of the cue than one would normally like to use for a bridging point. This means that squirt compensation must be done with either front-hand english alone or a combination of front- and back-hand english. I personally prefer to use only back-hand english to compensate for squirt, rather than front-hand english alone or a combination of the two. This personal preference means that a low-deflection shaft is less desirable to me.

I find it easiest to compensate for squirt by using back-hand english alone. This necessitates the use of a shaft with a pivot point approximately at the bridging point. This means I must use a regular-deflection shaft, not a low-deflection shaft.

In summary, "low deflection" is not "no deflection." Compensation for squirt is more difficult for me with a low-deflection shaft than with a regular-deflection shaft. (And, yes, I'm aware of the supposed limitations of back-hand english.)

Nice post. You've obviously thought about this, and your reasoning is on the money. You have a preference and you know exactly why.

I have the opposite preference but I arrive at it pretty much the same way - I like to adjust for squirt/swerve consciously, by simply aiming offline a certain amount for each shot (what you call using "parallel english").

pj
chgo
 
Jazz said:
I started out playing with 314 and then ob-1 shaft. Now I'm just a regular guy. I think "feel" is the biggest part of favoring solid maple shaft. I made the switch from low deflection shaft when I started learning 1 pocket.

Now when I try to use 314, I can't "feel" as well and also can't adjust to swerve of ob-1 shaft.

I agree with this. I tried a Predator for about a month and it just felt dead to me. I rarely hit the CB hard with a lot of english, so deflection has never been a major issue.
 
Patrick Johnson said:
Nice post. You've obviously thought about this, and your reasoning is on the money. You have a preference and you know exactly why.

I have the opposite preference but I arrive at it pretty much the same way - I like to adjust for squirt/swerve consciously, by simply aiming offline a certain amount for each shot (what you call using "parallel english").

pj
chgo


That's how I do it for most shots also.

An important factor when shooting those shots with english the way you and I do is the speed of the stroke and quality of the stroke too, also figuring in how much the cue ball will swerve over the distance of the shot for the speed of shot and english applied.

It's what makes this so darned difficult. Plus, in a tournament, when changing tables and ball sets, it further complicates it. It's one reason to consider taking a really full stroke whenever possible, as Bob Henning advocates, for when the cue ball is really moving, there's less time for the ball to swerve on it's way to the object ball.

Fascinating subject.

Flex
 
Flex said:
Pat,

About your last sentence: for some reason, I seem to get more english on the cue ball when shooting with the smaller diameter shaft.

Lots of players say that - lots of them also say they get more spin with low-squirt shafts, or with different tips, etc. I don't know why, but it's a common misperception.

I don't doubt that you are right, however. And ensuring actual tip placement when striking the cue ball seems easier with the smaller tip.

That's the reason I have a smaller tip. That better view of where I'm hitting the CB makes a world of difference for me.

Have you done any tests using similar shafts with the same tip size but with the difference in the shafts being a major difference either in weight (say a 1 ounce difference between the shafts) or a noted difference in the flexibility of the shafts?

I haven't kept records of all the different kinds of shafts I've tested, but I've tested dozens of them over the years, of all kinds, and have never found a difference in the amount of spin that any of them produce for the same hit.

[NOTE: By "same hit" I mean hitting the same spot on the CB, with the same speed and the same (minimum) butt elevation. These things are all easily controlled with simple techniques that anybody can do at any time on any table. If you like, I'll show you sometime - we can compare our own cues against house cues at Chris's, even against my ultra-high-squirt Stinger break cue with phenolic tip. :eek: ]

pj
chgo
 
Patrick Johnson said:
[NOTE: By "same hit" I mean hitting the same spot on the CB, with the same speed and the same (minimum) butt elevation. These things are all easily controlled with simple techniques that anybody can do at any time on any table. If you like, I'll show you sometime - we can compare our own cues against house cues at Chris's, even against my ultra-high-squirt Stinger break cue with phenolic tip. :eek: ]

pj
chgo

Let's do it!

I'm out of town until around the 18th, but the week of the 25th I'll have free table time all week long at a pool hall you know quite well.

Flex
 
PROG8R said:
Joe,
If I catch you putting a pred on a southwest I will put you in a timeout!!
That is just bad MOJO man.

True DAT!! Can we get an AMEN?!
 
Honestly, I think I don't play with one because I don't like hype and trendy stuff. I don't own a trendy i-Pod or trendy i-phone or wear trendy Puma shoes. Dare to be different I guess. Or maybe all Predator's talk of making the game easier reminds me of home workout videos. Get your butt in the gym and do it the old-fashioned way.

If I were more serious about playing, I would probably try one and throw that mentality out the door, but I'm happy as is with standard shafts.
 
I can't play with nothing but a predator. They shoot straight. Where ever I aim is where the cue ball is going. I had another cue a while back and it had taken me too long to change so I went back to predator. But your mind can adjust to anything. I would also like to see some of the shots that people can do with a regular shaft that they can't do with a predator.
 
axejunkie said:
Honestly, I think I don't play with one because I don't like hype and trendy stuff. I don't own a trendy i-Pod or trendy i-phone or wear trendy Puma shoes. Dare to be different I guess.

It's been long enough, it's OK to buy an iPod now.
 
Mainplayer said:
I can't play with nothing but a predator. They shoot straight. Where ever I aim is where the cue ball is going. I had another cue a while back and it had taken me too long to change so I went back to predator. But your mind can adjust to anything. I would also like to see some of the shots that people can do with a regular shaft that they can't do with a predator.
Jump shots. Plain and simple. LD shafts do not jump well due to their design. There are a bunch of jump-based shots that were on Grady's instructionals that CANNOT be done with the LD shafts. Grady taught a bunch of shots where you are pocketing the ball with a jacked up cue, and jumping the cueball after contact for shape on balls. Great shots when you have no path due to blockers - you jack up, shoot the ball in, and the cueball "hops" over the blocker, goes to the rail, and gets shape. I have tried these shots with all the LD shafts I have been able to find, and I have yet to make any of them with one of them. If I have to choose between learning to compensate for more deflection, or losing some game winning shots, I'll learn to compensate.
 
PKM said:
So has anyone figured out what are these mythical shots that can only be made with regular shafts?
QUOTE]

Let me start by saying I know the following shot can be made with a LD shaft. However, in my experience with both shafts it is much easier with a standard maple shaft. You are straight-in (or nearly straight-in) for a corner pocket and you want to use high inside to make the cueball follow 2 rails and back to the middle of the table. I have no trouble doing this with my Josey shaft, or any other standard shaft, but a LD shaft will result in a much higher frequency of scratches for me. (not every time, but much more often)
 
Back
Top