Contact Bob Jewett. He probably has run tests on this subject and may actually have physical proof rather that opinion.
http://billiards.colostate.edu/technical_proofs/index.html ,
http://billiards.colostate.edu/physics/index.html ,
http://www.faqs.org/faqs/sports/billiards/faq/, :grin:
Here is a quote from an article I found there:
"hardness effects
"Does the tip hardness affect how much english can be applied, or the amount of squirt that results?
"Here are some relevant factors:
A hard tip holds its shape better over time, in general.
Tip hardness (within the typical range) should not have a significant or direct effect on the amount of english that can be applied.
The amount of english is limited by the tip offset that creates a miscue.
A tip not "treated" (e.g., scuffed) properly, will not hold chalk very well, and miscues will be more likely at smaller tip offsets. A harder tip might require more attention in this regard.
Soft tips seem to hold chalk better than hard tips, in general.
A soft tip will give the cue a softer "feel" (less impact in grip hand) and have a different sound than a hard tip. Some people prefer some sounds and "feels" more than others. For more info, see cue "hit," "feel" and "playability."
"Some people think that because a soft tip stays in contact with the CB slightly longer (see contact time), a soft tip can apply more english. However, see Bob Jewett's comments below. Also, the contact time is still extremely small with both a soft and hard tip: close to a thousandth of a second (0.001 sec). Assuming the CB speed is the same in all comparisons: even though the peak force will be different (more with the shorter contact time), the amount of momentum (linear and angular) transferred to the CB will still be the same (because the sum of force over contact time is the same in both cases). The CB doesn't move much (translation or spin) during the extremely small contact time, so the only significant factor is the tip contact point at impact.
"On a different note, a hard tip will create slightly more CB speed for a given cue speed (see tip efficiency). Some people also prefer a hard tip because they "feel" the force of the shot better (a softer tip dampens the impact a little).
"There are many factors related to tip hardness that could influence squirt, including: tip density/weight, tip efficiency, contact time, and effective endmass. "Return of the squirt robot" (BD, August, 2008) documents an experiment related to the effects of tip hardness on squirt. A softer tip did seem to create slightly more squirt, but the experiment was not very well controlled (see the article for more info). In general, if the contact time is longer (as is the case with a softer tip), the effective endmass and resulting squirt should be larger (see the rubber-super-ball-tip report as an example). Another set of more careful experiments documented in the Cue and Tip Testing for Cue Ball Deflection (Squirt) video seem to imply that tip type, hardness, and height have very little effect on shaft squirt. Among the wide range of tips tested in the video, the harder tips did result in slightly more squirt. This makes sense because the harder tips are denser and heavier, creating more "endmass." The shorter contact time seems to be less of a factor than the added weight.
"Another factor involved with a softer tip is that it might better absorb glue and adhere to the ferrule more strongly and making it less likely to come off with lots of use and/or abuse.
"from Mike Page:
"Here's one more. Even if soft and hard tips held chalk exactly the same, it's possible the soft tip might reduce the chance of miscue. For instance, suppose a miscue occurs when less than 50% of the contact patch has chalk. If the bald regions are small, then this standard may be violated more frequently for a hard tip with its small contact patch.
"from Bob Jewett:
"One issue is which harness of tip will allow the farther-from-center hit. Some believe that a soft tip takes chalk better so it can hit the ball farther from center.
"There is a counter theory, and that is because a softer tip will have a longer contact time than a hard tip. During contact, the tip rides around the side of the ball some, so the final eccentricity as the tip leaves the ball is larger than when the tip first hits the ball. A softer tip, with the longer contact time will be farther off center at the end than a harder tip with the same starting offset. If both tips can only hold to a certain point of offset, and you start your shot so the miscue point is barely reached at the end of contact, the average offset will be larger for the harder tip. This means that the harder tip can create more spin for a given ball speed.
"Which dominates? Holding chalk better or starting farther off-center?
I don't know of any experiment that has tested this."
So I guess we are back to opinion :thumbup: