Have you tried cues that are solidly built but won't control the cue ball?
pj
chgo
What's Good About A "Good Hit"?
- Thread starter Patrick Johnson
- Start date
pj
chgo
The 12mm Judd Fuller (rip) shafts Efren played with for years were not whippy.
Judd developed a long 12mm stiff taper referred to as the Efren taper and they are far from whippy.
I have a few Judd cues that were ordered with that taper.
Some other Judd's I have were ordered with one of each.
I collect Judd cues, and I prefer a shaft st least 12.7 which is why I had eight 13mm shafts copied using shaftwood ordered from Laurie Franklin.
I think Joey has a 12mm long stiff taper as well that he refers to as the Filipino taper, and those are highly sought after.
I'm talking controlling the cue ball to the "degree" of accuracy that I feel I can accomplish with the "stroke" that I prefer using.
I was going to include in my original post that the tip plays a very important part in the "hit" of a cue.
Some cues hit "stiffer" or "whippier" than what I prefer. That doesn't mean they don't "hit" good for somebody or be what works best for THAT person.
Hit is subjective. A cue with 8 inches of deflection within the first six feet of roll may "feel" like it "hits" good. Whether it "plays" good is up to the person who likes 8 inches of deflection.
There was a complete article written on Orcullo about how he was sort of "lost" when he had to change cues. No matter how well somebody plays, they will always have a preference for what they feel works best for THEM.
Yep, the best-hitting cue is the one that suits you. And often what suits you is simply what you're familiar with.
pj
chgo
I wonder what a professional player has to say about this subject.
A pro, like Earl?
Dave, all I can tell you is that I care a lot about how a cue sounds and feels. I also care about how it’s balanced but that’s a different subject.
For me, the sound and vibration provide me feedback on shot execution in terms of speed and spin. Yes, I can observe what’s happening on the table but at a conscious and subconscious level those “cues” are providing me additional intel.
Many years ago, when pool gloves first started appearing, I thought I’d try one out. I think it was a Sir Joseph. So I’m at the pool hall and Tom Ferry, aka Old Has Been (RIP), comes over to me and says, “Are you nuts? With that glove on you’re losing the feel of the cue.” I took the glove off, shot a few shots, put it back on, took a few more shots, then took it off forever. He was right. I feel the same way about ear buds. I tried playing with them on and didn’t like losing the sound of the cue. The point being of course that when I’m shooting, the feel and sound of the cue in my hands provides me with valuable feedback.
There is also the issue of confidence. When a cue sounds and feels right, that’s the “great hit” players are talking about. You have to experience it to know it. And when you have that in your hands, you should not let that cue go.
Lou Figueroa
He jumped full-table with a Meucci
When I saw Earl his cue had strips of golf club grip tape hanging off the handle.
I know a cuemaker who made a cue for a well known pro, made it 60" without telling him, and he played with it for a week before he noticed it.
Another sponsored pro didn't even use that cuemakers shafts, and he tried to sell me the cue.
Nice cue, and if it had the original shafts I may have bought it.
When I used to play at Hollywood Billiards where they had paper towels in the bathroom, I played with my bare bridging hand.
But at SMHB they have no paper towels and a ancient hot air hand dryer. Without being able to dress up the my shaft in long games I moved to the glove out of necessity.
Took me about a week to get used to it. Just about all the top players play with gloves, because, it frankly is more consistent.
You can use a very solid bridge with less friction.
WADR, a 30 inch shaft that is 12mm has to have more whip than a 30 inch 13mm.
These are regular maple shafts. When you laminate you can make slimmer stiffer.
The top one pocket player who used to play at SMHB has a very light cue with a very slim whippy shaft.
I would ask him what he thought of my SW cue and he would say if he was playing Nine Ball it would be good but for One Pocket he felt it was way too stiff.
Some top players also wear gloves because they are getting sponsorship money to do so. :wink:
Thanks Lou!
Even though I don't depend on "sound" and "feel" "feedback," I still very much enjoy all of the sounds of the game.
Regards,
Dave
12 mm shafts not laminated can still be stiff, not whippy.
Doesn't have to be fat to be stiff.
Lou hit the nail on the head.
I'm just replying to your op and I haven't read the four pages of responses yet, but for me, it all comes down to how the feedback in your grip hand feels. There is a very satisfying feel (two very admittedly subjective words) that I had become accustomed to when playing with my southwests over the past 17 years. That feeling is what I have come to understand as a "good hit". Obviously I've played with many other cues over the years and I would always judge the hit in comparison to what I was used to with the southwests.
Now that I'm playing with a revo, I think it feels "ok", even good at times, but not what I was used to with the sw's. Nothing offensive or bad, just not as satisfying when I strike the cue ball. On slow, off center hits, I've noticed a kind of clunky vibration now and again that I never experienced with my previous cues, but that's been a pretty rare occurrence.
Not sure if you play golf but it's kind of like when you hit an old forged iron "on the screws"... that feels good. It doesn't feel anything like the more forgiving cavity back clubs that I use because I get better results (due to the larger sweet spot).
I agree with this. The sound is a big part of it.
I play with eabuds now but at first it was weird to not hear the shot.
Imteresting....i keep good paper towels in my case, just for pool rooms without them.