What's the point of a smaller tip?

Slh

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Always thought a smaller tip gives more sidespin but I discovered it's not the case because the contact point with the cb is the same. So, what's the point of a smaller tip? I understand a smaller tip is mandatory playing snooker because the balls are smaller, but in carom? The balls are bigger than pool balls but a lot of players use 10mm tips.
 
Always thought a smaller tip gives more sidespin but I discovered it's not the case because the contact point with the cb is the same. So, what's the point of a smaller tip? I understand a smaller tip is mandatory playing snooker because the balls are smaller, but in carom? The balls are bigger than pool balls but a lot of players use 10mm tips.

less CB deflection, shaft flexes more than 13 or 14 mm, lots of shots you can do english with tip not all the way to edge of CB, less deflection, and less chance to miss cue.
All top cue manf advertise small tip as LD cue

i mean by flexes is it tends to somewhat cancels CB deflection more than the 13 or 14 mm, not accuracy of hit, small shafts shoot straight no matter how hard you hit.
 
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Here it comes

Wow, did you open up a can o' worms ! (I can hear them coming now......)
:duck:

I'll just say one thing here as I've always shot with a narrow shaft; hence a smaller tip. All else equal: a narrower shaft won't flex more than a standard diameter shaft. I have hit hard enough to pull 3-4 rails on a 9-foot,(not saying I make 'em all :tongue: ), and theres no measureable flex. I would be more inclined to blame my aim if I missed than the shaft.

The non-LD's are a different story,.... they do get whippy. JMHO

I'll let all the others that are sure to answer hit ya with the rest... :duck:
 
Wow, did you open up a can o' worms ! (I can hear them coming now......)
:duck:

I'll just say one thing here as I've always shot with a narrow shaft; hence a smaller tip. All else equal: a narrower shaft won't flex more than a standard diameter shaft. I have hit hard enough to pull 3-4 rails on a 9-foot,(not saying I make 'em all :tongue: ), and theres no measureable flex. I would be more inclined to blame my aim if I missed than the shaft.

The non-LD's are a different story,.... they do get whippy. JMHO

I'll let all the others that are sure to answer hit ya with the rest... :duck:

i mean by flexes is it tends to somewhat cancels CB deflection more than the 13 or 14 mm, not accuracy of hit, small shafts shoot straight no matter how hard you hit.
 
I shoot with a 11.75mm tip. Others have already mentioned deflection (my ferrule is only about 3/8" long, which also helps) but I like a small tip because it allows me to hit the cue ball with geometric precision which results in better position of the cue ball. Try playing with a small tip, I think you'll like it.
 
off topic

i mean by flexes is it tends to somewhat cancels CB deflection more than the 13 or 14 mm, not accuracy of hit, small shafts shoot straight no matter how hard you hit.

I don't wanna get off topic here talking about shafts as the OP wants to know about smaller tips.

I'll agree with the 1st part as physics makes that logical. I don't agree with the 2nd part (bold), as I had a regular shaft cut down to 11mm, and doing the hard hit for a 3-4 rail, or a firm stun shot the length of a 9 ft table, I noticed that it did indeed flex. This is actually a primary reason I went to an LD shaft,.... lower deflection was just a bonus to me.
Gotta admit: it did take awhile to adjust, but once you do its much easier.
again,... jmho Peace,............ I'm done.
 
the tip,... the tip

Ok, 1 more post then I'm really done !! :smile:

I'll agree with Pete, there seems to be a "line in the sand" over tips,& shaft diameter. Let me say here I think neither is right or wrong, just subject to personal preference.

Generally, you want a nickel shaped tip for a full diameter shaft, and a dime sized tip for a narrow(er) shaft. (should I duck now??)

Again, I'll agree with Pete, .... try it and see for yourself. I use an 11.25, and the 11.75mm is a back-up. The only time I use a 13mm tip is on my break cue as I just have to look down the center of the darn thing.....

OK, I'm really DONE now ........... peace !:smile: Dunnn51
 
Small diameter tips:
1. produce less squirt (because they have less "end mass") and
2. make it easier to see where you're hitting the CB.

That's all.

Small diameter tips don't:
- produce more spin
- "shoot straight no matter how hard you hit"
- make the shaft whippy (that's taper)
- "forgive less" for stroke errors

pj
chgo
 
It could very well just be just a matter of physical comfort,or it could be the player just adjusted to what they had when they got done jacking the shaft off for months/years with a green Scotch-Brite pad or a half sheet of 400 sandpaper,believe me I've seen it and way worse.

I met a guy at a tournament in Kennett,Mo that bought a pretty nice for the time piloted steel jointed McDermott one time that ordered the shafts at 11.5 mm with a 14" straight taper. He did well with it,but I hit maybe 30 balls with it after the tournament and I was almost slack-jawed seeing the way it could make the cue ball juke around,but I found that particular trait to be completely uncontrollable for me,even with 18oz weight. He said he started out playing with an old Dufferin 60" snooker cue that he sanded himself to fit his VERY small hands and short,Jackie Gleason type fingers.

I also knew a guy from over that way that started out with a standard 13.25 Meucci that wound up about like that McD,after he sanded on it with the Scotch-Brite,which was always fresh,and followed that up with 0000 steel wool. I could feel what had to be a .020/.5mm hourglass taper back to about 10" from the ferrule. When he broke with it,if he was to ever hit a rack like Shane that shaft would have went thru the back of his hand when it broke,let alone me or Mike Sigel.

My Schon was ordered with standard taper 13.5 shafts and ivory ferrules. I still play with those shafts,but they now feel like a brand new Predator Z2 does taper-wise,and pretty close at about 11.5mm.

They still feel as good as they always have,esp since over the course of 20 years of serious but never full-time play,I now have a buildup of scar tissue or something in the 2nd joint of my bridge hand index finger that is just more comfortable in some cases. The Schon I break with felt WAY too big at a perfect 13mm,and I now prefer a gradual growth the whole way back,much like a SW or modified pro taper,and right at 12.75 is perfect these days. The non-original shaft I've been playing with lately feels to me the same as a brand-new unsanded Predator 314-2,not the Z,and it's like .002 over that. It's also 31",but the feel I describe is in the front section.

Part of this is also because I have more or less forced to play on flat-out dirty,and always slow cloth at times,I'd have to adjust maybe to play consistently on faster tables,like the oversize 8' Valley bar box 3 blocks from my house,that is freakishly fast at times even with cruddy,cheap balls,but rolls off so bad I wouldn't bet over 20 a game on it unless I was 90% supposed to win.

That's pool in NW Tennessee at the moment,until I can do something about it,LOL. Tommy D.
 
It could very well just be just a matter of physical comfort,or it could be the player just adjusted to what they had when they got done jacking the shaft off for months/years with a green Scotch-Brite pad or a half sheet of 400 sandpaper,believe me I've seen it and way worse.

I met a guy at a tournament in Kennett,Mo that bought a pretty nice for the time piloted steel jointed McDermott one time that ordered the shafts at 11.5 mm with a 14" straight taper. He did well with it,but I hit maybe 30 balls with it after the tournament and I was almost slack-jawed seeing the way it could make the cue ball juke around,but I found that particular trait to be completely uncontrollable for me,even with 18oz weight. He said he started out playing with an old Dufferin 60" snooker cue that he sanded himself to fit his VERY small hands and short,Jackie Gleason type fingers.

I also knew a guy from over that way that started out with a standard 13.25 Meucci that wound up about like that McD,after he sanded on it with the Scotch-Brite,which was always fresh,and followed that up with 0000 steel wool. I could feel what had to be a .020/.5mm hourglass taper back to about 10" from the ferrule. When he broke with it,if he was to ever hit a rack like Shane that shaft would have went thru the back of his hand when it broke,let alone me or Mike Sigel.

My Schon was ordered with standard taper 13.5 shafts and ivory ferrules. I still play with those shafts,but they now feel like a brand new Predator Z2 does taper-wise,and pretty close at about 11.5mm.

They still feel as good as they always have,esp since over the course of 20 years of serious but never full-time play,I now have a buildup of scar tissue or something in the 2nd joint of my bridge hand index finger that is just more comfortable in some cases. The Schon I break with felt WAY too big at a perfect 13mm,and I now prefer a gradual growth the whole way back,much like a SW or modified pro taper,and right at 12.75 is perfect these days. The non-original shaft I've been playing with lately feels to me the same as a brand-new unsanded Predator 314-2,not the Z,and it's like .002 over that. It's also 31",but the feel I describe is in the front section.

Part of this is also because I have more or less forced to play on flat-out dirty,and always slow cloth at times,I'd have to adjust maybe to play consistently on faster tables,like the oversize 8' Valley bar box 3 blocks from my house,that is freakishly fast at times even with cruddy,cheap balls,but rolls off so bad I wouldn't bet over 20 a game on it unless I was 90% supposed to win.

That's pool in NW Tennessee at the moment,until I can do something about it,LOL. Tommy D.

I'm curious where in NW Tennessee you're located, I'm originally from Caruthersville, Mo. I'm sure you're familiar with Caruthersville.
 
I would like to add my two cents by saying we here at Steamer Cue Sports Ltd., are currently marketing a shaft with a 26 mm tip. This innovation in cue shaft technology was in response to those who were finding it difficult to actually hit the cue ball. :smile:
 
Compare two traditional maple shafts, one finishing at 13.0mm and one 12mm. Ideally both shafts are cut from lumber of close to the same weight & density, and both have the same 15" pro taper. The smaller diameter shaft will have more tip deflection, less cue ball squirt.
Yes, but the reduced squirt isn't because of greater shaft flexibility; it's because of less end mass. You could change the smaller shaft's taper to make it more stiff than the larger shaft, and it could still produce less squirt.

pj
chgo
 
Many years ago, played a guy at Starcher's in Akron. He was from somewhere in Northern Kentucky. Played with half a tip. No, part of the tip hadn't "flaked off". He purposely cut the tip with a knife. Never seen anything like that before or after the match. How does that compare with the OP's question about small tips?

Lyn
 
Small diameter tips:
1. produce less squirt (because they have less "end mass") and
2. make it easier to see where you're hitting the CB.

That's all.

Small diameter tips don't:
- produce more spin
- "shoot straight no matter how hard you hit"
- make the shaft whippy (that's taper)
- "forgive less" for stroke errors

pj
chgo

This is, by far, the best answer! I think I play equally well with 13 or 12 /1/2 mm, though, far as I can tell, anyway.
 
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