Whatsa tip?

Jodacus

Jodacus

Shoot...don't talk
Silver Member
Is a tip of english one whole tip, say 11.5 mm? Is a tip off center really 1/2 a tip or one tip from edge of tip at it's original position? Or is a tip of english the contact patch diameter, about half the size of apencil eraser? I'm just looking for a consensus here. Thanks
 
I don't know if you will get a concensus or not, but for my part, I calculate one tip as being the amount of tip that actually contacts the cue ball. Consider the size of the blue chalk mark on the ball as being one tip in my mind. If you look at some training balls, such as the Rempe ball, or the Sterling training ball, you will get a real good idea.

Steve
 
Both definitions are used.

There are a lot of other terms that have different definitions, so make sure you know which definition is being used.
 
Regardless of what size tip, how round it is, what hardness it is, the contact patch remains at about 3mm or 1/8"...which is the size of the red circle on a red circle CB. Larger chalk marks, from harder hits, are a result of chalk dust blowback, not increase in contact patch size. Contact time, between tip and CB also remains at 1/1000th of a second. This was proven by the Jacksonville Experiments.

Scott Lee
www.poolknowledge.com
 
There's another way that the term 'tips of english' can be looked at and that's in terms of the desired result. It makes the word 'tip' more of a metaphor than a literal interpretation, as in 'slight,' 'moderate' and 'extreme.'

Having already been accused of being "OLD SCHOOL" I'm not embarassed to pass along some of the wisdom of the older great players of the past and how they gauged tips of english.

If you place the cb on the spot and shoot it with a medium speed (again, slightly subjective but certainly not difficult) straight up the table, scratching in the lower corner pocket would have been considered aprox. one tip of english. At the same speed, apply your interpretation of 2 and then 3 tips and see what you get. that can be your personal gauge.

It's all about finding your own reference points.

I prefer that much more than trying to measure millimeters on a cue ball with the naked eye.
 
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