Why Tips Get Changed More Now?

Johnnyt

Johnnyt

Burn all jump cues
Silver Member
I can remember playing just about every day with the same tip (LePro) for a good year. LePro's are not what they were years ago...I stopped using them. But even now with the triangles I have to change the tip a lot more often then years ago. Are the tips (like everything else) made to wear out faster? Johnnyt
 
Do you find you work on your tip alot Johnnyt that will wear them down pretty quick. I would expect they make them the same now as they did years ago however I think players are way more equipment concious.

I get a lot of use out of my moori of course I do not pick at it and sand it every day. When I used to use Le Pros I liked to get them really broke in and then I would cut them down and I thought they played better as they got shorter.
 
Johnny;

I've had a similar experience.

I used to like moori mediums and now I can't get them to stop mushrooming and glazing, plus they don't play nearly as well as the old ones.

I know guys who do tip replacements have told me that there is inconsistency in triangles for whatever reason. They never seem to be able to use the entire box, some always have to get thrown away.

Moori tips have been counterfeited extensively so who knows if some of the bad performers were genuine or fake.

The solution for me has been to use kamui black soft tips from *known* kamui distributors (kamuis have also been knocked off). The kamui black soft plays very much like the old school moori mediums and these kamuis last a l-o-n-g time without the mushrooming and constant glazing issues. :thumbup:

And for non-layered, I still love a triangle but my repairman has to sift through the box to find the 'good' ones.

best,
brian kc
 
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Thats kinda weird, I didnt like the kamui soft as a moori replacement. To me the tiger sniper is much closer. Either way though, the layered tips do last longer.
 
Well,

the greatest advantage that these *laminated tips* have, is that they hold longer, and (from my expirience) they don t mushroom really. No matter if it was a Moori Soft or a Kamui Soft- also not a Tiger Everest. All of em had good comments from me. Installed- sháped. ready.
That was it ^^
 
Thanks Mr. Willard!

Johnnyt said:
I can remember playing just about every day with the same tip (LePro) for a good year. LePro's are not what they were years ago...I stopped using them. But even now with the triangles I have to change the tip a lot more often then years ago. Are the tips (like everything else) made to wear out faster? Johnnyt
Click to expand...

Thanks to Mr. Willard in particular and all the other folks with tip conditioning tools! A dedicated picker and shaper can go through a tip in a few weeks. I'm not playing much but just wiping my tip off when I am done and rolling some dents in it when I am ready to play again it seems like it is going to last forever. When I insisted on my Moori holding exactly a dime radius it was only good for a month or so. Some layers tore too, further shortening tip life.

I sort single layer tips by arcane methods only known to me and fifty thousand other cue mechanics. Then I put them on and play with them mostly just dealing with a little mushrooming early on. They play forever just like they always did. All my tips are a year or three old and in fine shape.

Hu
 
Kickin' Chicken said:
Johnny;

I've had a similar experience.

I used to like moori mediums and now I can't get them to stop mushrooming and glazing, plus they don't play nearly as well as the old ones.

I know guys who do tip replacements have told me that there is inconsistency in triangles for whatever reason. They never seem to be able to use the entire box, some always have to get thrown away.

Moori tips have been counterfeited extensively so who knows if some of the bad performers were genuine or fake.

The solution for me has been to use kamui black soft tips from *known* kamui distributors (kamuis have also been knocked off). The kamui black soft plays very much like the old school moori mediums and these kamuis last a l-o-n-g time without the mushrooming and constant glazing issues. :thumbup:

And for non-layered, I still love a triangle but my repairman has to sift through the box to find the 'good' ones.

best,
brian kc
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Chicken, sorry to hear about your problem with Moori tips. I really liked the Moori medium tip but about 18 months ago switched over to Moori soft. Have only experieced mushrooming with the Moori mediums after about 4 weeks of play but then no more. Have never experienced mushrooming with the Moori softs. Neither the soft or mediums have ever glazed over. My style of play is softer hits and this may account for lack of mushrooming. But back to the thread - I used to work over my tip with a Willard shaper before every playing session and I wore my tips down fairly quickly (about 4 to 5 months). I have two McDermott's I-3's (radial and 3/8x10) shafts with Moori softs. McDermott would clean, reseal, and put a new Moori soft tip on at no charge with only handling & shipping charge of $21. If I sent both shafts in, the charge would be only $21 for both. Lately I've backed off over-using the Willard. I bought a Last-4-Ever tool here on the Forum and really like it.
 
My Sniper is @ 2 years old now and has plenty of tread remaining. I carefully scuff it "outwards" and gently pick it a little after @ every 6 hours play (@ twice a week). Never had any mushrooming or peeled layers in 4 years of using 2 sniper tips.
 
I am with Brian the Chicken on the moori tips. Everyone I have ever had has mushroomed and it was one of my biggest pet peeves. Since I have switched to Kamui I have not had any problems with it (currently a soft black but have tried many).

In fact, I play pretty much every day and in having my current tip 6 months, I've only scuffed it three times and shaped it twice. It started out full sized and is about half gone. I figure I will get somewhere in the order of 10 months out of it.

If I can pay $20 for something and have it last 6 months to a year, that is money well spent in my book, ymmv.
 
I've always had trouble understanding how players can say they hardly touch their tip. Every single tip I've ever owned, and that a whole lot, will flatten if I don't shape it. If you play a decent amount of time, it will start to flatten. I don't care whether the tip is layered or not.

So can someone please explain how they can get by with only picking their tip? Do you hit only soft shots? Do you not like to draw your cue ball? Do tell, please.

I've used all kinds of tips over the years and it's basically the same for me. I average about 2-3 months per tip. That's one expense I'm not going to skimp on.
 
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elvicash said:
Do you find you work on your tip alot Johnnyt that will wear them down pretty quick. I would expect they make them the same now as they did years ago however I think players are way more equipment concious.

I get a lot of use out of my moori of course I do not pick at it and sand it every day. When I used to use Le Pros I liked to get them really broke in and then I would cut them down and I thought they played better as they got shorter.
Click to expand...

I put a Moori III on a friend's cue about 18 months ago. He plays several times a week and is an excellent player. Plays a lot of one pocket, 8 ball, and 9 ball and his position play and safety play are outstanding.

The tip is down now to about nickel height but he tells me he's not ready to change it. He said it still plays as well as when it was installed.

I think people have a tendency nowadays to mess with their tips endlessly and shorten the tip life. I play at least 3 times a week with a layered tip and I always get 6-12 months of use. The only maintenance I do is occassionally brush the tip lightly with a 1" square of 100 grit paper. I also don't grind the chalk into the tip. I brush the chalk side to side. :cool:
 
FranCrimi said:
I've always had trouble understanding how players can say they hardly touch their tip. Every single tip I've ever owned, and that a whole lot, will flatten if I don't shape it. If you play a decent amount of time, it will start to flatten. I don't care whether the tip is layered or not.

So can someone please explain how they can get by with only picking their tip? Do you hit only soft shots? Do you not like to draw your cue ball? Do tell, please.

I've used all kinds of tips over the years and it's basically the same for me. I average about 2-3 months per tip. That's one expense I'm not going to skimp on.
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I basically never have to shape my tip. I shape it when I put it on and that's it. I'll do the occasional tip tapping or whatever but I never have to shape it again. Over the course of the tip's life if I shape it, it's more out of curiosity than necessity. For me, I think it boils down to how I chalk. Since chalking the cue is a bit like sanding it, if you do it just right you can maintain the same shape for the life of the tip. Well, at least I can.

I'm currently using a Moori-medium but I still like the good old fashion LePros.
 
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I grind up my Triangle tip with my Willard's dime tool a couple times every time I play. Putting them on myself, at roughly $0.25 per tip, I feel ok about my tip murdering habit. Even still, they last probably 6 months.
 
BasementDweller said:
I basically never have to shape my tip. I shape it when I put it on and that's it. I'll do the occasional tip tapping or whatever but I never have to shape it again. Over the course of the tip's life if I shape it, it's more out of curiosity than necessity. For me, I think it boils down to how I chalk. Since chalking the cue is a bit like sanding it, if you do it just right you can maintain the same shape for the life of the tip. Well, at least I can.

I'm currently using a Moori-medium but I still like the good old fashion LePro's.
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I think it boils down more to how you play rather than how you chalk. Are you a soft shooter in general? Approx how many hours per week do you play? What games? Do you shoot power shots much? Do you practice power shots?
 
FranCrimi said:
I think it boils down more to how you play rather than how you chalk. Are you a soft shooter in general? Approx how many hours per week do you play? What games? Do you shoot power shots much? Do you practice power shots?
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I hit them plenty hard. My table plays real slow so I have to hit them harder than normal. I don't play as much as I would like, but I probably put in 10 hours a week at least.

After I put my tip on it normally will mushroom once or twice during that first month. After that point, it no longer mushrooms. It would make sense that once a tip is past the mushrooming stage that it wouldn't just flatten out. I don't think a tip could flatten out without mushrooming right? Otherwise where does the compressed tip go?

I'm thinking it might be just the opposite of what you're thinking (unless I'm misunderstanding you). The soft shooters may be the ones that have a hard time keeping their tips in proper condition. If you aren't the hitting the ball hard enough to compress your tip beyond the point of mushrooming then you will constantly be dealing with needing to shape and trim it, especially if you start out with a softer tip.
 
With the original Moori MX (1994),I played almost every day and got almost 3 years out of one,just using a Tip Tapper when needed and practiced long draw shots daily using the expanded Kinister 60 Min Workout.

I hit balls with the last Moori III M I installed for a customer and it felt like a Sniper compared to the old ones. The old ones felt to me like the Kamui Black H that many have said is too hard for them.

I have a Kamui Black H on one of my original shafts,and even without daily play I have about a year on it,and still have meat left. My only complaint about them is they are a tone-sink. The normal "ping" I get from my 21 yr old Schon with ivory ferrule just isn't there.

My other original shaft has a Tiger Onyx on it,which is a decent tip,but in all honesty it feels like JUNK compared to a Kamui Black. Imagine a tall,black stained Sniper,which to me is a layered Elk Master.

The box of Triangles I have has been excellent,nothing funny during installation,and only complaints from customers that think it's TOO HARD if I press it my normal amount. Same goes for my newest box of Le Pro's. Both were made in 2010,and as good as the old stuff.

Just my observations,Tommy D.
 
Kamui Blacks normally last me more then 6 months. That's with heavy use.
 
BasementDweller said:
I hit them plenty hard. My table plays real slow so I have to hit them harder than normal. I don't play as much as I would like, but I probably put in 10 hours a week at least.

After I put my tip on it normally will mushroom once or twice during that first month. After that point, it no longer mushrooms. It would make sense that once a tip is past the mushrooming stage that it wouldn't just flatten out. I don't think a tip could flatten out without mushrooming right? Otherwise where does the compressed tip go?

I'm thinking it might be just the opposite of what you're thinking (unless I'm misunderstanding you). The soft shooters may be the ones that have a hard time keeping their tips in proper condition. If you aren't the hitting the ball hard enough to compress your tip beyond the point of mushrooming then you will constantly be dealing with needing to shape and trim it, especially if you start out with a softer tip.
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I doubt that shooting soft will wear the tip sooner. I shoot all types of shots, including power shots, so I guess it all comes down to how much we're willing to tolerate as the tip wears down. I feel it immediately once my tip wears past a certain point because I have to work harder. That's my gauge for when it's time to change the tip.
 
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