8ball cue

[aucott80]

Hiya,

What cue weight do you guys use for english 8ball?

I have tried variances between 16oz and 18.5oz and cant decide whats for me!

Thanks

[willtyson]

I use 18oz on the dot and I really like my pool cue, it seems nice weight to be able to play normally with as well as getting a consistently strong break off. Hope you find your perfect cue soon :snooker:

[sootyvrs]

I'm currently using a 13.2 oz one piece plain ebony maple cue and have a few cues weighing 13.2 to 13.8 oz.

I use a 21oz American Pool break cue with phenolic tip for breaking.

I find that a lightweight short cue suits me more when playing with a smaller lighter cue ball in UK pool

[jaffa.johnson]

I am currently using about 14.5.

I have a old handspliced billiard cue which weighs about 13oz for sale if u fancied something lighter. Its one piece maple customised by craftsmans.

[Andy W]

I use a 14oz cue which suits me really well.

[MattCash]

I use a 12 oz, 49 inch cue for UK 8 ball. I don't think this would suit everybody, but it works just fine for me.

[old school]

At the moment my playing cue is 12.5oz.It is 58.25" (inc tip),9mm ferrule and tip,3/4 jointed (shaft length is 47 5/8") and it has an s.d. joint.The cue balances at 16".The shaft only weighs 5.25oz and is useful in my pub league on tight tables.For such a light cue you would be surprised what action you can get on the cue ball and I also use this cue to break as well as play.I often wonder if I could generate more tip speed by removing the s.d. joint and making the cue even lighter,perhaps next season maybe.

[sootyvrs]

I guess from most of the replies here suggests that most people prefer ultra lightweight cues for UK Pool but we are certainly the minority here as most of the Pool players in my area use standard weight cues in the range that you have mentioned (16-18oz).

I must admit I have old school and snookerloopy partly to thank for pointing me in the right direction to try a lighter cue and it has worked for me but it doesn't work for the majority though albeit most have probably not tried using cues less than 16oz

[DeanH]

I am currently using a 18.2oz with a 8.2mm ferrule and 57" long cue for UK pool, but it feels much lighter than that somehow
Had to weigh it twice to make sure

[old school]

Balance point could affect the weight that you " feel" in your butt hand when playing.A more forward weighted cue than you are used to can feel lighter.

[eaoin11]

I guess from most of the replies here suggests that most people prefer ultra lightweight cues for UK Pool but we are certainly the minority here as most of the Pool players in my area use standard weight cues in the range that you have mentioned (16-18oz).

I must admit I have old school and snookerloopy partly to thank for pointing me in the right direction to try a lighter cue and it has worked for me but it doesn't work for the majority though albeit most have probably not tried using cues less than 16oz

It's amazing really, I don't think I've ever seen anything less than 16oz. But I don't doubt that it gives great feel. I imagine that the optimum balance point for these light cues tends to be closer to the butt? Or is it really just the same, around 17oz.

[old school]

Eaoin , I presume you mean 17" and unfortunately it is not that simple.I can illustrate this with my three lightest cues.My current playing cue is 58.25",jointed at 10&3/8",ferrule and tip is 9mm and the cue has an s.d. joint.The cue weighs 12.5oz and the cue balances at 16" exactly.I have a one piece cue,ebony free (thanks ADR), the cue is ash and has a single face splice and veneer measuring 8&3/8" long.The cue is 57.25", 8.20mm,weighs 14oz and balances at 14".My final cue was my first one piece cue,for English Pool I picked up over 25yrs ago.It is ash,no splices,naturally weighted and a complete anomaly.Specs are 56.25" , 8.25mm,butt is about 28.5-29mm,weight 13oz and it balances at a ridiculous 19.5" and no I cant explain it either.Timber density and taper is my only working theory at the moment.Balance point is subjective and what feels right for one person may not be right for anyone else,weight should be treated the same,so I dont believe there is an " optimum " balance point for a cue (especially ultra lightweight cues) to me the optimum balance point should be " what feels right " for you and can only be decided through personal experience.Hope this helps.

[sootyvrs]

My final cue was my first one piece cue,for English Pool I picked up over 25yrs ago.It is ash,no splices,naturally weighted and a complete anomaly.Specs are 56.25" , 8.25mm,butt is about 28.5-29mm,weight 13oz and it balances at a ridiculous 19.5" and no I cant explain it either.Timber density and taper is my only working theory at the moment.

I had a custom made cue made by Cue Craft that was just a solid piece of maple and was made in phases to ensure it was to a certain (albeit extreme) spec.

Spec wanted was -
52"
14oz or less
8.2mm tip
28mm butt
3/4 joint
mini butt joint
Bal point 15"

The all maple cue weighed in at 12oz as 1pc with no joints and had bal point of 18-19" IIRC
I asked the cue maker to put the joint where it needs to be to make it balance at 15". I believe he taped the joint to the cue until he found that point before he chopped it which was 9.5" from the end. He also took into account that the mini butt joint will weigh x.x oz which balanced the cue where I wanted. End weight was 13.8oz so the 2 joints weigh 1.8oz after some timber removal from chopping and drilling joints in.

As with the 1pc maple cue with no hardwood butt the balance point is forward and normally the heavier hardwood (usually ebony) butt adds natural weight at the rear to make the balance further back.

I think the cue (Cue Craft) you got from ADR is the same as one I have and will have artificial weight put in as I asked Cue Craft about this which is why it balances at 14" (same as the one I have from ADR), You will see at the butt end it has been "plugged" where the weight was put in hence why the balance is rear biased on that cue.

[eaoin11]

Eaoin , I presume you mean 17" and unfortunately it is not that simple.I can illustrate this with my three lightest cues.My current playing cue is 58.25",jointed at 10&3/8",ferrule and tip is 9mm and the cue has an s.d. joint.The cue weighs 12.5oz and the cue balances at 16" exactly.I have a one piece cue,ebony free (thanks ADR), the cue is ash and has a single face splice and veneer measuring 8&3/8" long.The cue is 57.25", 8.20mm,weighs 14oz and balances at 14".My final cue was my first one piece cue,for English Pool I picked up over 25yrs ago.It is ash,no splices,naturally weighted and a complete anomaly.Specs are 56.25" , 8.25mm,butt is about 28.5-29mm,weight 13oz and it balances at a ridiculous 19.5" and no I cant explain it either.Timber density and taper is my only working theory at the moment.Balance point is subjective and what feels right for one person may not be right for anyone else,weight should be treated the same,so I dont believe there is an " optimum " balance point for a cue (especially ultra lightweight cues) to me the optimum balance point should be " what feels right " for you and can only be decided through personal experience.Hope this helps.

Yes, 17" sorry. 17oz happens to be my preferred weight at the moment. I've been getting a fair idea of what balance I like in the 17-18oz range and how this is affected by length. I suppose it must be the shorter length of your cues that brings the balance back towards the butt? Is the last one longer?