My New Cue Arrived

[Mike P]

My Master Cue arrived to my surprise. I had some issues with my order but with cue in hand, all is forgotten. I will say I’m amazed it made it to my residence. My address information had my name, street address, country and luckily phone number. The name of my town and province was not written in. At some Canada Post location, “Try Ontario” was written on the box. I presume that an employees cross referenced the phone number to narrow their search down to the right province then town.

I had their M7 Pyragon in mind but had them replace the maple veneer with olive wood. The olive wood turned out to be much darker than what was used on my JP, so does not have the contrast I was hoping for. Looks aside, I do like the hit of the cue. I have used it for two sessions and do have some interesting (confusing to me) comparisons to the JP. I will post some pictures and comments after tonight’s session. I am curious to hear if others have had the same experience, especially when switching from a 3/4 to a 1 piece. One thing I noticed right off is that the tip has a much shorter shoulder for a new tip than what I am used to. Usually I would consider that the tip had neared its end, at the height it is. Does any know what type of tip they use and are modern tips of a shorter height?

Mike

[noel]

Congrats Mike...

I know how happy you must be after an uncertain and prolonged ordeal.
Here's hoping you love it SO MUCH you decide to sell me your JP!!!
Look forward to a few hits next time!


Cheers mate!


=o)

Noel

[vainparasite]

One thing I noticed right off is that the tip has a much shorter shoulder for a new tip than what I am used to. Usually I would consider that the tip had neared its end, at the height it is. Does any know what type of tip they use and are modern tips of a shorter height?

Maybe the postal lads and girls have had a frame or two with it on the way

[Asi]

. One thing I noticed right off is that the tip has a much shorter shoulder for a new tip than what I am used to. Usually I would consider that the tip had neared its end, at the height it is. Does any know what type of tip they use and are modern tips of a shorter height?

Mike

They use their own brand of tips, when I've received my custom Master cue few years ago, the tip was just as yours. 20 min and you can re-tip
the cue as you like it.

[Mike P]

First off here is the dimensions of my new cue compared to old:

Master Cue Custom
Length - 58 inches
Weight - 17.5 oz
Butt - 29.07 mm
Bottom of Points - 25.74 mm
Top of Points - 24.6 mm
30" from tip - 21.74 mm
20" from tip - 17.75 mm
10" from tip - 13.68 mm
Balance - 17 inches from Butt
Tip - 9.5 mm (???)
Ebony-Olive Wood-King Wood-Olive Wood

JP Ultimate
Length - 58 inches
Weight - 18.3 oz
Butt - 29.67 mm
Bottom of Points - 25.3 mm
Top of Points - 23.73 mm
30" from tip - 21.24 mm
20" from tip - 17.18 mm
10" from tip - 13.34 mm
Balance - 17.5 inches from Butt
Tip - 9.5 mm (compressed Elkmaster)
Olive Wood-King Wood-Maple

The cue is quite a bit thicker than my JP except at the butt, yet 17.5 oz as compared to 18.3 oz.. I know weight depends on density but I am surprised due to the large variance in dimensions. Does anyone have an idea as to why the MC weighs so much less than the JP.

I am not certain if I can explain what I think the differences are between the two cues, but here goes. The two cues do not resinate the same when striking the cue ball. I realize that the type of tip used, would influence this greatly. I guess I will not know until I re-tip (tomorrow)with an elkmaster. To compare the sounds, my JP has a higher pitched sound. It reminds me of the different sound you hear when using a harder tip. I seem to get a little more action on the cue ball and the hit seems firmer than the JP. The amount of squirt applied to the cue ball seems relatively the same.

The fit and finish is better on the Parris cue. This one has a few very small blemishes to the finish. All but one is possibly steel fibres, left from the sanding stage. Am I able to remove the fibres and refinish, with out too much work, or should I leave it?

That’s my take so far. I do like the hit and I’m curious to see if I have the same opinion tomorrow after changing the tip. I could understand replacing the tip after a couple of weeks, but three days??
Mike

[Mike P]

Maybe the postal lads and girls have had a frame or two with it on the way

I am just glad that some worker took the time to check in the phone book to narrow the search using my area code. To put things in perspective as to how lucky I am to receive the cue and that it was not returned. To drive my (705) area code you are talking a distance from north to south of 600 plus miles.

Mike

[KeithinFrance]

[QUOTE=Mike P;378410]First off here is the dimensions of my new cue compared to old:

Weight - 17.5 oz
Butt - 29.07 mm
Bottom of Points - 25.74 mm
Top of Points - 24.6 mm
30" from tip - 21.74 mm
20" from tip - 17.75 mm
10" from tip - 13.68 mm

Weight - 18.3 oz
Butt - 29.67 mm
Bottom of Points - 25.3 mm
Top of Points - 23.73 mm
30" from tip - 21.24 mm
20" from tip - 17.18 mm
10" from tip - 13.34 mm


The cue is quite a bit thicker than my JP except at the butt, yet 17.5 oz as compared to 18.3 oz.. I know weight depends on density but I am surprised due to the large variance in dimensions. Does anyone have an idea as to why the MC weighs so much less than the JP.

I am not certain if I can explain what I think the differences are between the two cues, but here goes. The two cues do not resinate the same when striking the cue ball. I realize that the type of tip used, would influence this greatly. I guess I will not know until I re-tip (tomorrow)with an elkmaster. To compare the sounds, my JP has a higher pitched sound. It reminds me of the different sound you hear when using a harder tip. I seem to get a little more action on the cue ball and the hit seems firmer than the JP. The amount of squirt applied to the cue ball seems relatively the same.

The fit and finish is better on the Parris cue. This one has a few very small blemishes to the finish. All but one is possibly steel fibres, left from the sanding stage. Am I able to remove the fibres and refinish, with out too much work, or should I leave it?

That’s my take so far. I do like the hit and I’m curious to see if I have the same opinion tomorrow after changing the tip. I could understand replacing the tip after a couple of weeks, but three days??
Mike
Mike,
The MC weighs less than the JP because it's 1pc cue which means that the butt is spliced onto an ash core whereas the JP is a 3/4 with a solid ebony butt and a brass 3/4 joint to add weight. So, even though the taper is thicker on the 1pc the JP is heavier. I would say the reason the MC is thicker is to give more strength to the cue. I would guess that this also explains the difference in sound and hit when you play a shot.
MC use their own, pre-compressed tips on their cues; sometimes they are good and sometimes they are bad - if it's a good one then it can last a loooong time.
Concerning the blemishes on the finish, play with the cue and see if they annoy/bother you when you're playing. If they don't, then I'd just leave them. No point in tinkering if you don't have to. If they are a nuisance then maybe you should consider touching them up.
The MC looks very nice indeed, I like the contrast between the olive wood and the kingwood they use. The slightly elliptical taper will give more strength to the middle of the cue, and perhaps a 'meatier' sound when playing. Normally a 1pc cue will give you more feedback when playing, because of the ash core running the whole length of the cue, so it'll be interesting for you to see how you like the 'feel' and playability of a 1pc compared to a 3/4. I really hope you enjoy playing with it and discovering all its little secrets.
Keith

P.S. I think you are so lucky that the cue arrived at all; someone was watching out for you! It's a miracle it got there with the address as it was. I think the cue has to be called 'Lucky', don't you? I'm not one for naming cues, but sometimes the cue names itself ...

[Jonny]

the mastercue looks really nice how much did you pay for that?

[Mike P]

Keith,

Thanks for the information. I had no idea that ebony weighed that much more than ash. With the JP not having a thread for an extension, I thought things would balance out.

I was expecting the olive wood on the MC to be closer in color to the one used on the JP. Up until tonight I was going to follow your assessment of the tip and give it more time. It started to sort of disintegrate, so I’m in the process of re-tipping.
Mike

[Mike P]

The cue itself was $474 Canadian, which comes out to about 260 pounds. I purchased extensions also.

Mike

[KeithinFrance]

How did the re-tipping go, Mike? Does it play any better/nicer with the new tip? I hope you're getting used to how she plays, eh?

[eaoin11]

Thanks Keith, I didn't know that fact about the way 1pce and 3/4 cues differ, and didn't know 1pce cues had an ash core going right through them. I thought 3/4 cues started life as a 1pce before being cut. I know better now

[eaoin11]

By the way Keith, do you know how much the average 3/4 or center join weighs? and I'm curious about how the density of brass compares with ebony.

[MattCash]

according to trevor, the joints weigh approx 1.5 Oz

but this depends on who's joints you use, i.e H&O joints would probably weigh more.

[Mike P]

Keith,

I had put off the re-tipping, hoping I had one of their good tips, but obviously not. It started to unravel last night, so there is an Elkmaster being compressed as I write this. I will give it a try this evening. With the tips a hit and miss as you say, I can’t imagine MC using one that has such a short life. Maybe it’s me, but using a more expensive layered tip, would make more sense. If a customer does not like the feel of the layered, they could always change it. This would be due to preference as compared to substandard material being used. I don’t think it is acceptable, to require customers to perform repairs on a new product. If that practice is acceptable for the company, it makes me have questions in other areas of production.

Mike