new cue specification

[jin]

Hi, after a week of searching, trying and measuring I have come down to this specification for my new cue.
length: 53.25 inches
weight: 17.25oz
tip: 9.5mm
wood: Ash

Some people told me the cue is very short and light. But I'm only 167 cm in length. My current cue is a standard cue with 522 grams (probably 18.5 oz) as weight and I find it very heavy because, I think, I hold the cue about 10 cm from the butt and most of the weight of my cue is in the butt of the cue.
So what do you guys think, is 17.25 oz too light for a 53.25" cue?

thanks advance

[ADR147]

its a toothpick

[jin]

its a toothpick

yea, I can get a lot of screw from that this way. /sq

[RGCirencester]

53 inches sounds like a very short cue? The weight I wouldn't see as being a problem but thats one reeeeally short cue lol.

[thai_son22]

ive played with a 53 inche cue before. im 5'6 so not sure how tall that is in CM.

i can play fine with it. only problem is i like playing with a long bridge so i go for something longer.

[felipecocco]

what distance is your bridge from the hand when you play normal shots?

[jin]

distance from bridge is about 30 cm.

[karkit1028]

Hi there!~
I don't know how you come up with the length...
But, if you are gripping at the end of a 53" cue, then I would personally recommend you to add at least about 2" to 2.5" allowance, taking into account that sometimes you would need to get on the table and slightly stretch.
(Try to play in a stretched position with a longer cue. Mark the length accordingly.)
(Just for your reference, a lot of pros don't grip at the very end of the cue.)

I am about the same height with you and I play with a 56" cue.
I found that I am "effectively" playing with 53" of the cue most of the time.
However, the extra 3" extra is very useful sometime as it allows me to play comfortably in tricky/awkward situations without adding the mini-butt.
This is based on my personal preference of "I don't like playing with mini-butt, except with the rest".

I wonder the balance of your cue is one of the causes of the "heavy" feeling.
Assume everything stick with your proposed specification (53.25", 9.5mm, Ash, 17.25oz).
I am not a cue maker nor expert, but I just have some concerns of getting natural weight of 17.25oz for a 53.25" cue.
Basically, the following things could affect the weight and balance of your cue.

Butt Diameter --> Thicker the butt, heavier the cue.
Shaft Quality --> GENERALLY, better shafts would be heavier. (mentioned somewhere in TSF by Trevor White?)
Balance --> Where would you like the balance point of the cue be?
Joints --> With S.D. Joints? 3/4 jointed (where to the joint? at 14"? at 16"?), 1/2 jointed or 1 piece?
Splicing --> Length of splicing? Type of wood(s) used for splicing? (density --> weight)
Tapering --> Thicker tapering, heavier the cue.
Willingness to add "metal" to gain weight or/and alter balance if necessary?

All of the above mentioned could vary the weight and balance of the cue while some of them may be contradictory to each other.
You will need to discuss in detail with whoever cue maker you go for.
Hope you find these useful.
Correct me if I am wrong. =)

Cheers~

[felipecocco]

A few weeks ago I just went out with a buddy to take the exact measurements of how long my cue should be, and we came up with 56" - and I'm 1.69m tall. We did it so that my bridge would be exactly 12" (30cm) from the ball AND I really like to grip low on the cue, so its even about .5" ~ 1" shorter than what most people would have it. I know this all comes down to preference, but I must say that 53" sounds kinda too short...

[jin]

My current cue (Pro Butt) is 145 cm long , about 57". the butt is 26.5 cm long, that's 10.5". Diameter of the butt (at the end) is 2.7 cm.
When I play a normal shot, I hold my cue at 130 cm (51.2")(means my hand ends at 130 cm). If I stretch my left hand to play, then my hand ends at 133 cm (52.4").
56" is only 3 cm shorter than my current cue. that will be still too long me. I think 54" is probably better. Do you think it is a problem to get 17.25 oz to a 54" cue?
Thanks for the replies.

[karkit1028]

jin, what makes you think a 57" cue is "TOO LONG" for you?
Seriously no offend to you~

OK, you current cue is too heavy~
So it is sensible to get a lighter one~

But... does the extra 3" to 4" affect your play?
I can only see the disadvantages of having a "TOO SHORT" cue...
I saw from YouTube that kids at World Snooker Academy are playing with cues of standard length (57") as well.
Most professionals don't grip at the very end of the cue.
For example, Marco Fu grips the cue where his little finger is about 4" away from the end of the butt.
Yet, he still uses a 57" cue (made by Kevin DeRoo) with a small tape on the butt to remind his optimal grip position.
I am wondering yet the extra inches could be advantageous.

[thai_son22]

i think jin has a point to be honest.

that extra inch will make a big difference. I cannot play with anything above 55 inches simply because of how i hold my cue.

i hold mine right at the end and anything longer will mean i dont hold it the way i want to.

yes, you can say "get use to holding it further down" but my hands always revert back to the end.

Kids may use a 57" and steve davis also said get a full length cue, but these kids will grow and the 57 inch cue will be the right length for them.

you can say 53 is short and having an inch here or there may be an advantage but using the mini-butt for just out of reach shots is abit of a no brainer isnt it?

AN EXTRA 3 OR 4 INCHES IS A MASSIVE DIFFERENCE! NOT SURE WHERE YOU GOT THAT ONE FROM!!

[RGCirencester]

The reason steve davis duggested youngsters get a shorter cue is because they can reach across the table without using the rest. Playing balls into the middle pockets for instance can be quite difficult for a kid who is not much taller than the table and a full size cue is a big help to that. They will also grow and can move thier hand down the cue, but keep the same cue throughout.

But on the subject of the original post...
It is often said in cue terms an inch is the equivalent to a mile. Personally I like to play with 2 inches of cue behind my back hand and like the way it feels to hold the cue like this.
I do however know a few people (Thaison included above) that hold thier cues right at the end and feel uncomfortable in any other position.
Why sacrifice being comfortable on the majority of shots for the occasional time when you need to reach up the table, at which point you can use the mini butt anyways.
They make the small extending 6-9" mini butts too which would give you the same reach as someone with a standard length cue using a traditional ebony mini butt.

[jin]

jin, what makes you think a 57" cue is "TOO LONG" for you?
Seriously no offend to you~

OK, you current cue is too heavy~
So it is sensible to get a lighter one~

But... does the extra 3" to 4" affect your play?
I can only see the disadvantages of having a "TOO SHORT" cue...
I saw from YouTube that kids at World Snooker Academy are playing with cues of standard length (57") as well.
Most professionals don't grip at the very end of the cue.
For example, Marco Fu grips the cue where his little finger is about 4" away from the end of the butt.
Yet, he still uses a 57" cue (made by Kevin DeRoo) with a small tape on the butt to remind his optimal grip position.
I am wondering yet the extra inches could be advantageous.

I played with a different cue yesterday. standard length (same as mine) but only weight 10 grams less. It felt very light in comparison to my own cue. I am thinking the reason why my own cue feel heavy is the fact that most of the weight is at the butt and I hold my cue 15 cm from the butt and therefore it feels heavy.
or probably the balance of my cue is ****.

i think jin has a point to be honest.

that extra inch will make a big difference. I cannot play with anything above 55 inches simply because of how i hold my cue.

i hold mine right at the end and anything longer will mean i dont hold it the way i want to.

yes, you can say "get use to holding it further down" but my hands always revert back to the end.

Kids may use a 57" and steve davis also said get a full length cue, but these kids will grow and the 57 inch cue will be the right length for them.

you can say 53 is short and having an inch here or there may be an advantage but using the mini-butt for just out of reach shots is abit of a no brainer isnt it?

AN EXTRA 3 OR 4 INCHES IS A MASSIVE DIFFERENCE! NOT SURE WHERE YOU GOT THAT ONE FROM!!

I have played with 53" and 57". With the 53" it feels more comfortable. But I have to use the rest a lot more often.

[totlxtc]

Just a point. Your height bears no relation to what length cue you have. This has been said so many times before. I know people who are 6ft+ and use 54" - 60" cues. Its what you are comfortable with. Yes 53" is short. But if you happy with it and comfortable why change it? There is no written rule that states Your Height = Cue Length. Same can be said with butt diameter. If you have huge hands, must you have a 32mm butt? No! You play with what feels best.