Number of Chevrons, Any geographical trends or just personal preference?

[sbsnooker]

thight grain

hello the best shaft will be the shaft with the tighter grain. if the shaft has only a few grains down the cue it means its from the out5side of the tree. look for a shaft with more grains dont buy a cue unless it has at least 7 to 9 grains. it will play so much better thab a cue with only 5 grains in the shaft .the tighter the grain the better the cue dont worry to much about arrows

[1lawyer]

I would say that the grain don't matter as much as if the cue is whippy or stiff or in between.

I had a Parris ultimate that had even chevrons but played dead as a do do because it was too stiff...
I had another cue by a cheaper maker and the cue was medium stiff and it played beautifully..although the grain was not perfect...

In an ideal world it would be good to have both but as I don't look at the cue when I am cuing it does not matter a jot to me although it matters a lot with the feel, weight, balance and whippyness of the cue to which I do have a preference. :snooker:

[unclevit]

I would say that the grain don't matter as much as if the cue is whippy or stiff or in between.

I had a Parris ultimate that had even chevrons but played dead as a do do because it was too stiff...
I had another cue by a cheaper maker and the cue was medium stiff and it played beautifully..although the grain was not perfect...

In an ideal world it would be good to have both but as I don't look at the cue when I am cuing it does not matter a jot to me although it matters a lot with the feel, weight, balance and whippyness of the cue to which I do have a preference. :snooker:

1lawyer : I quite agree on your point here. I normally check the 'quality' of the ash from the wood selection process. When the wood is plained into a shape of a shaft, I will bend the whole shaft with my own hand about 12 inches from the tip (put butt side on the floor, and tip up. Hold the tip part with your left hand, then use your right hand to bend it slowly). Pull to the side and let go quickly to check the 'spring' property of the rough shaft. Sometimes I found that tighter grain will offer a more 'spring' while the wider grain is more stiff. Or the opposite. I think it depends on when the ash is cut, and how it was treated, before arriving in your hand. Moisture content at the time of the production is also another vital part. Green Ash, or ash with lots of moisture content, will not offer a kind of 'solid' hit feel to my experience. I believe there is no golden rules here. But one thing is that, tight lines tend to come from the wood that grows slowly, or old. More arrows mean that the piece is near the core of the timber. I might be wrong on this comment, but they are from my experience with UT. Happy New Year

[brendan147]

1lawyer : I quite agree on your point here. I normally check the 'quality' of the ash from the wood selection process. When the wood is plained into a shape of a shaft, I will bend the whole shaft with my own hand about 12 inches from the tip (put butt side on the floor, and tip up. Hold the tip part with your left hand, then use your right hand to bend it slowly). Pull to the side and let go quickly to check the 'spring' property of the rough shaft. Sometimes I found that tighter grain will offer a more 'spring' while the wider grain is more stiff. Or the opposite. I think it depends on when the ash is cut, and how it was treated, before arriving in your hand. Moisture content at the time of the production is also another vital part. Green Ash, or ash with lots of moisture content, will not offer a kind of 'solid' hit feel to my experience. I believe there is no golden rules here. But one thing is that, tight lines tend to come from the wood that grows slowly, or old. More arrows mean that the piece is near the core of the timber. I might be wrong on this comment, but they are from my experience with UT. Happy New Year

So how does UT select the best quality shaft for my upcoming project cue? What are his criterias of selection?

[unclevit]

So how does UT select the best quality shaft for my upcoming project cue? What are his criterias of selection?

My selection process written is the same method UT is using in selection the shaft for any custom project. But adding that all of his square blanks (before tapering process) will have to come dry, and left hanging in his workshop for at least 2-3 months though the wood seems well dried before reaching his stock. Thailand is a warm country, so the woods will come in mostly well dried. Suppliers here will keep the long timbers well kept in their stocks before putting a 'ready to sell' badges. For us, it's a matter of chevrons selection when we buy (though beautiful, evenly arrows, shaft blanks don't come too often). Not to worry as your custom cues will have the well matured ash woods.

[brendan147]

Not to worry as your custom cues will have the well matured ash woods.

Never worried about that...just wondering. What worries me now is you haven't give me your banking details. Reminder: Payment by next week.