Correct cue length 55"?

[heera2009]

Hi all,
i have been playing now for a year apprx, i have always usd a 57inch cue as i thought was right for me.
But only a few days ago i used my friends cue which is 55" and did hardly miss a pot.
Does this mean i have been using a wrong length cue , as i am 5-6" tall? Is there some one here who has experienced this or has any knowledge on correct length of cue according to heights ?
And should i have my cue shortened? Thanks in advance, all feedback appreciated.

[Burwat Champ]

Correct cue length is more to do with the length of your arms than your height.

I would recommend getting a cheap cue and have it shortened to 55 inch and trying that for a while before you commit to getting your playing cue shortened, as having one good session with your mates shorter cue could give a false impression.

Just for the record I am 5ft 7 and use a 54.5 inch cue.

[RGCirencester]

Are you sure your friends cue is not a different weight, tip size etc.
The correct length of cue is nothing to do with your height really. At the address position (tip at the white) your rear forearm should be vertical between elbow and grip.
Going below 56" seems to be getting a little too short to me, as it limits your reach with the rest etc. And will require using the mini butt more often.

[warren132]

It might just have been a coinsidence that you could not miss a pot with your mates cue..best to play some more games with it and see if your form continues and see if this was just a one off.

[heera2009]

Correct cue length is more to do with the length of your arms than your height.

I would recommend getting a cheap cue and have it shortened to 55 inch and trying that for a while before you commit to getting your playing cue shortened, as having one good session with your mates shorter cue could give a false impression.

Just for the record I am 5ft 7 and use a 54.5 inch cue.

Thanks BC,
i will try again with a 55, could have been beginners luck kind of thing,
but looking at your stats i think i will suit a 55 if you are also using a short cue .
I did feel more comfortable , and more in control , when using the cue ,
previously when using the 57" i suffered with my technique not knowing why i struggled,
but when i used my mates, everything fell into place, it felt i had found the missing link to my game. did you ever have to exerience this , or can anyone relate to my experience.

[heera2009]

Are you sure your friends cue is not a different weight, tip size etc.
The correct length of cue is nothing to do with your height really. At the address position (tip at the white) your rear forearm should be vertical between elbow and grip.
Going below 56" seems to be getting a little too short to me, as it limits your reach with the rest etc. And will require using the mini butt more often.

HI RG
I should have said i have not so long arms also,
i do understand that i does cause you to use the extensions more often,
it is difficult to explain in words , its like finding the missing piece to a jigsaw puzzle.
coming back to the cue i used, it is almost similar specs apart from length,
everything else identical , which has got me to post this thread and ask other members of their experiences , thanks for replies

[heera2009]

It might just have been a coinsidence that you could not miss a pot with your mates cue..best to play some more games with it and see if your form continues and see if this was just a one off.

HI WARREN
I will try again with a 55"
cant afford to cut my jp yet , have been tempted though to put it under the black and dekker, but needed some advice from you guys before the chop!!

[Burwat Champ]

I tried cues at 58, 57, 56, inches and never quite felt comfortable, I like to hold the cue right at the end but it felt awkward with these length cues as I have a relatively short reach.

I had a 1piece ashcroft cue I have taken down to 54.5 and I have found that this length is perfect for me, so I sold my 56 inch Dave Coutts cue and I am treating myself to a new cue made by Dan Shelton at a length of 54.5.

I played with ashcroft cue for about 6 weeks though before making the decision to have an expensive cue made that short to make sure it was exactly what I needed.

The other thing you need to take into account is resale value, anything under 56inch you will struggle to sell on for a good price if you dont like the cue when its done.

[heera2009]

I tried cues at 58, 57, 56, inches and never quite felt comfortable, I like to hold the cue right at the end but it felt awkward with these length cues as I have a relatively short reach.

I had a 1piece ashcroft cue I have taken down to 54.5 and I have found that this length is perfect for me, so I sold my 56 inch Dave Coutts cue and I am treating myself to a new cue made by Dan Shelton at a length of 54.5.

I played with ashcroft cue for about 6 weeks though before making the decision to have an expensive cue made that short to make sure it was exactly what I needed.

The other thing you need to take into account is resale value, anything under 56inch you will struggle to sell on for a good price if you dont like the cue when its done.

I will not make any rash decisions also , as posted previously cant afford to chop my jp just yet ,
i can relate to the same problem of chopping and changing cues, believing that it was the cue, i do not have a coach , so finding the problem has been expensive . But better late than never.
And its nice to know that you have found what you needed for your game,
hopefully this t hread and advice from other players and members can help someone , and save money.

[RGCirencester]

Burwatchamp can i just ask how you get on with such a short cue on a full size snooker table? I have a friend i play with, shes 5"4 and plays with my old 56" cue. Holds it quite far up the butt still though.
But she needs the rest to play a lot of shots around the table, even across the width if the white is in the far half of the table from her. i tried putting the mini butt on the shaft once to make a stupidly short cue, (was too short but just an experiment) which she got on ok with but struggled to reach a lot of shots around the table even with the rest.
I know some people have problems with holding the cue off the end i just personally feel if you can get used to holding farther up the butt with a longer cue it would be beneficial overall.
I would certainly be tempted to buy say a 9" mini butt instead of the standard 6 to extend the reach a bit when using the rest. or one of the short extendable ones

[Burwat Champ]

Burwatchamp can i just ask how you get on with such a short cue on a full size snooker table? I have a friend i play with, shes 5"4 and plays with my old 56" cue. Holds it quite far up the butt still though.
But she needs the rest to play a lot of shots around the table, even across the width if the white is in the far half of the table from her. i tried putting the mini butt on the shaft once to make a stupidly short cue, (was too short but just an experiment) which she got on ok with but struggled to reach a lot of shots around the table even with the rest.
I know some people have problems with holding the cue off the end i just personally feel if you can get used to holding farther up the butt with a longer cue it would be beneficial overall.
I would certainly be tempted to buy say a 9" mini butt instead of the standard 6 to extend the reach a bit when using the rest. or one of the short extendable ones

In all honesty I havnt struggled with the cue at all at snooker Ive had 4 centuries with the 54.5 inch cue the highest being a 121.

I cant say I have had to use the rest much more than when I used the 56 inch cue (i never use mini butts) either.

I very rarely use a rest when break building and find the only times I seem to use the rest is if coming to the table after my opponents visit, if its a bit to far to reach with the cue a push on extension does the job fine.

I also play a lot more pool than snooker anyway so the shorter cue isnt an issue at all the 7x4 table.

[poolqjunkie]

If you like your mate's cue so much I think you should try to buy it.
I am not joking, cos if you have one made to the same length it may not play the same as his.
You may like it more also because of the stiffness of the shaft, balance point, butt diameter...etc.
How you getting on with long potting with the shorter cue, like with long stun shots and such?

[heera2009]

if you like your mate's cue so much i think you should try to buy it.
I am not joking, cos if you have one made to the same length it may not play the same as his.
You may like it more also because of the stiffness of the shaft, balance point, butt diameter...etc.
How you getting on with long potting with the shorter cue, like with long stun shots and such?

hi pqj
i am quite good with the rest anyway , and some shots i can get away with using an extension .
We both have parris cues identical apart from lenght , mine is 58"
his is 55" , by the way he did have his cue made at that lenghth and i opted for 58",
its only few days ago i tried a couple of frames with his cue
and realised what i needed.
He is actually 5.9" so for him to be able to knock in breaks over 50 quite consistantley with a small cue is amazing .
Regards to playing certain shots i e.g stun , long pots , honestly i felt they were alot easier with a short cue , could be
i felt very comfortable with the cue so did not pay too much attention on my technique as i usually do , which when playing with my cue i tend to concentrate on that instead of the actuall pot itself.
I will post again later when i have played a bit more with a short cue and maybe can add some input on the matter.
Any members out there with similar experiences please post , and maybe someone might have something to say which has not been covered already,

[brendan147]

Hello there,

IME, any decent cue that is shorter than 57" is quite "short". Leave your ideal grip about 2-3inches from the butt for the normal position of shot and think again if 55" is suitable for you.

Remember that your ferrule's distance from your "V" bridge has to be around 9-12inches. Depend on how much you bend your bridge arm in a normal shot position. Bridge arm should not be too straight nor too much bend. Just fairly bend and comfortable.

Cheers.

[poolqjunkie]

From the sound of it I would have to say perhaps 55" is indeed a good length for you.