Beginner Cues £60-£70

[willdem]

Hello, i'm new here, and to snooker.

Been looking for a cue to get me started for about £60-£70. I realise this is not a lot, but all i can afford at the moment. I have been looking at the Peradon "Crown" cue (are these any good?), but to be honest i do not know about many of the other makers of cues (although i have been researching as much as i can recently).

Looking for 58" length, but not 100% what tip size would be best, i figure a medium sized tip, 9.5, would be good for me to start with and same (medium) with the weight of the cue. Any advise would be helpful.

Thanks,
Willdem.

[Steve180]

£60-70 WILL buy you a cue that would last a lifetime. Whether you choose to upgrade is up to you, you dont HAVE to.

A good cue is one that feels good to you, try a few or take a punt on used and get better value for money.

[CeeJay147]

Indeed you could get a handmade '2nd hand' cue off Ebay for that price range, you should have a look on there. As for Peradon, from what I've heard they seem to produce high quality cues on a budget price range, so you can't really go wrong with a Peradon cue .

[Bigmeek]

willden Hello mate. For that budget you're looking at a machine spliced cue. Suggest to contact Simon at Craftsman-cues. He might have something which would suit. If you're new to the game don't go lower than 9.5mm. 10mm would be good choice in my opinion. Average weight of around 18.0ozs would be OK

[Acrowot]

Hello willdem and welcome to the forum.

I agree with Bigmeek on the size for the tip, at 10mm.
:snooker:

[willdem]

Hello, Thanks for the replies.
Its a bit odd trying to find a cue on the internet at this stage without even being able to hold/use it.
I have been looking on ebay, but a little weary as pictures are normally bad and not much description, and you are not always guaranteed to get what you ask for. Although saying that i am still looking.

Anybody know what these cues are like (top one)?
http://greenbaize.com/budget.htm


I realise its all down to preference.
I suppose what i want to be asking is, are there any cues in particular that i should be avoiding?

Bigmeek, Thanks for advice on tip size, will look to getting a touch bigger.
I have not phoned them (craftsman), but i did check out the website, but there wasn't to much of a budget selection on the site.

[jrc750]

...Anybody know what these cues are like (top one)?
http://greenbaize.com/budget.htm

You could give Stu a ring and ask his opinion, i know he's selling them so would be slightly biased, but he's a good bloke and wont rip you off.
Also have you seen these ? £60 incl delivery - may be similar quality to Greenbaizes but cheaper
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/JX12-pro-4pcs-...#ht_4169wt_998

[willdem]

Couple of ones i was looking at.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/snooker-cue-/1...#ht_500wt_1154 Robin scott one, prob a bit small.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Peradon-snooke...#ht_500wt_1154
No info, but emailed him.

[willdem]

You could give Stu a ring and ask his opinion, i know he's selling them so would be slightly biased, but he's a good bloke and wont rip you off.
Also have you seen these ? £60 incl delivery - may be similar quality to Greenbaizes but cheaper
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/JX12-pro-4pcs-...#ht_4169wt_998

Nice, thanks, i hadn't noticed that one.

[jrc750]

this might be worth watching, finishing tonight, but dont forget to factor in p&p
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/JXM7-pro-4pcs-...#ht_4169wt_998

[Acrowot]

Where do you live willdem, maybe if you are near enough, you could visit one of the people that have cues for sale and a table to try it on?
:snooker:

[willdem]

Yeah, i think that would be the ideal thing to do.
I live just outside of Brighton.

[Dragonsye]

Mate, stick with the Peradon machine sliced cue.. I got a superb deal off ebay for around 75 quid, case, extensions and a hand-spliced Royal cue, which I love! Its a solid playing cue,and its great! So you might want to keep your eye out for that as well.. Just play with what ever you're buying, and see what feels good in your hand.

As to choosing a cue,start off with the club cues for the basics, and then when you start to feel you need something more to improve, go out, try a few, and figure out what feels good. The feel is generally dependent on the balance point of the cue. Thats the distance from the butt at which the cue balances over an edge, it maybe your finger. So if you can't try the cue (i.e, if you buy it off the internet) just check if its the same balance point as a cue that felt good in you're hands. When trying cues, it needn't necessarily be a new cue, it may be another player's cue, and the measurement needn't be absolutely perfect. Main thing is where the balance of the cue is, and if you want a heavy or light cue. Hope that wasn't too exhaustive an explanation!:S Hope it helps!

[jrc750]

Assuming no one else bids on it - this would be a better buy than the ones i mentioned earlier
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Craftsman-3-4-...item4cf0049c5d

[ADR147]

do a lot more research before you buy a cue.