Best Value Cues

[var1234]

i used to find with a centre joint my chin hairs got caught in it and it bloody hurt!

Ouch.. i can imagine, particularly if you have a good "follow-through"

3/4 transmits better power than 1/2, while one piece is the best...

with better craftsmanship in joint these day, 3/4 and one piece difference is negligible

[hsn]

In my opinion a 3/4 is better than a 1 piece cue for the matter of portability and also because the majority of the professional players play with a 3/4 cue. But there is a further detail to it as well; The 3/4 is just a term for a cue that is joined some where at the 3/4 length of the cue. In practise you find 3/4 cues joined at 12, 13 and 14 all the way to 18 inches from the butt end. Players like Jimmy White and Mark Williams use a very high butt joined cues at around 18 inches.
There is also a less known 5/8 joined category.
In fact, the higher the joint is the more portable the cue will be. I have read somewhere that the height of the joint on the cue is a personal preference and the argument is that the joint in a 1/2 joined cues comes irritatingly between the line of sight and the object ball/cue ball when playing a shot.
There is another argument about the balance of a cue which is favoured to be more forward i.e. in the shaft rather than in the butt. It is said that a well balanced cheaper cue will play better than a poorly balanced expensive one. Hence a higher joint serves the point of forward-weighted cue extremely well.
As a personal suggestion I'll say to have someone measure the position of your chin on the cue during a normal back-swing. Measure it on variety of shots i.e. cue ball tucked under the cushion, at full stretch, bridging over balls etc. Determine a length that is just short of the start of your line of sight and decide for yourself how high or low a joint suits you best according to your personal style of play and needs.
There is another very critical argument of the girth of the butt of a cue which is yet another very personal matter as we have various hand/grip sizes. Therefore, it is recommended to try a cue before buying or at least having a feel of it in your hand.
By the way you can order any custom cues to be joined at any custom length from reputed cue dealers.
I hope you can make out some thing from my research.
Good luck.

Yeah, I am torn between 1 piece or 3/4.

Total newbie so don't have a personal preference and I have only ever used cheap highstreet cues. Thinking of buying a 'cheaper' handmade cue but not sure on 1piece or 3/4.

Really wanting to try a 1 piece but just can't seem to find any 'cheaper' ones although 3/4 are findable.

[hsn]

You are absolutely right bro!

Errr, which one, Hsn?

Quite a number of players do use 3/4 jointed cues... I could be wrong but just to name a few... Williams, Robertson, Hendry, Gould, Stevens, Fu, King...

So, I guess it's just a matter of preference really...

[MarkCSNS]

In my opinion a 3/4 is better than a 1 piece cue for the matter of portability and also because the majority of the professional players play with a 3/4 cue. But there is a further detail to it as well; The 3/4 is just a term for a cue that is joined some where at the 3/4 length of the cue. In practise you find 3/4 cues joined at 12, 13 and 14 all the way to 18 inches from the butt end. Players like Jimmy White and Mark Williams use a very high butt joined cues at around 18 inches.
There is also a less known 5/8 joined category.
In fact, the higher the joint is the more portable the cue will be. I have read somewhere that the height of the joint on the cue is a personal preference and the argument is that the joint in a 1/2 joined cues comes irritatingly between the line of sight and the object ball/cue ball when playing a shot.
There is another argument about the balance of a cue which is favoured to be more forward i.e. in the shaft rather than in the butt. It is said that a well balanced cheaper cue will play better than a poorly balanced expensive one. Hence a higher joint serves the point of forward-weighted cue extremely well.
As a personal suggestion I'll say to have someone measure the position of your chin on the cue during a normal back-swing. Measure it on variety of shots i.e. cue ball tucked under the cushion, at full stretch, bridging over balls etc. Determine a length that is just short of the start of your line of sight and decide for yourself how high or low a joint suits you best according to your personal style of play and needs.
There is another very critical argument of the girth of the butt of a cue which is yet another very personal matter as we have various hand/grip sizes. Therefore, it is recommended to try a cue before buying or at least having a feel of it in your hand.
By the way you can order any custom cues to be joined at any custom length from reputed cue dealers.
I hope you can make out some thing from my research.
Good luck.

Hi Mate, just wanted to thank you for your advice here. Just got round to reading it and I appreciate this greatly. With me just starting out I do not want to go and spend big money on a cue I 'think' is what I need. I am going to buy a half decent cue and play around that to find out the specs I actually do need. From here I will then also have an idea on whether I am going to become a serious player or if it is just a short term hobby I have found. From this, I will then decide on whether it would be worth me paying alot of money for a cue customised to my personal needs or whether I would be better off saving the money and playing snooker as a hobby.

Thanks for your help, was an interesting read.

[ADR147]

the best value cues are probably master craft or craftsman cues. i would say most professional players use one piece cues rather than 3/4.

[hsn]

You are welcome mate! By the way I also play with a 1/2 cue purchased at JJb's. They usually display a rack of Riley cues in store. l had to look closely though to select a few perfectly straight ones and then opt for the one that pleased me the most in the feel, weight and smoothness of the shaft. :snooker:

For some time now I fancy buying Power Glide cues from Sports Direct on very good offers these days but the problem with them is that they do not display the cues in store. You have to buy them on line and most probably you'll end up returning the cue and paying the mailing cost, for majority of the cues are warped. I wish I had a chance to go to their warehouse and select the best ones myself. Or to be affluent enough to order 50 cues to select the best!

Hi Mate, just wanted to thank you for your advice here. Just got round to reading it and I appreciate this greatly. With me just starting out I do not want to go and spend big money on a cue I 'think' is what I need. I am going to buy a half decent cue and play around that to find out the specs I actually do need. From here I will then also have an idea on whether I am going to become a serious player or if it is just a short term hobby I have found. From this, I will then decide on whether it would be worth me paying alot of money for a cue customised to my personal needs or whether I would be better off saving the money and playing snooker as a hobby.

Thanks for your help, was an interesting read.

[ADR147]

For some time now I fancy buying Power Glide cues from Sports Direct on very good offers these days

for gods sake don't do that!

[jaffa.johnson]

for gods sake don't do that!

lol..........

[hsn]

I am afraid I do not have 200 quids to throw on a cue while I can buy a very good one under 40.

for gods sake don't do that!

[willtyson]

I am afraid I do not have 200 quids to throw on a cue while I can buy a very good one under 40.

I somewhat doubt that it will be a very good one, no-one is saying you have to spend £200 but there are better bargain cues on the market!

[jrc750]

.... while I can buy a very good one under 40.

It will NOT be a very good one at all lol

[ADR147]

I am afraid I do not have 200 quids to throw on a cue while I can buy a very good one under 40.

you can buy a good cue for less than £200 but i promise you it is totally impossible to buy a good cue for £40

[hsn]

I don not want to buy a cue online at least. Like this one is a great cue but I won't buy it for even a fiver without having a look and feel of it! http://www.sportsdirect.com/powergli...ker-cue-766048

I somewhat doubt that it will be a very good one, no-one is saying you have to spend £200 but there are better bargain cues on the market!

[vmax4steve]

Hi Mate, just wanted to thank you for your advice here. Just got round to reading it and I appreciate this greatly. With me just starting out I do not want to go and spend big money on a cue I 'think' is what I need. I am going to buy a half decent cue and play around that to find out the specs I actually do need. From here I will then also have an idea on whether I am going to become a serious player or if it is just a short term hobby I have found. From this, I will then decide on whether it would be worth me paying alot of money for a cue customised to my personal needs or whether I would be better off saving the money and playing snooker as a hobby.

Thanks for your help, was an interesting read.

Just a thought m8, how do you know what spec cue you require if you're a total beginner. Stephen Hendry was given a powerglide to play with when he was a lad and learned with it and got used to how the cue played and ended up winning six world tiles with it. His parents didn't go to a cue maker with a list of specs.
So many blokes on this forum have a list of specs for a new Parris or MW cue because they know the feel of such a cue because it's close to what they have always used, just want a better quality one or maybe it's just the prestige of owning something expensive.
Truth is that's it's nearly always the cue you learned with that you play best with, so any reasonably well made cue will do to start with as long as it's not made from ramin. Put a bid in for a chinese cue on ebay. I know several blokes in our club who play with such cues and they are really good value and very well made. Buy one, learn with it and it will become your cue.

[cally]

ended up winning six world tiles with it.

Ahemmmmm.....