Laminated shafts

[craigslater]

Guys

Seen a few makers started making laminated shafts, coutts cue and a cue maker in Thailand, just wondered what the benefits of laminated shafts were, I know there an american company who make them for 9 ball called OB cues.

Just wondered if any other cue makers had tried to make them, mike or Trevor maybe?

Seem very expensive is this because of the time and effort needed to make them?

Just wondered what people's thoughts were and if anyone on here has one?

[jrc750]

Think it's only done to give you amazing chevrons where you want them.
Pete147 has one from Coutts at a high price
Mrbluejay has a Param (?) from Thailand at a much much cheaper price
Ask them how they play, do look very nice tho

[craigslater]

So it's only basically for the look? Thought it may have been for playing benefits also...

[SouthPaw]

I read somewhere that that cue ball deflection/throw minimized compared to the standard woods, whether that's true or not i'm not sure

[sanman]

As with any laminated articles. One gets more strength and flex, less chance of cue warping and because of greater strenght the is also the possibilityof slimmer tapers. There may be more benefits to lamination but these are some of the benefits I can think of. I was in omins workshop in 2009. He had laminated shafts in maple back then. I have pics of the shafts but need to look for them. Will post them as soon as I get them. Thanks.

[old school]

Laminated cue shafts , particularly maple for American pool and carom, have been around for over 40 years.It is not a new technology , certainly in centre joint cues , where the shaft is lathe turned.If memory serves me correctly Peradon were ( perhaps still are) doing a laminated shaft , the Pro Line in the Peradon Newbury line and that was summer of 2012.This shaft was laminated and had the look of ash , lamination is supposed to give a distinct hit ,have less deflection , show less susceptibility to warp and are more accurate.I can not comment further , because I have not played with a laminated shaft consisting of two types of wood e.g. maple with walnut ,to give the effect of grain/chevrons , but laminated , single wood i.e. all maple , radially cut or quartered,ceratinly hit the ball differently.

[trevs1]

Guys

Seen a few makers started making laminated shafts, coutts cue and a cue maker in Thailand, just wondered what the benefits of laminated shafts were, I know there an american company who make them for 9 ball called OB cues.

No real benefit, especially in playing terms.

Just wondered if any other cue makers had tried to make them, mike or Trevor maybe?

No, and have no plans to myself.

Seem very expensive is this because of the time and effort needed to make them?

Yes, more work and higher material costs per shaft.

Just wondered what people's thoughts were and if anyone on here has one?

My own thoughts on these vary. I fully appreciate the effort that goes into producing them to a good standard, but, don't personally like how they look in a finished cue. To me, the grain has a fake appearance and just does'nt look real like regular shafts.
There may be some benefits in terms of stability but that would be questionable, and, will be ultimately determined by the quality of the laminated pieces used, how they are bonded together and finally worked into a shaft, in cues of this construction. Furthermore, just as is the case for any other cue, the treatment and conditions the cue is kept and used in during its lifetime will have a major role to play in how stable things remain. So to some extent, no matter how good something may be when it leaves a workshop, there is always the "possibility" of issues later, just as there is with ANY cue.

In a performance sense, there would be absolutely no reason to think, or be led to believe, that cues made this way are likely to be noticeably different or any better than cues made in a traditional way, with a solid single section of timber for the shaft. After all, cues can and do have shafts of naturally varying stiffness and weight, and, can be used to build cues with a myriad of variables with regard to finished dimensions. The performance of any cue is linked as much to these finished dimensions as it is to any particular type of shaft, ferrule, tip or name badge....Fact.

I have absolutely no doubt that what Dave has made using these laminated shafts is excellent in the quality of construction. He is a top class craftsman and is to be applauded for his work. however, are these cues any better because they have laminated shafts, or are any cues with laminated shafts superior in some way to those without.???.....No, they aren't.

[sberry]

Purely for show, it can be claimed to produce less throw or deflection but not proved. It's like the new ferrules that produce less throw and the new tips that produc less throw, etc - put them all together and you will be claiming to have eliminated throw which is not possible or you will have done a LHC job and created reverse throw!

Snooker has a mass market so makers and sellers will always come up with new gimmicks and they will sell, we've had metal cues, carbon cues and if it's solid material a cue will be made out of it one day but practically all the snooker you have ever seen played has been played with a normal ash or maple cue with an ebony spliced butt, a standard brass ferrule, elkmaster tip and green triangle chalk.

[mrbluejay]

I really like mine, but I think that is more to do with it being mainly Maple. It's really difficult to say how it is different, but it seems a more solid hit, it breaks on a pool table like a cannon. I'm playing the best I have played (Pool only) for about 15 years, but this has coincided with much more practice, so can't attribute it all to the cue.

As I say, very happy with it, but bear in mind have just ordered a new Maple off Trevor for twice the price ! I will let Trevor have a knock with it when I pick up my new cue, he can then tell you all how it compares.

[craigslater]

Have u got an email address for Tom praram cues, don't have facebook so can't reach them on there...

[GabrielOng]

Hi Bro Craig. This is TON PRARAM cues email address: praram3cues@hotmail.com

Look for Sheena, Jack( the owner), representative.

I am using his cues along with my group of friends, his cues is perfect compare to other Thailand cues that i already using before.

[craigslater]

Thanks ive emailed them