Re-taper or buy new?

[bolton-cueman]

Interesting !!! Has anybody asked if you use the cue for snooker or pool ?? Curious because I tapered my cue down to 9 mm for pool but prefer 9.5 for snooker and different tips !! Personally though , if your cue were mine I might be tempted to to take it down to 9.25 and see if it makes any real difference . Mind you , am I assuming that you are seeking more spin , screw etc ?? Have you tried other cues or tips ?? All I am trying to suggest is there could be other issues to address before you go down the more radical route of re-taper !!! Regards Tommy

hi Tommy

I play snooker. I've been playing with my northwest for years, but I've had a few frames with some of my mates cues and started to like a slimmer shaft and slightly smaller tip - hence me thinking about either tapering down the cue or getting a new cue.

[bolton-cueman]

I personally see no downside to tapering a ferrule in fact it would give " bolton-cueman " the opportunity to try a 9mm tip on a cue he knows.The cue shaft being un-altered would react and play the same ( no taper change) thus giving him the chance to compare 9mm to original specs.I have tapered ferrules myself and have not noticed this change affecting my cueing or line of sight , after all we are only talking fractions of a millimetre here ( up to 0.75mm in this case) .Furthermore if the change down to 9mm does not suit then simply replace the ferrule with one made to the original specs , this would only cost about £10 and seems to be a safer way to try 9mm , than re-tapering the cue and less expensive than buying a new cue , which he may not even like.Tapering a ferrule allows " bolton-cueman" to try 9mm and revert if it does not suit , for very little money and very little risk.

I was unaware you could taper a ferrule! Excuse my ignorance on that - I know zero about cues / cue modifications. I just pot balls with them

A mate had his shaft tapered but only appeared to have about 6" from the end up tapered - that made no sense. Again excuse the ignorance but if you're tapering a shaft surely you'd do the entire length to get a uniform taper?

[old school]

Tapering a ferrule or getting one made is relatively straightforward , tapering it yourself should only be attempted if the ferrule wall is thick enough i.e. if you take the tip off and measure the wall thickness at say .75-1mm then no problem.A shaft tapered in the last 6" is usually done for two reasons , its cheaper than tapering the last 18"-24" of the shaft OR it is done that way to preserve the taper over the bridge hand , assuming bridge overhangs are 9"-12" on average.Tapering a whole shaft , even if done as a constant taper , can change everything and I mean everything i.e. feel over bridge,flex,stiffness,throw etc because you are changing the whole diameter of the cue.The best advice to give you is to speak to good cue makers and keep your options open.The statement you made about " liking a slimmer shaft and smaller tip " , might suggest that your original cue may be too stiff and thick for you , but the fact that you have played with it for so long means you have adapted to and got used to its foibles and how it plays.Playing devils advocate , could changing taper and tip size of your cue mean that you would have to change your game and start over or do you think that it would make no difference ? Could be a costly experiment , some of the cue makers on the forum may be able to shed more light on the pros and cons of what I and yourself have proposed.

[YDJ]

Tapered ferrule photo here
I have made quite a few and see more on english pool cues than snooker, where people buy a snooker cue spec and want the smaller tip without changing the taper.

[tomeestrings]

Hi again , Boton-cueman . Once again interesting !! You are right that tapering the last few inches makes no sense but at the same time you wouldnt need to take the taper along the whole length of the cue . I am just about to re taper a cue of mine as it just feels too thick through my bridge hand !! I know the cue will play just great , nice taper , nice flush shallow ferrule , nice tip all nicely balanced without any weird shapes to take your eye from the business end of the cue . Please believe me when I say that losing half a mil from your ferrule so you can fit a smaller tip on the end of your cue , will not improve your cues performance in any way whatsoever . Its the equivalent of putting a smaller piston in your car !!! Have you tried different tips ?? This will make a heck of a difference ?? I am guessing though that you simply temporalily ?? Enjoyed playing with a cue that has a slimmer taper ?? Tommy .