What makes a cue a GREAT cue?

[thelongbomber]

Probably a silly question but would be interested to hear all the answers. Me first:

Good timber properly tapered, and very solid joints (if they are used). The butt material provides the weight balance for the cue. Splicing and inlays are mostly decorative addons. A well made ebony/ash or ebony/maple one piece cue is probably the best overall cue you can have. Timber used for the shaft is critical.

[Terry Davidson]

For me it's all in the shaft flex, ferrule width and eveness(if brass) and tip. Secondary is butt diameter along with overall workmanship and preferred weight.

The one thing that has really impressed me as I use ash exclusively is the smooth finish Trevor White gets on his ash shafts along with the shaft flex he uses.

I've just received a Robin Cook 3/4-butt which was modified by Tony Wilshaw and I'm very impressed with this cue overall

Terry

[sanman]

Really its the shaft and balance of the cue
then I would guess the tip that one places on the cue

You would be surprised at what a good tip can do in terms of playability

[poolqjunkie]

Probably a silly question but would be interested to hear all the answers. Me first:

Good timber properly tapered, and very solid joints (if they are used). The butt material provides the weight balance for the cue. Splicing and inlays are mostly decorative addons. A well made ebony/ash or ebony/maple one piece cue is probably the best overall cue you can have. Timber used for the shaft is critical.

Well, you can give the best piece of ash money can buy to a very lousy maker and he will not be able to give you anything better than his usual rubbish; on the other hand, you can give an average piece of wood to a good cue maker and he can turn it into a decent cue for you.
So, I think the cue maker is more critical than the timber, won't you agree?

[Terry Davidson]

pqj:

Have you been up all night again?

Terry

[PatBlock]

What makes a cue a GREAT cue?

The person behind it.

-

[poolqjunkie]

pqj:

Have you been up all night again?

Terry

Guilty as charged.
I have been working on a cue and just did not realize the time.
Have a good day.

[shamreez]

Hi,

I am currently in Bristol. I have never owned a cue before and always used to use the club cues (When I was in India) which was kind of pathetic..

Here I just got a good second hand cue (from a car boot sales) for £1
(It is a 2 piece cue craft with solid case)

The cue is pretty good (Absolutely brilliant when you compare it to the club queues which I used to use in India)

My question here to the experts is if I try to put some good tip on it (A talisman or Aurora) will it help a lot or since the cue is not that great one I would not be able to make out the difference of a great tip.

I am thinking of a new cue also (But since I am a pretty bad player 15 - 20 breaks) I don't think investing in a costly cue would be a good option now.

Also I don't think I would be comfortable to buy an expensive cue from the website (Custom or not) without trying it out once...

Any suggestions would be welcome as I see most of you giving amazing tips to amateurs like me..

Thanks a lot in advance

PS: I know most of you who read this would be ROFL see the post about a £1 cue when the tip I am planning only costs min 6 times the cue price..

But as the ruling goes you have to start from the bottom and climb your way to the top..

[cazmac1]

I had brought both my cues down to the club one day and my practice partner
came down and did not have his cue, I said he could play with my JP and in the second frame he made an 80+ break. So if you got the talent and the cue is half decent I't don't matter too much, not at our level anyhow.
I became obcessed with the cue and this as held me back, If your constantly thinking about the cue your not thinking about whats really going wrong with your game and you won't improve.
Just my view anyhow.
As to answer your question directly. I don't think anybody really know's, Lots of players have had awful ques and have played really well IE: SH. Since breaking this old que, JP has made several replacements but none play as well for him as the que he broke.
Work that one out.

[cally]

CUE... ..... ....

[poolqjunkie]

I had brought both my cues down to the club one day and my practice partner
came down and did not have his cue, I said he could play with my JP and in the second frame he made an 80+ break. So if you got the talent and the cue is half decent I't don't matter too much, not at our level anyhow.
I became obcessed with the cue and this as held me back, If your constantly thinking about the cue your not thinking about whats really going wrong with your game and you won't improve.
Just my view anyhow.
As to answer your question directly. I don't think anybody really know's, Lots of players have had awful ques and have played really well IE: SH. Since breaking this old que, JP has made several replacements but none play as well for him as the que he broke.
Work that one out.

I agree with you. I see too many players putting too much emphasis into the cue-- is it powerful enough, is the butt 1mm too thick, is this piece of ash having too many arrows...and not spending enough time on how to improve their cueing action and their game in general.

Not saying a cue is not important but a great cue can only bring out your best, it cannot make you better than what you are capable of. If you want to be better, you need to improve your technique and your mental toughness. A cue that feels just right is a true delight to have, and can make the game much more enjoyable for the player. It also makes performing certain shots easier. However, it cannot help you perform shots you do not know, and it does not pot balls for you when you cannot see the angle or cannot cue straight.

For me, I think a great cue is one which gives me a great "feel". A lot of cues I have tried are very "powerful" but they do not offer me great control amongst the balls in the half table region.

I like to be able to feel the tip making contact with the cue ball as if it is just an extension of my arm. I like a shaft with a nice lively feel. It is nice also to have a cue that is responsive which allows me to play a full range of shots with ease. I do not like a cue that is only good for those super poweful shots that no one really needs in a real game on modern day equipment.

I agree it is important to have good shaft wood, and wood used on the butt splices are important as well.

But as I said before if you give a piece of beautiful wood to someone who does not know what he is doing he still cannot turn it into a nice cue, let alone a great cue.

Similiarly, if you give a great cue to a player who has no clue what he is doing he still cannot make 3 balls in a row.

So, what makes a great cue? My answer is someone who knows what he is doing. :-)

[shamreez]

yeah...
Plus I have one advantage with my 1£ cue which none of you have..
Can use it as a club if the situation needs it without regrets

[jb134]

The person behind it.

-

It's not the arrows it's the Indian as Lee Trevino said.

What makes a great cue is playing great with it!

[Freddie Ng]

I agree with you. I see too many players putting too much emphasis into the cue-- is it powerful enough, is the butt 1mm too thick, is this piece of ash having too many arrows...and not spending enough time on how to improve their cueing action and their game in general.

Not saying a cue is not important but a great cue can only bring out your best, it cannot make you better than what you are capable of. If you want to be better, you need to improve your technique and your mental toughness. A cue that feels just right is a true delight to have, and can make the game much more enjoyable for the player. It also makes performing certain shots easier. However, it cannot help you perform shots you do not know, and it does not pot balls for you when you cannot see the angle or cannot cue straight.

For me, I think a great cue is one which gives me a great "feel". A lot of cues I have tried are very "powerful" but they do not offer me great control amongst the balls in the half table region.

I like to be able to feel the tip making contact with the cue ball as if it is just an extension of my arm. I like a shaft with a nice lively feel. It is nice also to have a cue that is responsive which allows me to play a full range of shots with ease. I do not like a cue that is only good for those super poweful shots that no one really needs in a real game on modern day equipment.

I agree it is important to have good shaft wood, and wood used on the butt splices are important as well.

But as I said before if you give a piece of beautiful wood to someone who does not know what he is doing he still cannot turn it into a nice cue, let alone a great cue.

Similiarly, if you give a great cue to a player who has no clue what he is doing he still cannot make 3 balls in a row.

So, what makes a great cue? My answer is someone who knows what he is doing. :-)

Agree with you poolqjunkie.. good point there

[sanman]

I agree with you. I see too many players putting too much emphasis into the cue-- is it powerful enough, is the butt 1mm too thick, is this piece of ash having too many arrows...and not spending enough time on how to improve their cueing action and their game in general.

Not saying a cue is not important but a great cue can only bring out your best, it cannot make you better than what you are capable of. If you want to be better, you need to improve your technique and your mental toughness. A cue that feels just right is a true delight to have, and can make the game much more enjoyable for the player. It also makes performing certain shots easier. However, it cannot help you perform shots you do not know, and it does not pot balls for you when you cannot see the angle or cannot cue straight.

For me, I think a great cue is one which gives me a great "feel". A lot of cues I have tried are very "powerful" but they do not offer me great control amongst the balls in the half table region.

I like to be able to feel the tip making contact with the cue ball as if it is just an extension of my arm. I like a shaft with a nice lively feel. It is nice also to have a cue that is responsive which allows me to play a full range of shots with ease. I do not like a cue that is only good for those super poweful shots that no one really needs in a real game on modern day equipment.

I agree it is important to have good shaft wood, and wood used on the butt splices are important as well.

But as I said before if you give a piece of beautiful wood to someone who does not know what he is doing he still cannot turn it into a nice cue, let alone a great cue.

Similiarly, if you give a great cue to a player who has no clue what he is doing he still cannot make 3 balls in a row.

So, what makes a great cue? My answer is someone who knows what he is doing. :-)

Ultimately if your technique is wrong it does not whatter what equipment you use you will still be useless. however if one looks at tennis raquets for example. No one plays with wooden frames anymore because the wooden frames don't give enough power as graphite frames. Therefor equiment does make a difference provided the player using it is able to utilise the full potential of the equipment he is using.