Differ between $50-$75 cue and $200+?

Question

All I ever see when I look at cue listings are Polished stainless steel piloted joint with 5/16x18 pin, 6-point inlays , Rosewood and maple inlays , 5 inlaid matching rings, and fancy stuff like that for low as $50. When I look at $200-$500 cues they say the same thing. Am I just paying extra for a brand name and looks. What is better about a more expensive cue?

Answer 1

The biggest difference is the quality of the material, and where its made and how.  I've yet to find a cue under $100 that didn't end up warping on me.  I break with a players hustler cue with a phenolic tip, and its slightly warped.  I love the break I have with it though.  As far as price goes, after you get around $200 or so for a quality cue, you start to pay for add looks.  Inlays, ring working and such.  The most important thing in a cue is how it feels to you.  As long as it stays straight, and has a good tip and feels good you are set.  I watched my friend place 17th at nationals in Vegas with a McDermott genuine series that he painted black.  Its all in the holder as long as it is decent quality.  Good luck, and keep rackn em up!

Answer 2

Some you are just paying for the Brand Name and fancy inlay work (such as points, rings, and wraps). The thing that really matters (as far as improving your skills) is that you are adding consistency to your game by using the same cue, and how it feels to you when you hit with it (does it hit solid?), are you getting the English (spin) that you are trying to apply (more the shafts deflection and tip that will account for that though)?

Answer 3

The biggest differences between a $50 cue and a $200 dollar cue are how well they are made and what they are made of. The cheaper cue is basically slapped together with whatever wood they can get ahold of. The higher priced production cues use a better quality selected and aged wood. And they are usually produced using cnc or computer controlled machinery. I'm not talking about handmade custom cues here , that's a whole different story. I'm talking about mass produced off the rack type cues such as viking , mc dermott and so on. Thanks to todays computer technology and better understanding of different woods these cues are of a much better quality then they were just 15 or 20 years ago. And the woods and production methods are just getting better all the time. After you get past the 3 or 4 hundred dollar range your just paying extra for fancy. That's fine if you want a fancy lookin cue or you're a collector or something but that extra money isn't gonna make your stick or you play any better in the long run.

Answer 4

sometimes yes, sometimes no.  Look at the shaft, is the grain of the wood straight?  Look at the ferule, is it flush with the wood like it was all 1 piece, what's it made of?  Look at the pin and collar, is it metal, ivory, plastic (could be cheap or good)?  is the stick straight?  What kind of tip?  how well is it assembled?

there are definite fundamental differences between a $50 and a $100 cue, fewer between a $100 and $200, and between a $200 and $2000 fewer still.  the more you go up in price the more the differences tend to be cosmetic and less structural.  However, as you go from one cue maker to the next there are always differences.  Predator users will always toot about low deflection.  Me except for my breaks I usually don't hit the ball that hard to make it a big difference.  I have a Joss, very soft hitting, Stealth (wood shaft) very hard hitting, Schon, hard hitting, a Diamond, Medium hitting, as well as others.  each one favors a different style of play and different game.  which I choose to use depends on the game I'm playing how the table is, and how I'm playing that day.  A bar table that may be a little out of whack requires harder and faster hits so the balls roll true, a tourny table at a premier establishment I can slow roll and get the job done.  The tip makes a difference too, soft tip vs hard vs medium.  if you have friends that have their own ask to try them out for a a few shots to see what you like, then work from there.  If you're just starting out, I'd recommend one of the less expensive Vikings or McDermotts, you can get these around $100, if you're an 8 or 9 ball player these should suit you quite well.  Both are solid hitting.  If you favor a softer touch, switch tips off the bat, a Tiger or Talisman medium to start with (keep in mind the softer the tip, the more you'll need to keep it properly shaped especially when it's brand new) you can then see about going to a soft or hard depending on your preference.  Moori puts out about the best tip, but if you're just seeing what you like, don't spend that much as a test, wait till you know what hardness of tip you like then go to that.  Keep your tip shaped, scuffed and well chalked.

Good luck

Answer 5

99% of the time the claims of inlays and rings and whatnot in $50 cues are BS. They use stickers to decorate their cues to keep costs down.

The biggest difference you'll find between low priced cues and high priced cues is build quality. If you cut down a young tree and immediately cut it into shaft wood, then turn the shaft a couple times in the matter of a few days it will warp in a matter of months. Some cheap internet cues will even be warped the day they arrive in the mail. That's what you are getting with a cheap cue. If you buy a $500 cue, you're getting a piece of wood that has been cut from a very old tree, properly dried out, and turned down to a shaft over the course of months to prevent warping. That shaft can potentially stay straight for decades, and will have a much better hit to it.

You will also see flaws and blemishes in the wood, and poorly glued parts (if the cheap cue actually does have real inlays). They will start to raise off of the cue and come apart in short order, and the wrap will often unwind itself.

The joint could be basically the same in a cheap cue (although not always properly fitted to the cue), but most of the time the ferrule and tip are not. A cue with a cheap plastic ferrule and Walmart tip will feel funny and break very quickly. If you want to see what a cheap ferrule and tip looks like after a few months of regular use, go to your local bar and look at their house cues. The ferrules will be cracked and/or swollen, and will play nothing like they're supposed to. That's $30-40 of repairs your $50 cue will need within a year of purchase.

A good player can usually tell a huge difference in the hit and feel of a cheap cue compared to a well built one as well. The quality of the wood and the way a cue is put together is very important to the resonance of the cue and the way it reacts when you shoot with it. A low skilled player may not notice a difference, but a good player will likely throw that $50 cue in the trash the first time he hits a power draw with left hand english.

In the end, you can expect to get what you pay for. You cannot buy a Hyundai and expect it to drive like a Porsche, but both will get you where you're going. If all you have or are willing to spend is $50 you can get a cue that's good enough to play with and likely better than house cues, but if you want a professional quality cue that could potentially last for 20 years, you've got to spend some money.

Answer 6

The shafts of any name brand stick are "basically" the same. The price increase come with the butt. The more ornate and detailed they are, the more they cost. You're pretty much just playing for looks.

By any means, get a brand name cue even if it very basic in nature. It will come with some form of backup from the manufacturer if it warps or breaks while you're playing with it. Bar room brawls don't count.

A Wal Mart Cue or anything along those lines will warp soon after you purchase it and it just becomes a good tool for sliding socks out from underneath your washer or dryer.