What is the best pool cue I can get for $500 for weekly hustle games?

Question

What's the best cue I can get (new) to use one day a week for about 6 hours? Looking for a 8 ball/9 ball cue, preferably a wooden one? Anything other then cuetec obviously, big fan of Dufferin but they are out of business...buying one on eBay so it's kind of hard to make the decision correctly, if someone can link me to what they think I should buy and why, let me know. Pretty much I play $20 a game at Dooly's so I want to get a nice cue.

Answer 1

any cue will do ,but pick a cue with a good shaft - have it pro tapered to the dimensions you want, change the balance of the cue so that it feels great ,change the ferule for hit you want, hard , soft,etc. put a tip on it that works for you ,not because "pro Joe Blow "uses a certain  type,and last - pick one that you like the looks of.  Mosconi could play with a broom , then sweep the place clean afterwards.   PRACTICE , PRACTICE, and PRACTICE ,SOME MORE

Answer 2

I think Viking makes the best cue.

Some thing it is the Meucci or McDermott though.  It is best to get what makes your hand more comfortable.  Some people have a mental block and shoot better with certain sticks.  

I have a friend if you give him a nice stick to shoot with he can not do it, but if you give him a crooked stick he can shoot the eyes out of the ball.

Good luck in finding a cue.

STARRED

Answer 3

The McDermott Hustler sneaky pete cue is a good choice.  as for the predator shaft that was mentioned before me, I don't think anyone at the bar will mistake your cue for a bar cue when it has a big "Z" or "314" printed on it.  The idea behind a sneaky pete, is that people don't see that it's not a house cue when they look, having a brand name prominently displayed on the shaft is going to knock that right out, no mistaking that.  Meucci's quality has been going down hill a little bit the past few years, so I'd steer clear of those.

Another thing, from my experience, I don't want to spend a fortune on a sneaky pete, as on occasion if you get caught using one, some people have a tendancy to get upset and take a swing at you, I've had more than a couple broken on me.

Answer 4

get something middle of the line like a McDerrmott - Muecci -Lucassi and then get a Predator 314 shaft.  The shaft will run about 160-180 but they are well worth it.

Answer 5

If you've got $500 to spend on a cue, go custom. They can build you a cue that looks great and plays perfectly and be fit to you. Plus they will be built of much better materials than ANY production cue. Check for cuemakers in your area so you can meet and speak with the guy directly, but even if there isn't one around, there are a ton of great, reliable custom cuemakers out there.

If you can't find someone in your area, check out d**k Neighbors Cues. They're excellent and very reasonably priced. KJ Custom Cues, sold from Seyberts, has several designs starting at $375. My cue is made by Jack Madden, and is top notch. Don't buy anything off ebay, and I don't really suggest DP cues. They don't hold their value well compared to other customs because of the way he sells them.

BTW, Brands like McDermott and Lucasi (Meuccis are c**p) are ok choices if your budget is $150. Above that, they are not really worth the money they'll cost you.

I have a Predator cue, and it's very nice. It is very well built and does exactly what it says it does, which is reduce deflection. However, I have found that whether or not it's good for a particular person is very dependent on their playing style. For example, there are techniques to apply english that actually favor higher deflection cues, and Predators just do not have the same 'feel' as a high quality, hard wood shaft. So if you know how to hit the ball and prefer a solid feeling cue, you probably will not like Predator. I'm not trying to turn you off from them, but advise you that you should not buy one until you have tried it out.

Good luck.

Answer 6

If you're trying to hustle pool then a sneaky pete is the way to go. Lots of companies and custom cue makers put out sneaky petes. The idea being that it looks like a house cue. If a guy walks into a bar with a fancy 2 piece cue in a fancy case chances are the weaker players will shy away from playing him. And that is all that hustling pool is , picking on weaker players. I would rather take my stick into the bar and ask for the best player in the house that wants to shoot for some cash. I'm too old and not quite sharp enough to do that anymore but thats the way it's done around here. Pool hustling is just a way to seperate a fool and his money. Not what a real pool player would be doing. If your just playing your friends for 10 or 20 bucks a game then there's nothing wrong with that as long as they don't mind and everything stays friendly. But if your hustling strangers for money be careful. You may end up getting hustled yourself or even worse.