Cue Tips Overview

 

You may re-tip your own cue but, like most players, you probably get your cue tipped by the 'bloke down the club'.

You may not even know what tip you use, but you more than likely using an Elkmaster or Blue Diamond. These two tips are far and away the most popular tips in the U.K., used for both Snooker and English Pool.

If you're adventurous, you may have had a chance to try one of the relatively new multi layered tips, made popular in the U.S., Japan etc., by the pool players there.

Either way, here's the low down on tips...

 

Traditional Cue Tips

These tips are cut and pressed from a single layer of leather. There are many different brands but the two I will be talking about are Elkmasters and Blue Diamonds.

Firstly, let's get one thing clear. Elkmasters and Blue Diamonds are similar tips. Some people swear by one brand, some by another.

In my opinion, the difference between the two is negligible. A good Elkmaster is all you ever need in a cue tip. It can produce just the right 'feel' over the whole range of shots.

The problem with both has always been consistency. You may need to try quite a few tips before you get one that actually 'feels' right when you hit a ball.

But when you do find a good one, it really is a good tip.

 

Laminated Cue Tips

These tips are made by laminating very thin pieces of leather on top of each other. Again there are many different brands. Amongst others, there are Moori from Japan, Tiger from the U.S., and Talisman from Thailand.

All these manufacturers claim their tip to be more likely to keep their shape (i.e. not 'mushroom'), and longer lasting than 'normal' tips.

Actually, in my opinion those guys seem a bit too obsessed with tips not 'mushrooming' and I believe they should concentrate on the tip actually being able to produce the full range of shots...

In my opinion, most of these tips are useless for Snooker and English Pool They are far too hard and whilst they may last a long time and 'keep their shape', they just cant perform the range of shots required for the far more skilful game of Snooker.

Ask an American Pool player (thats the game American Pool, not an 'American' Pool player - not trying to offend anyone here!) to play screwback on a snooker table and see how well they do...

Those guys are brought up on whacking the hell out of the balls, which is why they need a harder tip that does not lose its shape as quickly as a single layer tip. That's the main reason these tips were developed - to not 'mushroom' and retain their all round shape as long as possible.

However, there are some that are softer and are capable of playing well in Snooker, notably the Talisman Soft Pro tip from Thailand. It holds the chalk, grips the cue ball well, and has a good general 'feel'.

You may have heard of the Moori III, probably the most expensive tip you can buy. What did I think? Beautifully made, like a work of art. But played absolutely awful! Sounded 'wooden' and I miscued badly first time I tried a deep screw shot, leaving half the tip 'squashed' severely on one side. I am sure they must be good for American Pool if you believe everything you hear. But as a Snooker tip - don't think so...

 

*NEW* Super Tips

Having thoroughly researched the laminated tips I decided there were none that were really good enough for Snooker/English Pool. There were various problems but generally it was the fact that they don't 'feel' or play well enough despite being consistent and 'holding their shape'.

So, I developed my own 'Super' Laminated Tips.

Designed specifically with Snooker/English Pool in mind and not just a scaled down American Pool tip. There are significant differences, notably in the most important area - the 'feel'.

Having spent 9 months in development, I then got to thinking about the good old Elkmaster. Essentially it is a great tip, but it just needed improving. If only they were all 'good' ones...

So that's what I did. I took the Elkmaster, studied it's design, raw materials, production - and then I added the improvements that would make it more consistent yet retain, dare I say even improve, the 'feel' one gets when you get a really good one.

I think both these tips are superb but I strongly recommend you try one of each and decide for yourself. You may prefer the 'feel' of one over another but you'll never know unless you try.

The revolution starts here folks...