need help replacing tip

[jacob fitz]

how do i determine the size of my cue's tip?

[KJ]

Calipers are always a good choice. In their absence you can use a tape measure. Here's the conversion : a millimeter is .03937" ( you might as well say .040"). 13mm is .03937 x 13 or .51181", just a click over 1/2". Calipers are cheap or maybe you could borrow.

[jacob fitz]

what type of tips would you reccomend? and is there a special type of glue to replace my tip?

[KJ]

Hello Again Jacob,
There will come a time when you'll realize the broadness of your question. For me to suggest what type of tip is right for you is like telling you what brand of beer you should be drinking. There are possibly 100 different types of tips on the market and I have no idea what type of game you have. How I would start I guess is to break them all down into 3 categories, hard, medium & soft. If you are an entry level player I'd suggest that you look to a soft or medium. The hard tip should only be used by those who have a very refined stroke. If an entry level player chooses a hard tip they are inviting frustration on a large scale. That player will be mis-cueing every other shot. If on the other hand, you were an advanced player, you wouldn't be asking me this question. A general rule of thumb is that a softer tip will promote greater accuracy while a harder tip will allow you to 'juice' the ball more when needed. However, that extra juice comes with a price in that a harder tip will also deflect the QB more and for most players it takes years to learn how to compensate for that deflection.
Most cuesmiths today use super-glue to install a tip. While a tip can be installed by hand, I'll only install a tip while the shaft is chucked in my lathe. With the shaft spinning true in the chuck, the tip can be accurately trimmed to the sidewall of the ferrule. Doing this by hand you run the risk of cutting into and thereby damaging the ferrule. You might want to ask some of the people that you play with where they get their tips done. It shouldn't cost you much more than $10 to have it done correctly.

[jacob fitz]

what I meant was what "brands" of tips would you reccomend? because I know I won't get quality tips from sportcraft at walmart.

[McChen]

some good brands that i like

regular
elkmaster (soft)
triangle (med-hard)

layered
Moori (available in soft, medium and hard)
Sniper (med-soft)
any of the other tiger brand tips are pretty good too (laminated, everest, etc)

of all of the tips out there, i like the sniper the best

[jacob fitz]

How good are le pro tips?

[skor]

LePro tips are very inconsistent, you can get tips that will play like a dream and others that just sucks all from the same box...

They also mushroom and require constant grooming.

[McChen]

yeah i don't really like le pro's either. try a triangle if you want something similar and still cheap

[jacob fitz]

what about these genuine South-East Asian Water Buffalo tips,or these sterling cowhide cue tips?

[skor]

Jacob,

I think you need to understand that the most important part of the cue is the tip :!:
So spare some dough for what will actually will improve your game and forget about these cheep tips! get a layered tip, they perform better then a single piece tip and they are more consist and hold their shape better.
From browsing seybert's cue tips section there are at least 3 fine brands of tips that cost under $10 each

[jacob fitz]

How much do you pay for your tips?

[skor]

Well, last time I bought tips I got Moori tips (from seybert's), I ordered 12 tips so it would cost me $11 per tip (not including shipment and taxes over here).

But it doesn't really matter how much I pay for my tips, what matter is that you should get a good tip that will feel good and will perform well for you.

[jacob fitz]

What kind of tips mushroom out layered or non layered?

[skor]

non layered tips will mushroom more then layered tips.

Little advice:
Buy a few tips from different brands and try them for yourself, then you'll know what's best for you.

[jacob fitz]

Well i hav a stick i bought for 150 dollors and it has no name and it has a non layered tip and it does'nt mushroom out at all.

[skor]

...and you never miss any ball... so you're good to go, you don't need any new tip ;-)

BTW, your tip is probably a hard tip so this is why it doesn't mushroom and it even might not be leather, it could be made of some synthetic fiber.... But hey, if it works for you then it's the best tip you could get...

[jacob fitz]

The thing is i don't know what kind of tip it is and the reson i am looking for a new one is it does'nt chalk well ,and i think it's leather.

[McChen]

well any tip no matter how expensive is going to require maintaining. if the tip isn't holding chalk, you need to scuff it up. there are a variety of tools on seybert's that will do this. when it gets flat, you'll have to reshape it and if it mushrooms, trim it.

[skor]

The thing is i don't know what kind of tip it is and the reson i am looking for a new one is it does'nt chalk well ,and i think it's leather.

Use a Tip-Pik and the tip will hold chalk



Just tap the tip with it to create tiny holes on the surface of the tip and it will hold the chalk.