Billiards Speak

It has been a long winter and we have been quite busy in the Discount store.  I’m finishing up a few cues and thought it would be good to back to Billiard Speak as well.  Quite a few new cues and cases have been added.  A couple of examples are shown below.  If you haven’t checked in for a while this would be a good time to look over our new inventory.

Porper - Flame 2/4

2 butt 4 shaft tube style case.  Without question the most popular cases on the market.  Exterior Colors - Black with Orange Flames Material - Textured vinyl Pockets - 2, largest is 15 1/2 inches long Orange Flames sewn in the pockets. Carrying - Sewn on shoulder strap and handle Length - 33″ Diamond patterns sewn on the pockets Interior Structure - Separate plastic tubing Lining - Black cloth over tubes Length - 31 1/2″ Direction - Cue inserts pin down.

Balabushka Cue- 01

Tip: 13mm Le Pro Tip Ferrule: XRC Ferrule Shaft: 29” Canadian Maple Joint: 5/16×14 stainless steel joint Forearm: Birdseye maple with rosewood veneer points, rust and aquamarine outer points. Also has George Balabuska’s signature Rings: None Wrap: White Irish linen with green specs Sleeve: Ebony veneer Plate: Cream colored Bumper: Screw-in rubber bumper.

This cue is completed. Click here to look at this cue.   Serial Number SN-TS085 is part of the Tiger Shark series. Click here to see about the series. This cue is made with solid core construction. Click here to see why this cue is different. The butt sleeve and forearm are Macassar ebony. The ringwork consists of a yellow trim ring, an ebony ring with 24 maple stitches in it, followed by the last yellow ring. The butt cap is Delrin. Delrin was the typical butt cap used by cuemakers like George Balabushka and Gus Szamboti. Delrin doesn’t require a finish so the butt cap won’t chip. The joint collars are double black linen phenolic.

The sharks and the Gaboon Ebony backgrounds are all inlaid. The 2 Tiger Shark inlays in the butt are made of Elk Antler. No Elk were harmed for the making of the cue. The Antler was shed. The 2 Tiger Shark inlays in the forearm are made from figured Bubinga. The Tiger Shark inlays are engraved with detail markings. It comes with one 13mm RAVEN tapered hard rock maple shaft and one 14mm RAVEN tapered Ash shaft. Ash isn’t commonly used for American Pool cues shafts but it is the shaft wood of choice for British Snooker cues. The wrap is black textured leather.

Serial number 00033 has been sold.  Look at SN-33 This cue was originally built with a purpleheart handle. Althought quite solid, it was on the heavy side so it has been rebuilt on a solid laminated core. The original forearm and butt sleeve were used in the new construction. Serial number 00033 is very ornate. It has a total of 66 inlays of genuine elephant ivory and web turquoise in a 3, 6, 9 pattern to create a unique character. It features a highly figured Canadian curly maple forearm with a Gaboon ebony butt sleeve. The forearm has been stained brown to highlight the beauty of the wood. The 4 floating points are also Gaboon ebony. Each point is detailed with 9 rectangular web turquoise inlays. The center of the butt sleeve has 3 alternating differentiated ‘augmented diamonds’ of ivory and web turquoise. The upper and lower butt sleeve contains 6 horseshoe shaped inlays of ivory and 6 of turquoise that are interwoven. The butt has matching nickel silver rings throughout and a double black linen joint collar and butt cap. The stitch rings contain 60 dashes of silver and 60 rectangles of maple. The handle has been wrapped with a black baby gator pattern leather. It comes with 2 RAVEN tapered ‘Old Growth’ hard rock maple shafts with matching ring work.

RAVEN Custom Cues Discount Pool and Billiards store products are now listed on Google Product Search. Google Product Search helps shoppers find and buy products across the web.

This isn’t a joke. The zone or whatever you want to call it is real. You can’t force it to happen. You can’t will yourself into ‘the zone’. It isn’t exactly concentration. It is more focus. There are short periods when everything just fits together. You know you are going to make shots. You know you are going to win. With practice and play you can begin to see glimpses of what the zone is like. Maybe you already have.

Anyway, I think the best move when you get near the end of the rack is to simplify your position play. Go for a wider safe zone and rely more on your ball making skill and less on position. That is especially true when balls are clustered together. Trying to get tight shape and missing it is a letdown. That is not what you want to have happen when you are so close to a victory. Any makable shot on the 9 ball is better than no shot on the 9 ball. And if it is your turn you always have the option of shooting a saftey and making the other player decide to take a risk. If you decide to shoot the shot take a moment compose yourself. If doubts creep in, back off, chalk your tip, walk around the table, take a drink, whatever but don’t ‘pull the trigger’ until you are sure you will make the shot.

From ‘Finishing the Rack’… continued 

We just posted new information about cue SN-00033, Cues for Sale, http://www.ravencues.com/cue23.html and there is also additional information about Number 13 in Cues Under Construction http://www.ravencues.com/cue72.html .

3) You get through the rack and then, at the moment of victory, you miss the ‘money’ ball. Oh, yeah we’ve all been there. It is a sick feeling. All those fine shots count for nothing if you miss the money ball.
If you haven’t seen it rent the movie “The legend of Bagger Vance”. If you’ve seen it, watch it again. Watch at least the last 45 minutes or so. The two critical shots are the one in the woods and the last putt. For those 2 shots Junuh is ‘in the zone’. Bagger calls it ‘the field’. The reality of ‘the zone’ isn’t quite like the Hollywood version but it is close. Everything else kind of fades away and it is just the cue ball, the object ball and the pocket. You aren’t really there. Time seems to slow down. You are just watching the ball go in the pocket. There isn’t any doubt it will go in because it has already happened.

From ‘Finishing the Rack’… continued 

(1) You miss an easy shot before you get the winning shot. Often the shot was so easy you can’t believe it didn’t go in. The reason you miss is your mind isn’t on the shot you are shooting right then. It is on position or the next shot. You are not ‘in the moment’ you are asleep at the wheel. Pool is (usually) played one ball at a time. When you play to win, you focus on each shot as if it was your last. If you don’t, chances are good; it probably will be your last shot in that rack.

(2) By trying to get perfect ’shape’ under pressure either tight muscles or adrenalin causes just the opposite. The cue ball gets out of position requiring even tougher ‘shape’ for the next shot. The trick is to realistically evaluate your chances of getting a tight position play. If your chance of success is 50% or less under casual situations, it is nearly impossible to make this shot under pressure. It is unfortunate we actually pull off some of those shots under pressure. Remembering that one impossible shot we made, keeps us from remembering the three-dozen impossible shots we missed. That one great shot does make a good ‘war story’. The problem is, trying to duplicate it, under pressure, probably cost you enough to have bought a really nice cue.

From ‘Finishing the Rack’… continued

Does it seem like you can run quite a few balls but just seem to have difficulty making those last few? Or you can run out to the 8 ball or 9 ball only to miss a fairly easy shot on the game-winning ball. If so you certainly aren’t alone.

I find, most often, when people have a problem finishing the last few balls in a rack it is because of the mounting pressure and anticipation of winning. Or, it is anxiety over not wanting to miss with so little to go to win. Sometimes it is just a lack of confidence or the memory of “blowing it” in a similar situation. Either way the result is usually the same.

From ‘Finishing the Rack’… continued

There will occasionally be a new product added or a discontinued one removed but our expansion is complete.  We hope you find everything you need in the way of pool and billiard products.