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RAVEN Custom Cues
Marion, IA 52302
If Your Tip Comes Off
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The RAVEN jump and break tips on my personal cues have been on those cues for years. They have never been knocked off while playing a shot. If the tip is put on correctly, using a good quality gel superglue or epoxy there shouldn't be a problem with it coming off. If your tip has come off during normal use the following may help. To be blunt the very best hard tip for jumping or breaking is a tip ferrule combination. The problem with the arrangement is it isn't legal in some cases and you can't just replace a tip if you need one or want to try a different tip. Most players can change a tip. Most cannot change a ferrule. Unlike tips, companies generally don't sell ferrule tip combos because they really need to be made for the particular shaft. The most common reason hard tips don't stay attached is because of off center hits. Any of the really hard tips used for jumping or breaking work so well because they don't compress as much as the softer leather tips do. Just like with a playground seesaw or teeter totter, whenever a force is applied to one end, the other end reacts in the opposite direction. Imagine if you lay a two foot length of 2X4 on a table edge with six inches hanging off the edge. Now imagine what will happen if you strike down on the overhanging edge with a heavy hammer. The opposite end lifts violently and the piece of 2X4 goes flying off the table. Even if the 2X4 is laying flat without overhanging the edge, one end will rise off the table if you strike the other end with the hammer. The more rigid the material the greater the reaction. If you strike the piece of 2X4 in the center, not much happens. When a softer tip makes contact with the cue ball on its outer edge, the edge deforms and compresses. Only a little of the energy is transferred to the opposite side. Super slow speed shots of leather tips show how close they are to being ripped off just on draw shots. When a hard tip strikes the cue ball on its edge the force tries to rip the opposite edge of the tip off the ferrule. I can promise you any really hard tip will eventually come off it it is struck enough times on it's outer edges. The next most common reason for a hard tip to come off is that the tip is harder than the ferrule material. There are many ferrule materials. Most are unsuitable for jump break tips. The most suitable, commonly used, ferrule material for a jump break tip is Linen Based Melamine or LBM. But a LBM ferrule isn't enough by itself. Some ferrules are sleeved. Sleeved ferrules are many players preference for playability. That means when you remove the tip you can see the center wood tenon that holds the ferrule on the shaft. This is not a suitable foundation for a jump or break tip. The ferrule needs to be capped. That means the tip is solid LBM for about a quarter of an inch. There does have to be a small glue relief hole in the tip. In my opinion only a capped LBM ferrule is a strong enough platform for a jump or break tip. If the tip is installed correctly on a capped LBM ferrule and there is still a problem, sometimes just removing half of the tip will do the trick. Most JB tips are about a quarter of an inch high like leather tips. The really hard ones need to be scuffed occasionally to hold chalk so they wear down over time. The taller the tip the more shock any off center hit will put on it's edges. There are two tradeoffs. Obviously the tip won't last as long, but it will be more likely to crack too if it is thinner. Work on your technique. This should be one of the first things you do but if all else fails try it again. Most people hit way too hard on break shots and jump shots. Try throttling back on the break shots. It adds control and that is a good thing. Since the harder tip transmits more energy you will probably find you get superior breaks with less effort. To be honest I think most players get better breaks by slowing it down no matter what tip they use. If you use a hard tip you might be surprised how little effort it takes to jump a ball. From a ball and a half away you can jump another ball with just a flick of the wrist. The typical break shot jams the tip into the table bed at the end of the shot. A jump shot does the same. So, the JB tip hits the cue ball and the table slate on pretty much each shot. If the stroke is pure and the follow through good it doesn't put too much more stress on the tip. If the stroke is less than desirable the tip can suffer. Last resorts: If you want a phenolic tip try canvas based tips. They are softer than linen based. They may stay on better. The extra hard water buffalo are pretty hard leather. To RAVEN Cues Home Page |