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RAVEN Custom Cues
Marion, IA 52302
The Spine of a Pool Cue Shaft has an Effect on the Shot. Many of you are aware that I often draw on my experience from building golf clubs. In this discussion of shaft flexing characteristics I will not only borrow from golf but also from archery. Admittedly I am not an archer, so if I make a fundamental error I trust someone will correct it. All structural cylindrical or tubular materials have what is referred to as ‘spine’. Even if they are composed of man made materials that are intended to be as homogenous as possible they will flex and return to (or very close to) their original position. All seem to have a direction in which they flex more (or less) easily than in others when force is applied. In general the less homogenous the material the more the directional spine is apparent. There is some debate about how the term 'spine' should be used. I’m not going to get into that. Others have and will pontificate about the finer points of the terminology. I just want you to know about the term 'spine'. Another element related to 'spine' is the relative weight of a shaft. A pool cue, a golf club and an arrow all have basically cylindrical shafts. For the more knowledgeable readers, yes I am aware that some arrows are more bulbous in the middle. Golf shafts too have some variations, but that is for an entirely different discussion. Originally all three shafts were made from wood. Even though golf shafts are primarily made of tubular steel and graphite these days it is immaterial to this discussion. Some cue shafts and arrows are made of aluminum, graphite and other man-made materials too. Whatever the material they all flex. How they flex and how much they flex is what is relevant to this discussion. It should be noted that wood, which is still the primary material in pool cue shafts, is not very homogenous. Wood fibers have irregular lengths and thicknesses. Annual growth rings vary in diameter. The growth rings are basically circular. That means the growth rings inside a shaft will have a slight curvature. Ideally, when the wood was first cut, the boards from which the shafts will later be made were perfectly parallel to the long axis of the tree. In all probability they were not. And finally as the tree grew its trunk and limbs were constantly fighting the force of gravity. All of these elements combine to create the spine of the shaft. Whenever golfers swing their clubs the shaft of the club is in pretty much the same position each time providing the golfer has aligned the club head in the same relative position to the target each time. To draw or fade the ball, at will, some golfers either open or close the clubface in relation to the target. For the sake of this argument I am going to ignore that fact and talk as if their intention is to always have the clubface pointing directly at their target. For many, many years golfers have used visual alignment aids to help them aim. There have been markings in the grips of golf clubs; markings on the shafts themselves and even some features in the design of the clubs were intended to help with alignment. Although many golfers don’t ever think about it when they set the club head in the same position each time they are also setting the shaft in the same position each time. Archers also align their arrows in relation to the bow in the same manner each time they shoot. The ‘nock’ (slot the bowstring goes into) and ‘cock feather’ (the odd colored feather) combination aligns the arrow the same way each time. Golf club makers have tried for decades to closely match the shaft flex of the different clubs in a set so they have similar performance. For advanced club makes that includes aligning the spine of the shaft consistently. Archers have known for hundreds (maybe thousands) of years that one of the elements critical to accuracy is that the arrow shafts have closely matched spine (degree of flexibility). Another related element is the relative weight of a shaft. Golfers used swing weight and archers weigh arrows to increase consistency. Better pool players have also known for years that even if shafts were identical in size and taper they also had to be very close in weight to play similarly. It is only relatively recently that most pool players have even been aware that how their shaft was aligned should even be a consideration. British snooker players, and those using and building British style snooker cues; have been aware of this problem for quite some time. British style snooker cues have a flattened area on the butt of the cue, which is known as the spade. Today the spade is used to directionally position the cue in the hands each time. That means the shaft is also positioned the same each time. It should be noted here that the most accurate shooters in any of the cue sports are the snooker players. The original purpose of the flattened area on the butt of a snooker cue was not for allignment. Apparently it predates the use of the mechanical bridge and was originally used in shot making where a player was unable to reach the cue ball. The cue could be turned around, held by the tip of the shaft and the rounded butt of the cue could be pushed into the cue ball. This is after all how the original cues (the mace) were used. With the advent of the mechanical bridge this feature esentially became an artifact. Presumably using the flat for consistent allignment of the cue evolved prior to the the introduction of the bridge. It is hard to believe such a secret could remain on one side of the Atlantic Ocean all those years and it undoubtedly did not. It is also unlikely someone on this side of the Atlantic did not recognize the problem associated with spine long ago. But it was probably a closely guarded secret for many players wanting to keep any advantage to themselves. There is evidence that top-notch pros and amateurs on this side of the Atlantic have consciously or unconsciously used methods of consistently aligning their cues for years. Some players use the arrow (or point like) grain ends in the maple shaft wood for alignment. This is sometimes refered to as the feathers. Others have used a spot on the shaft. Some use an intentional mark on the cue. Most pool players never even consider it could make any difference how the shaft is positioned. It is only recently that manufactures and cuemakers have made a move to recognize and deal with the problem. Radially laminated shafts, like the Predator shafts and the others, attempt to reduce the various effects of spine. The flat laminated shafts are another way of dealing with the problem. The shafts made from man made materials are also a way of dealing with it. Meucci tests shafts similarly to the way archers do and places a dot on their red and black dot shafts. Spine gauges, intended to test arrows, are commercially available and easy to build but they really don’t have much use unless you have dozens of shafts to choose from and you are trying to match a couple as close as possible. They will however allow you to locate the directional spine of a shaft. Since there is still spine in the laminated shaft I think Meucci is more on the right track. The problem with their marking system is it won’t move. Not everyone will want the hit produced in exactly the same spot on the spine of the shaft. I’ve marked my own shafts for years by putting a dot on the shaft close to the ferrule or on the ferrule itself. Sometimes I put a mark on the tip. Initially I line it up with the tips of the growth rings near the ferrule and adjust from there. With a flat laminated shaft I do it the same because the laminations mimic the growth rings. On a radially laminated shaft or shafts made from other materials I would just pick a spot. Yes, I would do test hits and play with it a while first, but the idea is for it to hit consistently. If you have an acute sense of feel or are really in tune with the feel of the shaft, find the position that works best for you. That position may change over time as the shaft changes. If you are really at a high level of feel, even the tips themselves can have sweet spots. That changes each time you change tips. Most players aren’t to that level and never will be. Even so I think each player could benefit by somehow marking his or her cue and then aligning it the same way each time they shoot. Why not give yourself every possible advantage? Back to Play Better PoolTo RAVEN Cues Home Page | ||