Anyone familiar with snooker knows the importance of having the best snooker cue. That resonates with their playing rhythm and style. Playing rhythm is achieved by choosing the right cue among the different kinds of snooker cues.
Many people confuse snooker cue types with pool cue types. They might tell you to get a break cue to have a good break (first shot) in snooker, but that’s wrong. A break or jump cue is created to have a substantial break in the pool or billiards.
Both these games belong to cuesports, however, there are differences between pool and snooker. These differences are imminent in the types of cues.
In this article, we will discuss different types of snooker cues. They are designed to play snooker and how each type impacts your gameplay.
3 Different types Of Snooker Cues:
Table of Contents
There are three different types of snooker cues:
- One Piece Snooker Cue
- 1/2 Jointed Snooker Cue
- 3/4 Jointed Snooker Cue
1. One Piece Snooker Cue
One-piece snooker cue has no joints in it. It’s a single shaft made from ash or maple wood varying from 57” to 58” inches. There is a ferrule and tip at the front, and the butt is slightly thicker than the shaft.
The impact of a shot can be fully felt with one piece snooker cue, as it is a single piece of wood with no joints. Equivalent energy disseminates from the cue stick to the object ball without being absorbed anywhere, making it a choice for most players.
Some one-piece snooker cues come with a female joint at the very bottom of the snooker cue stick. It makes the attachment of a cue extension screw easier. If a female joint is not present at the end, then a push-on extension is used for cue extension.
Apart from having advantages, there are also disadvantages to having a one-piece cue. The unportable nature of this cue is its only disadvantage. A larger cue case is required for its protection and takes a lot of room while transporting.
2. ½ Jointed Snooker Cue
½ jointed snooker cue has a joint at the middle of the cue shaft. The length of the cue stick is similar to that of a piece snooker cue, yet many cue brands use different materials for the joint’s composition such as wood, plastic, brass, and stainless steel.
When it comes to delivering power to the shot, one can feel with ½ jointed snooker cue stick, energy is not fully transmitted to the object ball. Some of the energy is absorbed in the joint section, making it a less famous choice for many players.
On the contrary, due to its portable nature, many like it, as transportation is easy. The cue case for ½ jointed snooker cues is also not expensive compared to one-piece snooker cues. The push-on extension or a mini-butt extension is used for extending the snooker cue stick.
After talking with many professional and amateur snooker professionals about ½ jointed cues, the conclusion is that there is a slight loss of energy, but not that much. That could be managed by tightening the screw at the joint section and using a stainless steel joint for smoother transmission. The only disadvantage is that the joint sometimes gets stuck in the chin while delivering a shot, and it’s disturbing.
3. ¾ Jointed Snooker Cue.
¾ jointed snooker cue is a two-piece cue with a joint placed at ¾ length of the cue, closer to the butt.
The “feel” of a shot is excellent as compared to ½ jointed cue because the joint is placed at three-quarters of the cue’s length. With the use of high-quality joints, it is unlikely to feel any loss in energy while delivering a shot. This snooker cue has also a female joint present at its butt for screwing in the male mini-butt extension for longer shots.
The cue stick can easily be transported, as the cue length can be decreased while unscrewing the butt of the cue. When buying a cue case, one will need a bigger snooker cue case than a ½ jointed cue case.
What type of snooker cues are used by professional players?
It all comes down to their personal preference. If you have watched snooker on T.V, you have seen all types of cues used by professional players.
What type of snooker cue should you buy as a beginner?
If you are a beginner and started playing snooker, and now you want to buy a snooker cue, then go with the one-piece snooker cue. Although, transportation is a little harder. But, there are no joints in the snooker cue which will make it less vulnerable to damage, even if the cue had a great smash by falling onto the ground.
Another thing to keep in mind is the price; usually, the prices of cues go from $100 to $1000. As a beginner, start with the lowest price snooker cue, and when you have a proper grip over the game, you can always change your snooker cue.
Final Thoughts
There are three types of snooker cues, and every kind of cue has its pros and cons. There is no right or wrong answer to this question: how to choose a snooker cue, it all depends on a lot of different factors and personal choice. However, if you don’t like caring for the things you own, then go with the one-piece snooker cue as the maintenance is easier as compared to the counterparts.
