Snooker Cue Tips Weird But Good.

I've been using these tips on my snooker cue for some time now, even though they look way too big and out of place. All because they allow me to play certain shots and the game in general in a way I couldn't before. Obviously I do cut them down and shape them, but it's certainly true in the six or so years I've been using them, my games got quite a bit better. A lot of it would have been down to improvements I'd made to my game, but at least a part of it would have been the tip. Some of these improvements were subtle, but they also allow me to get more action on the cue ball and begin to play shots that I wouldn't have even dreamt of trying before. And even if you don't consider them that significant, learning more about them inspired this entire YouTube channel. I started finding it easier to recreate the most extreme shots of professional snooker players, and that allowed me to find people like... Ricky who's from Red Wing, Minnesota in the United States, which is there. As I continued to play better I started making bigger and bigger breaks, and at the beginning of this year I even set a world record for the fastest colour clearance. And this was all with the very same tip you can see me putting on in this video in July of 2018, but I've got a problem with this video because it's not very good. And I've definitely got a bit of a problem with my current tip. As you can see, or you would be able to if my camera was any good at doing close-ups, my tip developed a split horizontally down the middle. So unfortunately, even though it could have lasted a lot longer, I now need to change it. So here's a quick guide to changing these massive tips. Start by cutting the old tip off with a knife, then make sure the surface of the top of the cue is smooth. Don't use sandpaper for this because you'll end up rounding the top of your cue. Instead, gently scrape a knife across the top to get it nice and flat, and remove all of the old tip. Then use your favourite adhesive to stick it on with. Results will vary depending on what you use, but there's no right or wrong answer for this. As these tips are 14mm, the best thing to cut them down to my 10mm shaft is these giant pencil sharpener things. Following this, all that's left to do is slightly dome the tip with a bit of sandpaper. You only really want to do downward strokes, because if you push upwards, you're likely to pull the tip off at this stage. And you don't want to over-round the tip, because weirdly, that'll actually make the game a little bit harder to play. Well in fact, all that shaping rattled it a little loose, but I've stuck it back on again, and I actually think it seems to be playing pretty well. This seems to be one of the better re-tippings I've ever done, but it's not over yet. It still requires quite a bit of practice, because a new tip is still a little bit soft, and has a weird feeling when you play a shot. It still needs a bit of playing in. You see, while they're very new, tips tend to feel a little bit soft, but that phase doesn't seem to last as long with these. As I've already explained, these tips are a little bit different. So what exactly are these tips I'm using, and where can you get them from? These are cue sole tips, originally made for pool. They play quite hard, and that's why I choose the softest. So what do I think the advantage is of having these tips on the end of your cue? Even though they're not as cheap as they used to be, you can still pick up a pack of six for around £30. And that's pretty good value for a laminate tip like this. And then, there's the extra spin. They seem to grip the cue ball a little bit better, so you get a little bit more of a reaction. But this doesn't quite work in the way you might expect. If you hit the ball roughly in the same place, then these tips don't get any more of a reaction than old tips like I've got on this cue. It's about the same. The difference is, these tips actually allow you to strike the cue ball a little bit closer to the edge, and that, in effect, creates a little bit more spin. With less effort. But what do I mean when I say old tips? Well, if you were playing snooker around 20 years ago, you'd almost certainly be using one of two tips. There were, of course, other tips available, but it was highly likely you'd be using either a blue diamond tip or an elk master. You could buy both of these tips ready-made for your snooker cue in exactly the right size. Some players still use these older tips, but most have switched to something that claimed to give them a little bit more performance. These are layered, or laminate, tips, and I've seen talisman, sentry and kamui used by many snooker players. I've actually got a talisman tip on this spring cue that I explained before. I found these were pretty good. You got quite a lot of spin on the cue ball. You didn't even have to hit it as close to the edge. But I found the main problem was they didn't quite feel like regular tips. And I found they exploded rather than wore out. And this was a problem because you wouldn't know when it was going to happen. You'd be playing a game and all of a sudden you'd play a shot and a small chunk would fly off your tip and it wouldn't be repairable. These tips also took a little bit of getting used to, and I thought they felt a little bit harsh when you played shots with them, especially compared to the older tips, especially the Elkmaster ones I was using before. But a great advantage with the Cuesoul tips is I think they feel a lot more like the old-fashioned tips when you play shots. But I don't think any of this is their main advantage. But the main advantage with these tips is how long they last me, compared with some of the other tips that only last about a month. And to be truthful, the longevity is probably my main reason for choosing them, because I really hate having to change my tip. It means you don't play very well for a little while, and you have to wear it in. And to be honest, as you can probably tell from earlier, I'm not very good at it. Often it'll take me several attempts to get the thing stuck on properly. And even when you're there, you're talking a couple of weeks sometimes before you're fully used to playing shots with it. I'd rather not have to do that very often. And the great thing about these tips is, for some reason, you don't. I'm not sure why these Cuesoul tips last so long. Maybe because I don't cut them down much to start off with. And I'm not even sure any of these excellent properties you find with a tip were intentional. And I'd be the first to admit there are a fair few disadvantages to using these things. To start off with, they're just a tip, so they're not going to make you a better player in many ways. You still need to be able to play the game. But also, some of the tips I mentioned earlier are probably better tips, and actually give more of a reaction out of the Cueball. And I genuinely think I should try them, but in a lot of ways I'm just too lazy, and don't really want to go back to changing my tip every couple of months or so. But I don't necessarily think that's a bad thing. So would I recommend them? Well, I would say only if you're a serious player, but that doesn't really make sense, because the fact that you don't have to change a tip for ages actually makes them quite a good option for everybody else. In a lot of ways, it just depends if you think it's worth going from a massive tip, and shaping it all the way down to the right size, and the extra time that'll take. That said, you won't have to do it so often. But if you are looking for the best tips, then I probably wouldn't recommend them for you, because there are probably a lot better options out there. The thing is, even if you get somebody to properly change a tip for you, you're still going to have to put up with wearing in a new tip every couple of months or so, which I always find a little bit annoying. And I do know people who've tried them and liked them, people who thought there's better tips out there, and people who haven't got on with them at all and just absolutely hated them. But that's pretty similar to other tips. But before we do any more, let's just stop to find Kyle, who's from Lafayette, Louisiana in the United States. Which is there. So do I actually think they've made me a better player? Well, slightly, because I think they allow me to play a greater range of shots, because I can put a little bit more spin on the cue ball. They definitely have a small advantage over the older tips. But I find the most helpful with pressure shots like this, quite often in a game you just want to play this shot slow, but often you won't end up in position. So you have to play a stun shot, and you don't want to be playing it with any more pace than you have to. And you're fine with these tips. You can just play it a little bit slower. I find this is mainly confidence, but on the majority of shots you can get away with doing a little tiny bit less. But the fact that I don't have to change these tips very often means that I'm likely to stick with them for the foreseeable future, at least until something a lot better comes along. I'll put a link to where you can purchase these in the description, but they're not as cheap as they used to be, because I don't believe anybody's actually making them anymore. Because like I said earlier, I don't think they're a serious product. More just a nice accidental success, which is a shame, because I think if they were tested and developed properly, they could easily become the best tip out there. If you want to see more videos like this where I test products, have a look at these two. And remember, don't just watch, play. And make the commitment to becoming a better player by subscribing to the channel and visit the website. See you later.