Ash or maple ??

[itsnoteasy]

The way I answered it was,when contacting the ball I always find with maple they feel softer.

I hope that's right Leo, I have a maple cue on order and it sounds just the type of hit I'm looking for, I like a harder tip so hopefully the two will gel perfectly,thanks for the reply.

[SouthPaw]

Maple as a rule has always felt a tad bit harder than any ash cue i've owned... it's minimal but i never found a laminated tip to suit my old maple cue, always had to be a pressed soft... though my ash playing cue now has a talisman and i'm finding it a great match...

[jim evans]

I would say on a scale of 1-10, 10 being the stiffest about 8 in my opinion makes the best playing shaft,but people have different views and is again a personal choice.

[strobbekoen]

Ash used in snooker cues is northern american ash (or white ash) while maple is hard maple (canadian mostly).
The mechanical properties between the two are not vastly different. Maple is harder, has a higher bending and compression strength, but again, the differences are not massive. The selection of specific parts of the wood and the cue's taper play a big role too.
ash: http://www.wood-database.com/lumber-...ods/white-ash/
maple: http://www.wood-database.com/lumber-...ds/hard-maple/

[ronfor0603]

Thank you guys/girls for your reply. I bought a maple snooker cue on ebay (China made) and I didn't like it at all. It's a David wu, and after played with it, I would like to call him David Who?? In my opinion Maple is not so good in a snooker cue. I will stick to ash.

But the main thing is that the cue I bought was to lite, 17.10oz I couldn't feel the cue in my right hand, there was now wait in butt end and the howl thing just wobble. Bad balanced cue. Maybe maple is good in a snooker cue? But not if it cost 79£ and comes from China :-)

I know that I sometimes time don't say the rights world in English, so bare with my bad English :-)
Regards/Ronnie

[DeanH]

I would say the cue is badly made, not that maple is not good for a cue

I have both ash and maple cues, and love the smoothness that maple can have which often ash just cant obtain and maintain

thanks for the review on David Wu cues though :wink:

[DeanH]

if you want to try another maple (and an old one as well) maybe see Gazza's listing [http://www.thesnookerforum.co.uk/boa...e!#post813039]
he has just reduced price, see later posts
recently refurbed, and many people like playing with old cues...

obviously you could ask Gazza in his opinion how it plays compared to a "modern" cue, as some old cues can be of a thicker taper.

just a thought

edit, just reread the details and it has a small tip 8.5mm which may not suit your snooker game