Pool cue for an 8 year old?

[JackJ]

My son turns 8 in a couple weeks, and wants a pool cue. There's a pool table at his after-school program (Boys and Girls club), and apparently they let kids keep their cues there.

I know nothing about pool. A quick search shows prices for what seem to be decent models starting at around $30, and I'd like to keep it close to that, with a case if possible. Prefer a two piece so he can take it to take it to a friend's house if he wants.

His only stipulation was that he wants a "string wrapped handle", which seems more common on expensive models.

I see some 48" and 52" kids' cues. He's about 4' 4", but says he usually uses a cue taller than himself, so probably the standard 57" or so. I don't think it has to be a junior cue.

Can anyone make me a recommendation, perhaps for a knowledge, friendly e-retailer, if not a specific model?

Thanks!

Jack

 

[life2short1971]

How well does he play for starters?

 

[Mercer]

Avoid one with a screw -on tip. They go flat almost instantly and you can't get any english at all with them.

Check with the club to see if they keep extra tips, or the tools to reshape them. If they don't, then get one of the tip kits. They're pretty cheap, and the tips aren't much, but for a beginner, ok.

Walmart has some decent cues, made from both graphite and wood, for about this price range. Also, get a piece of cheap ScotchBrite. It's great for taking the gunk off the end of the shaft that builds from sweat and chalk.

 

[nickelsig229]

I'd love to help you out, but really I need to know more.

How much do you want to spend?
Can he be trusted to care for a better quality stick?
Is this going to be stored at the club but others have access to it?
How passionate is he about it as a sport, is this more of a whimsical desire that all boys (and us full grown men) come across, or is this a Must Have.
How good is he? Is he going to notice the difference between different shaft manufactures?
Is this a toy, or a sporting tool?

If you can give me some more info on that I can recommend an el cheapo from walmart that looks cool, a quality stick at the best price point for that quality, or a couple custom guys who will give him a stick that he can use for the rest of his life.

If you just want to find a reputable dealer with alot of options at competitive pricing than you can look at these guys http://www.billiardwarehouse.com/cues/index.htm

I've purchased 5 or 6 cues from them over the years.

 

[JackJ]

Thanks for the responses!

I'm honestly not sure how well he plays, since we don't have a table and I haven't found the time to play with him somewhere. But his interest is high, and he's playing about an hour/day, 5 days/week.

Cues kept at site are supposed to be reserved for their owners, but I doubt whether that's always well enforced, so this could be subject to some use/abuse by others. I think he'll want to take pretty good care of it, though, at least by 8 year old standards.

As for budget, I could go as high as $50, but would prefer something in the $35 range, and I want to get a case in there too. If he sticks (no pun intended) with it for a year, then I could see moving up to something really nice, but, as with his dad, hobby interests sometimes change quickly.

The wrapped handle seems to be a big deal to him--I'm a bit concerned that if I get him one without a string/linen wrap that he'll be disappointed, despite whatever other merits the cue might have.

Thanks for the billiardwarehouse.com recommendation. I see they have a few in my price range, though not with a real wrap, unfortunately. I can try to talk him out of that I suppose.

Any further suggestions greatly appreciated!

Jack

 

[Go West Young Man]

Good grief, the kid is 8. Give him the cheapest one you can find at Walmart - he's going outgrow it/lose it/break it/lose interest in it before the year is out. "String wrapped handle" my butt.

 

[itisleben]

I don't know if they make cues for kids but I would recommend Cuetec.
They do some decent, low-medium cost graphite cues which will be more durable than a wooded one. I figure durability will be a priority for anything belonging to an eight-year-old.

Hope this helps.

 

[Jethro1984]

Avoid something expensive as he won't use it for long (he'll outgrow it). I had a relatively inexpensive Player's Cue (yes, that a brand) when I first started playing seriously. It lasted a good while and I eventually gave it away (the shaft had warped slightly). I remember paying like 35 bucks for it. I now have a Meucci and I believe a Player's Jump/Break.

It was very similar to this...same color and everything except the joint and butt bumper part of the butt were different.

Linky

I second the advice to avoid the screw on tips, they're cheap and flatten and the ferrules are so cheap that they will crack. You can buy something really cheap at Walmart and have it fall apart and buy 10 new ones or you can buy one quality basic series players and as long as he treats it right and it doesn't get abused, it'll last for years and years. You don't need a real linen wrap as at 8 years old, he WILL damage it. My Player's had a nylon thread wrap (it was plasticy and imitation like) but it looked great. My Meucci now doesn't even have an exposed wrap, it's coated with lacquer like the rest of the cue to protect it from getting dirty.

One key to being a great player is knowing that very rarely will you ever have your cue hand on the wrap anyway. They are just for aesthetics.

 

[Doc4]

[YOUTUBE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LI_Oe-jtgdI[/YOUTUBE]

 

[Yona77]

+100 on the billiardwarehouse recommendation!

an hour a day 5 days a week sounds like a significant amount of time to be playing. players cues are decent quality and are great for beginners. and most of their cues are in your price range. i'm sure they have a linen wrapped handle in your price range as well. and if he's 4'4" then his hand will probably almost always be on the wrap part of the handle. unless he's got freakishly long arms for a kid..

and if he plays for a while and gets really skilled then i'd recommend a mcdermott or viking as his next cue.