During the press release, Earl talked about evolving with the game to keep up with the young guns. Therefore, he changed his equipment, but it almost seems like its regressing in a way
Earl claims to be playing with a 15 mm shaft with a phenolic ferrule and G2 tip. It also seems to be torrfied. What I don't really understand is how this is an evolution in the game. Earl himself has pioneered revolutions in equipment himself, like the longer, heavier cue (not to mention the arm weights lol).
His shaft seems to be a walking contradiction. You would normally use a torrified shaft for lower deflection. However, he is using a long phenolic ferrule. Depending on the type of ferrule, you could get a lower density ferrule since the range of density is 1 - 1.6 grams/cm^3. Common ferrule materials (Elforyne, Aegis) usually have a density of around 1.6 grams/cm^3. A lower density ferrule could potentially be revolutionary for low deflection, but Earl is using a longer ferrule, which defeats the purpose since maple is less dense than phenolic and a shorter ferrule would provide less deflection. Also, if we're talking about deflection, 15 mm would certainly contribute to the end-mass of the shaft. On a side note, shooting with 13 mm already feels like using a battering ram on a door. I can't imagine shooting with 15 mm.
I guess Earl is comfortable with this setup so good on him for that. I just don't understand whats so "evolved" about his shaft. His shaft is built with elements of low deflection, but the overall construction doesn't lend itself to low deflection. Thoughts?
