Mezz CJ-12P / WD700

This is the first Mezz I have had, cue or shaft. Just got it recently and being a mass produced brand cue it's by far the best one I have owned, out of several hundred. I'm not sure how many cues Mezz puts out annually but I assume it's on the lower end of the production brands. This is the CJ-12P and has the WD700 shaft. The cue has nice spliced points almost dead even in length and the finish is top notch. The wrap is super smooth, almost cortland quality feeling and is better than 90% of the cues I have seen, by any maker. Not sure what material the X-ferrule is but that and the Moori III tip is a nice combination. The shaft has a little different taper than I am used to but it's solid and the wavy joint provides a snug fit. I have tried almost every LD shaft besides the Mezz until now and so far had mostly preferred the Predator. Mezz states that all of their shafts are non laminated which gives them a traditional feel and so far I think thats pretty close.


Advantages
- moves the cue ball easily, especially when drawing the ball
- sharp spliced points, as well as other models
- non-laminated maple shaft but LD capabilities
- reasonably priced, even more so with base model cues
- overall quality....finish, wrap, construction and quality tips come standard

Disadvantages
- desgin, this would be a personal preference so it's really no flaw. I am not a fan of the wide band above buttcaps, like on SW cues.
- shaft price, it's almost as cheap to buy an entire low end cue than an extra shaft
- joint pins, this is more of a nuisance. Without doing any research I was under the impression the wavy joint was the Mezz version or their name for a radial pin. The two are actually quite different, thus making it tough to interchange shafts and butts with other cues. I was able to screw the wavy shaft on a butt with a radial pin but no other shaft will go on the Mezz butt.
- I have only played with the cue a few times and so far I have found no flaws in craftsmanship or playability, will update later

This is from the Mezz website

- WD700 Shaft
This Mezz design of hard maple shafts has low deflection performance that can enhance every player's game, but yet has a feel of a traditional one-piece maple shaft. The ISS Technology will increase accuracy and generate more power using spin on every shot.

Tip: Moori III Medium Tip
Tip Diameter: 12.5 mm
Ferrule: X Ferrule
Taper: WD700
Joint: Wavy
Deflection: The WD700 shaft is in between the Hybrid Alpha and the Hybrid Pro II shafts.

- Hybrid Pro II Shaft
The Mezz Hybrid Pro II Shaft uses the combination of Hybrid Carbon Core (HCC) and front-end technology to achieve the uppermost performance of a low deflection shaft. The unique construction gives the player a genuine solid feel and superior performance of power and control.

Tip: Moori III Medium Tip
Tip Diameter: 12.5 mm
Ferrule: X Ferrule
Taper: PRO2
Joint: Various
Deflection: The Hybrid Pro II shaft has the least amount of deflection compared to the Hybrid Alpha and WD700.

Hybrid Alpha Shaft
Replacing the Mezz Hybrid Pro, Mezz introduces the new Hybrid "Alpha" shaft with a re-engineered front-end and core construction for greater accuracy and power but maintains the feel of an original hard maple shaft. The Mezz Hybrid Carbon Core (HCC) Technology generates increase energy transfer to the cue ball and precise control.

Tip: Moori III Medium Tip
( Pro Tip for 5/16 x 14 joint)
Tip Diameter: 12.8 mm
Ferrule: X2 Ferrule
Taper: ALPHA
Joint: Various
Deflection: The Hybrid Alpha shaft has the most deflection compared to the WD700 and Hybrid Pro II Shafts but still less deflection than a conventional hard maple shaft.

WX900 Shaft
New Mezz WX900 Shaft hard maple shaft has the lowest deflection performance with a feel of a traditional one-piece maple shaft.

Tip: Kamui Brown Medium Tip
Tip Diameter: 12 mm
Ferrule: NX Ferrule
Taper: Conical Taper
Joint: Various

Deflection: The WX900 shaft has the lowest deflection amongst Mezz shafts.

Top two pictures are from when I got the cue. Its real hard to get a good picture of the cue and those were as good as any I had seen.

After playing with the cue for a few months I really like it. The WD700 shaft imo may be slightly better than the HPII but I do like the taper of the HPII more. Its probably all personal preference but to me either shaft plays better than the Predator I had been using.

After trying those two I bought an AXI model cue that came with the "maple shaft" I think they call it. The cue itself overall is good quality but it has by far the best linen wrap of any cue I have personally had or seen for that matter. From a few feet away it looks like leather and is much more smooth. The cue is solid and has a much more regular feel than that of the WD700 or HPII shafts.

I found it almost impossible to find a 30 inch shaft in any model but did find a cue with one. I read a lot about the WX900 and that is what came with the cue. I just got it today and wont have a chance to play with it for a few days. It seems similar in size and taper to a Z shaft and the ferrule is much shorter than that of all the other Mezz shafts.

I had the wrap extended to the buttcap on the cue I have been playing with.

Blue said:

Very nice write up.

How did you extend the wrap till the bottom of the cue? Does it need some regrooving because the ringwork is now hidden or removed..


I play with a old 20oz mezz zzsp with maple shaft, hp2 and wd700 for the past 3 years.

In my opinion, the maple shaft gives the sweetest hit among all 3 shafts.

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The wrap groove was extended and everything was covered. I have now tried all the shafts but the Alpha and HP-1. Although I think I will get used to the WX900 that I just got I really like the WD700 and regular maple shaft. To me the HPII has the best feeling taper out of the ones I have but the maple shaft does have a sweet hit. I think I have had about 10 Mezz shafts so far and almost all of them have been different sizes, even the same model. I haven't bought any directly from Mezz but every person I have got them from said the size and taper was not altered. Two HPII shafts I have range from 12.25 - 12.55 and a couple WD700 shafts were 2-3mm different as well. That's not just for the wavy pin, I have had the United joint, radial and 3/8x10 as well.

poolplayer2093 said:

Hey did u get that all black mezz with the maple shaft from Me? If so the wrap wasn't done by mezz it was done by john barioni of barioni cues

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I did not. Who ever put the wrap on whether it was Mezz or later on is the best linen wrap I have seen. Everyone who has seen the cue says the same thing. In all seriousness, imo it's better than any Szamboti, Searing, Gina or any other top cuemaker that I have personally seen.

Trying out a couple new shafts. Just got a few United Joints, one WD700 and an HP2 as well as a regular 5/16x14 WD700. Also picked up another 30 inch WX900.

The wavy joint and WX900 still seem to be my favorite but the United joint HP2 is a very close second. They fit snug for a small pin with an insert and are kind of like how the Huebler cues with the phenolic insert feel.

The Predator butt was a uniloc which I switched to a 5/16x14 so I could use the United joint shafts. Switching from a uniloc to a 5/16 is easy because the hole for the pilot on the shaft is already there. I was going to do it with an original Predator sp with the 5/16x14 but didnt want to drill it out since they are flat faced.