Black-Balled said:

Fine. Buy my diamond and have your lessons at home?

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I wish I could fit it. I have an 8ft at home and that's too big for the room it's in LOL.

Thanks, trob! Thanks, Jen! Glad you're enjoying the read!

To those for whom my column is new, the first "Chalkin' Up The Memories" debuted in the May 2025 issue of the Buzz so be sure to start there! It's my chronological pool journey...

Mary

It's a warranty issue, I wouldn't wait for an expo to inform the maker. @ratcues is dead on and has the experience way beyond what his posts on the matter even indicate.

negativefargo said:

The cue is under warranty through the maker so I suppose it is up to their judgment if it demands a tweaking. If a $100 Viking doesn't have the issue, I don't see why a new $500 custom should.

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Now my opinion, and I am no cue maker. We don't know the cue. We have no idea what the construction is. Yes, it is most likely an A joint issue, but we don't even know if the cue has an A joint. The only construction point we know is that it has a wrap.

You eliminated the weight bolt and shaft, so it's anything else. Regardless of the price of the cue or who made it, you said it is under warranty, so nobody here can really help with anything in any practical way except to say to immediately inform the maker and follow their instructions to get repair or replacement under warranty.

A buzz can be a minor annoyance with no practical impact on the function of the cue, or it could break in half tomorrow. There is no way to know for sure here.

Icon of Sin said:

Reggie comes in a good bit still but usually not in the evenings. Problem is, most of the people Im matching up with are at Top Hat. I'm already spotting some of them simply because I can out play and position them, but they are out moving me. Last thing I need is them watching me get "lessons" and ask for even more weight.

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Fine. Buy my diamond and have your lessons at home?

Proficient has an early Meucci Original Gambler prototype on their site. Pricey but pretty cool.

Black-Balled said:

Howsabout a Reggie or a Bo?

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Reggie comes in a good bit still but usually not in the evenings. Problem is, most of the people Im matching up with are at Top Hat. I'm already spotting some of them simply because I can out play and position them, but they are out moving me. Last thing I need is them watching me get "lessons" and ask for even more weight.

Icon of Sin said:

Havent seen him in years. Hasn't been in Top Hat in a while. Think he has been at Gentlemans.

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Howsabout a Reggie or a Bo?

Then came the aluminum tennis racquet.....which Jimmy Conners made famous...now forgotten along with it's cousins the aluminum pool cue and baseball bat (which I believe still has some life in it). Raw aluminum must have been very cheap at the time, not so today....a 200ft roll of kitchen aluminum foil is near $15. RIP.

Black-Balled said:

Shit, man.

Best way up that way is to get a henry to tell you while you're playing.

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Havent seen him in years. Hasn't been in Top Hat in a while. Think he has been at Gentlemans.

Icon of Sin said:

My nineball game is ok. My one pocket game is shit. Any good resources other then watching pro matches?

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Shit, man.

Best way up that way is to get a henry to tell you while you're playing.

I didnt see any sporting equipment at all... gonna have to go back and watch it again.

Sir Scratchalot said:

I just received my O'Min cue on Friday, I think maybe the same as the OP's cue, and WOW! I am properly impressed! The weight (18.3oz) & balance are right where I like them, I had the shaft turned down to 12.5mm and a Techno Dud tip installed. This thing is delightful to shoot with and might very well steal a lot of table time from my fancier cues! $400 very well spent, to my mind. My thanks to gmoney1 for posting his review and helping push me in this direction.

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What is your review of the techno dud tip?

trob said:

I guess I’ve gotten lucky .. lol I’ve taken mine everywhere and it’s protected my cues and still works good as new. Dont’ get me wrong if I was still playing high end customs I wouldn’t use it. But the cues I have now are easily replaceable so they are just fine if something happens to happen.
I did special order a JB custom to what I wanted and I’m thrilled with it and get compliments all time. It’s of course better then the predator case but I patan more then twice as much so it should be. I’ll have to look up what JB said about their cases. I may have read about it and jut forgot.

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Here is one of the videos
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Here is one about the Predator Urbain
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When I got nack to the game, just over a year ago, I wanted a new case and ordered the Predator roadrunner 3x5, I find the single pocket not big and tall enough to accommodate all the modern basics.
The paddling of the interior looks thick enough but very tight.
Ended up selling it and ordered a 3x6 JB.

I think that the best cue branded cases today are made by/for CueTec.
I find it amazing that Predator would put out to the market an inferior product compared to CueTec…