My NBN arrived today! Packaging great, arrived safely. They were having a Christmas free "goodies" promotion when I ordered - some of the stuff seemed worth getting . . . I didn't get any of it, haha. A wristband - I guess if I charged myself cover to access the basement I could've worn it when I played, lol; some pretty crappy thing I think was a bottle opener (hit the trash with the wristband); and a pen, and I like pens, that I doubt I'll ever use --- seriously Becue, you delayed my order and gave me the bottom of the fun barrel to make up for it.
Now that we're done with the world's smallest violin . . . .
The cue is very, very sleek. Love the feel and the look, but slick as well and took some getting used to with the feel in/on my bridge hand. I've never had a wrap and the leather wrap is a good reminder for my right hand, unobtrusive, I really like it. However, the fit/spacing where the grip comes together in the middle and not on the ends is intentional but wasn't executed as well as it could have been and I expect a corner area or two to catch on something at some point - may sound picky, but it should have been perfect.
I opted for the transparent ferrule. Once I started using it, I understood why many would like the white as an aiming point of reference. I traded that for what I think is a better look and after an hour plus at the table it wasn't something I even thought about, but again, I see where many would like the white when looking down the cue.
The Kamui soft tip is just fine, and I like those, seems to be "right".
I was really, really impressed with the feel on solid hits and overall when using it, and sound is nothing unusual to me, so I guess I like the sound. Only time I noticed anything odd with sound was on light, crappy hits and it had a sound I haven't figured out how to describe but not an issue.
The only cue I have relatable to this one is my Diveney with a trans k kielwood shaft. It's a Sneaky Pete and the only other cue I own I'd describe as "sleek" - smooth and silky, maybe a hair of a slender feel. These two cues perform very similar IMO, but that's only from a bit over an hour of messing around, so this is all a bunch of first impressions.
I know Becue uses the word "flexible" and it's mentioned above somewhere but I think it's at least as low deflection as the Diveney (no expert here) and definitely perceive a difference vs. my other wood cues, Maybe the "flexible" is a feel thing? I have zero experience with any other CF shaft/cue. All I can say is it played and felt pretty natural but firm from the first few balls I sent down table, so maybe since all I've ever used are wood cues and the transition doesn't seem that unusual, they've accomplished in feel what they are going for. Who knows.
The 12.5 tip seemed small to me, and I had to check the markings on the cue and get out something to measure it with, lol. Maybe it's the black shaft and the transparent ferrule, maybe something about the taper --- looking from above vs. a couple of other 12.5s the tips seem the same, but the feel/look when using it is maybe 12.5 "light".
The Diveney is my favorite and I'm pretty happy that this cue compares very well with it in many ways. I don't compete and will mix it up when playing at home and use different cues. The Becue will be getting lots of time this week - I really, really like it and not even a hint of regret about ordering it.
forearm with Black /