RIP Cyclop?????

:withstupid::withstupid:

Ive got a few different brands to choose from at home an have forced myself to play with each exclusively for long periods, to make an honest comparison.

the cyclop set plays better than my aramiths, no doubt in my mind.

lfigueroa said:

I don't care what SF says.

I have owned three sets of Cyclop and they all played perfectly AND stayed way cleaner during the course of play than Aramiths. Now he's telling horror stories and coincidentally selling Aramiths, lol.

I'm not saying every set that came out of China was perfect but I've watched and played *plenty* of matches at my home room and at the DCC and still believe Cyclop are a great set of balls.

Lou Figueroa
not selling anythin'

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I know there are fans of Cyclop balls and I respect your opinion but for me it has always been hard to figure *any* company could make a better quality ball than Aramith.

They gained a foothold in the market as a much cheaper wholesale alternative but like Mom always said, cheap is dear.

I was intrigued when the first skittle sets became available and I bought a set. Their small "eyeball" logo on the cue ball was actually a raised structure on the surface of the ball. For me, a very telling indicator of new guys not knowing what they are doing.

The playability of that early skittle set was clicky plasticky feeling, they weren't for me.

One good feature I've heard about Cyclop balls, however, is they are easier to keep clean.

Overall, I am not sad to see them go. Aramith Duramith, Centennials, and Super Pros all offer great performance and imo are the industry standard of excellence.

Wasn't broke, never really needed fixing.

all imo, of course.

best,
brian kc

I own three sets of Cyclop Balls: Original Skittle set I bought used from CSI after the first year they used them, Hyperions and Athenas. All sets have had heavy rotation on my home table. They all roll dead straight, stay clean and play great. Just like anything coming out or China, there are knockoffs. I would wager all these split in half ball stories are inferior knockoff sets people bought because the price was right. Buyer beware. No splits or roll offs here.

lfigueroa said:

I don't care what SF says.



I have owned three sets of Cyclop and they all played perfectly AND stayed way cleaner during the course of play than Aramiths. Now he's telling horror stories and coincidentally selling Aramiths, lol.



I'm not saying every set that came out of China was perfect but I've watched and played *plenty* of matches at my home room and at the DCC and still believe Cyclop are a great set of balls.



Lou Figueroa

not selling anythin'

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I agree on all counts. My set on my Diamond Pro-Am roll perfectly and they don’t have those awful white spots.


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Thanks!

garczar said:

XingBing is actually the maker of both Cyclop and the Dynasphere balls. It looks like Cyclop is going away and the outfit in Belgium that owns Dynasphere will have the rights to sell balls using their resin process. That Belgian outfit is part of Loontjens Billiards and they've been around forever. They own Gabriels tables, Molinari cues and now Dynasphere balls. https://www.loontjens.com/en/service/about/

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Thank you for the information!

While we always hear that a company having something made in china is exercising close oversight, Loontjens may actually be doing it. Might be something that they do for awhile and then let quality slip, remains to be seen. This set is surprisingly good so far.

Reading from your link, this is their hundredth year in business. Loontjens is in it for the long haul. I may buy another set of these balls to sit on the shelf and save for days I have company.

Hu

Never had an issue with my set either.

The pool room we have here locally that outfitted with Diamond tables all came with Cyclop balls, a few years ago. I have not heard of any issues, 10 tables going steady for a few years now.

Can you tell the difference between Cyclop and other brands, perhaps, that's not for me to say. I am just unaware of any issues had there with the Cyclop balls. I do plan on asking the owner about it, next chance I get, out of curiosity.

I have an original set bought at DCC new several years back. They are perfect in every way. I’ve also played in 2 or 3 DCC with Cyclop balls and never saw with my own eyes a single issue.

I have a set of Cyclop Ladon balls, but won't get to test them out until later this week when the table is setup. They sure look nice.

But also ordered the Arcos 2 balls from Seyberts so I'll have something to compare them to I suppose.

bignick31985 said:

I have a set of Cyclop Ladon balls, but won't get to test them out until later this week when the table is setup. They sure look nice.

But also ordered the Arcos 2 balls from Seyberts so I'll have something to compare them to I suppose.

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Let us know what you think.

It's hard to look away from what some of the pros are sharing as their first hand experiences and I do remember a couple dccs ago (or maybe it was the last dcc) where cyclop cue balls were rolling off badly - iirc Chris Melling and/or John Morra were slow rolling the cue ball down close to the rail a number of times after a match to check what was going on with these balls.

I do believe that some have very good experiences while there are documented bad experiences with Cyclop balls; this tells me that they are inconsistent and who needs that?

Viva Aramith!

best,
brian kc

rexus31 said:

I own three sets of Cyclop Balls: Original Skittle set I bought used from CSI after the first year they used them, Hyperions and Athenas. All sets have had heavy rotation on my home table. They all roll dead straight, stay clean and play great. Just like anything coming out or China, there are knockoffs. I would wager all these split in half ball stories are inferior knockoff sets people bought because the price was right. Buyer beware. No splits or roll offs here.

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Interesting theory.
I have used Cyclop balls since they were introduced and love them. I will admit that I never used their cue ball because of the translucent look of the surface.
These balls have served me well and they were measured and weighed when new, very impressive tolerances.

some sets obviously were not right in the beginning. they rushed out their first stuff. bad move. but after that their balls were outstanding.

i still remember all the hoopla about how Japanese honda and toyota cars were so bad because they were so cheap. now better cars than any american named brand ones made.

the pros always find something to blame. it used to be the tables.
scott seems to blame something all the time for his missed easy shots. and as said he is now trying to knock down the competitors to help sell what he is getting a commission from.
try believing you own dam eyes on what you see.

The original cue ball they had issues with . They admitted to it I believe

Kickin' Chicken said:

It's hard to look away from what some of the pros are sharing as their first hand experiences and I do remember a couple dccs ago (or maybe it was the last dcc) where cyclop cue balls were rolling off badly - iirc Chris Melling and/or John Morra were slow rolling the cue ball down close to the rail a number of times after a match to check what was going on with these balls.

I do believe that some have very good experiences while there are documented bad experiences with Cyclop balls; this tells me that they are inconsistent and who needs that?

Viva Aramith!

best,
brian kc

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I played at DCC the year they switched to Cyclop. The outer layer of the Cue Ball was translucent and caused a lot of issues when it came to aiming. It seemed like they all rolled off a little but the Cue Ball was really bad. There was no way it was the table because the roll off direction was never consistent. Seemed that EVERY player I spoke to had the same experience and hated those balls.

I have a set of Cyclops skittles, its even the set with the translucent cue ball with the eyeball, seems to play the same as my Centennials and Aramith Tournaments, all are about the same age too. I usually use the matching cue ball with each set, sometimes I use a red circle but never the red circle with Cyclops.

I never had any problem with the colors of the Cyclops, but the pros need to be playing with pool balls in which they have confidence, and the Cyclops balls never qualified on that basis.

Super Aramith and Brunswick Centennials are the ball sets I prefer.

maha said:

some sets obviously were not right in the beginning. they rushed out their first stuff. bad move. but after that their balls were outstanding.

i still remember all the hoopla about how Japanese honda and toyota cars were so bad because they were so cheap. now better cars than any american named brand ones made.

the pros always find something to blame. it used to be the tables.
scott seems to blame something all the time for his missed easy shots. and as said he is now trying to knock down the competitors to help sell what he is getting a commission from.
try believing you own dam eyes on what you see.

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Well stated! Thanks for posting what I'm thinking.

maha said:

some sets obviously were not right in the beginning. they rushed out their first stuff. bad move. but after that their balls were outstanding.

i still remember all the hoopla about how Japanese honda and toyota cars were so bad because they were so cheap. now better cars than any american named brand ones made.

the pros always find something to blame. it used to be the tables.
scott seems to blame something all the time for his missed easy shots. and as said he is now trying to knock down the competitors to help sell what he is getting a commission from.
try believing you own dam eyes on what you see.

Click to expand...

My recollection is not that they rushed things but rather moved the factory to meet increased demand and some machinery got out of calibration.

Once they discovered that, they fixed it, and the sets coming out after played great.

I think that some day they will be the Raschigs of the future.

Lou Figueroa

I bought a set of Hyperions just after new year. Wanted to get Centennials, but the Mrs. really liked the look of the Cyclop.

Called my local spot to order a set and was told that he is “brand loyal” to Aramith; I could get a set of used Centennials for $200. Even buying new, I needn’t worry about discoloration because Aramith “pre-yellows” the cue ball and whites of the stripes. Decided to deal order Hyperions through Seybert’s in Michigan.

I don’t feel comfortable putting my info online, so still tried to talk the little woman into an Aramith set. Trying to create an argument for Aramith, I found that previous years (Ladon and Zeus?) had issues with cue ball roll off, raised numbers and measles, and off center numbers. Wife countered by pointing out the ball sets were previous iterations. She also reminded me how much I hate to play with dirty balls.

This is the biggest strength. My wife loves the vibrant color of the Hyperion. I love how clean they stay. I HATE playing with marked up balls. I normally wear a hoodie while I play and had my wife sew a microfiber towel in the front pocket of several of them for quick cleaning. The main culprit is the leather drop pocket on hard shots, but after eight months I have never had to use anything more than a microfiber cloth to keep them pristine.

Cue ball roll off has also never been an issue. I spend a few minutes every session hitting “MOFUDAT” shots with stickers at each diamond along the path. When I miss, it’s because of my stroke not an inherent flaw in the ball.