My experience with 7 carbon shafts so far

Sean Hallett

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Bca8ball:
That was a really informative post and a great read. It seems pretty reliable and matches up with everything I have heard. The Meucci deflection was a surprise though, I wasn't expecting it to be that bad :O I haven't played with any other CF but I can 100% vouch for the feel on my Jacoby, it's better than any wood ld shaft i've ever played with. That being said i've never played with a Meucci.
As for deflection I knew the Revo was always going to be number 1 and i've seen videos comparing it to the Cuetec. Is it safe to assume the deflection of the Jacoby is between Revo and the Cuetec? Or the same as the Cuetec? Your post makes it sound like it is slightly better than the Cuetec but obviously worse than the Revo. I haven't properly tested my Jacoby out yet and I can't compare it to any of the others so i'm not going to make false statements. It would be nice to know though. Either way i'm very pleased with my Jacoby that i've had for half a day :p
 

Bca8ball

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I just wanted to add to your comments regarding the CF shafts you had the opportunity to play with and ask you if you've had a chance to try the new Meucci CF Pro shaft yet?

I've only had minimal exposure to any of the top CF shafts out there. Hit a few balls with someone else's cue or at a trade show and never could say I liked the feel of any of the most popular shafts. I'm actually on a waiting list for a Revo and also was looking into the Jacobi when I got word about the Meucci CF Pro shaft.

I own a large collection of Meucci's so I thought this would be a good opportunity for me to try their CF technology on some of my favorite cues that unfortunately have a ton of deflection in them.

I ordered a 31' Pro Tapered CF Pro with Medium Kamui and I must say right off the bat that this is by far the best playing shaft I've ever had the pleasure of shooting with. Now I can say it's going to feel and play that way on every cue you try it on because I tried it on about 5 Meucci's that have a similar joint radius as the size I ordered and cue hit well but wasn't until I introduced it a 1980 80-6 Meucci and it was like a match made in heaven.

The balance with the long shaft is extraordinarily comfortable and the extra stroking area of the Meucci Pro taper on a 31' shaft makes for the most pleasurable cueing experience I've every enjoyed in over 30 years of playing pool.

Now as far as the performance of the shaft which is equally as important as to how comfortable the shaft feels, it's a game changer IMO. I recently acquired a few beautiful Tony Guerra cues with very low deflection shafts and I really thought that was a game changer. My game increased 15-20% shooting with a stiffer, very low deflection cue. I guess I just learned to acclimate to a high deflection Meucci shaft after all these years and now that I had something that produced more reliable results I was hooked. The Meucci CF Pro shaft appears to have no deflection and you simply aim and shoot straight and the darn cue ball goes exactly where you hit it, no squirm, no slight roll or tendencies, just as straight as an arrow.

Now when you couple the most comfortable shaft along with dead balls on accurate hitting capabilities I'd say we have a good bingo here.

Here's the best part....I've been on a Seybert's waiting list for months for the Revo shaft and it's 23% higher priced, made in China and because I wanted an odd joint (a Modified 3/8X10, what's so odd about that) I had to wait multiple shipments from China before they get to this order.

From Meucci, I waited less than 3 weeks, shaft was made in the good old USA and I paid 23% less than the Revo or other comparable shafts that take months to order.

I give this shaft a 9-10 only because I don't think any shaft should cost more than $200 tops. That's any wood, ring work, tip, ferrule or manufacturer IMO.

However for the simple fact it's made in the USA, it's the least expensive CF shaft on the market, you can get it in less than a month and Bob will match any ring work for $15 and they'll make it in any pin configuration out there I highly recommend this shaft to any player out there not just Meucci owners.

All shafts have some deflection, zero deflection simply isn't a thing.
The Meucci Carbon Pro (MCP) is a great hitting shaft with a nice pro-taper and great feel.
However, the MCP has more deflection than several of the other carbon fiber shafts.
The tenon area under the ferrule and extending 2.5" into the shaft is wood.
Additionally, the CF mass is slightly thicker (approx. .10%)...none of this equals less deflection.
 

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Bca8ball

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Bca8ball:
That was a really informative post and a great read. It seems pretty reliable and matches up with everything I have heard. The Meucci deflection was a surprise though, I wasn't expecting it to be that bad :O I haven't played with any other CF but I can 100% vouch for the feel on my Jacoby, it's better than any wood ld shaft i've ever played with. That being said i've never played with a Meucci.
As for deflection I knew the Revo was always going to be number 1 and i've seen videos comparing it to the Cuetec. Is it safe to assume the deflection of the Jacoby is between Revo and the Cuetec? Or the same as the Cuetec? Your post makes it sound like it is slightly better than the Cuetec but obviously worse than the Revo. I haven't properly tested my Jacoby out yet and I can't compare it to any of the others so i'm not going to make false statements. It would be nice to know though. Either way i'm very pleased with my Jacoby that i've had for half a day :p

The Jacoby Black deflection is lower than the Cuetec but closer to that of the Cuetec Cynergy than the Revo.
The Cuetec has a double wall and the rather large ferrule creating mass.
The Jacoby Black doesn't have the large ferrule; however, they included some very high dense foam and had to double the CF mass at the leading edge to support their threading.
I have performed a mod on a Jacoby Black by removing the front section of foam and boring down extra front CF mass. Then I installed a Revo style vault plate.
This mod brought the Jacoby deflection down to the Revo deflection.
 

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Sean Hallett

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
The Jacoby Black deflection is lower than the Cuetec but closer to that of the Cuetec Cynergy than the Revo.
The Cuetec has a double wall and the rather large ferrule creating mass.
The Jacoby Black doesn't have the large ferrule; however, they included some very high dense foam and had to double the CF mass at the leading edge to support their threading.
I have performed a mod on a Jacoby Black by removing the front section of foam and boring down extra front CF mass. Then I installed a Revo style vault plate.
This mod brought the Jacoby deflection down to the Revo deflection.
That's absolutely insane! You are very skilled. I bet the sound and feel sound alot closer to the revo now that the deflection is the same.
Do you have any comparable knowledge regarding the Mezz ignite? That was second choice after the Jacoby.
 

Bca8ball

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
That's absolutely insane! You are very skilled. I bet the sound and feel sound alot closer to the revo now that the deflection is the same.
Do you have any comparable knowledge regarding the Mezz ignite? That was second choice after the Jacoby.

I have not gotten my hands on an Ignite shaft yet.
I hope it isn't similar to the United or BeCue versions; some appear to be more plastic than carbon.
 

garczar

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Have you hit a GoCustoms yet? They get a lot of good press. Great info you provided. VERY much appreciated.
 

jrctherake

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I have seen several posts here and other sites about the different shafts.
Low deflection, taper, hit, sound, feel, etc. Obviously, most of the topics are subjective; what feels best to some, can be hated by others.
I am fine with subjectivity; however, not so much with false statements that can appear to be more of a sales attempt verses actual facts.
Granted, human nature is to prefer (or even brag about) something once we spend our hard earned money on it; however, hitting a few shots with a shaft is not a deflection test.
Telling someone a wood tenon inside a CF shaft with an added ferrule has less deflection then a Revo or Jacoby Black, is a false statement.
Anyone considering the purchase of one of the expensive CF shafts really should test them first.
That said, we all know this isn’t always an option, so many potential buyers read statements and reviews.
False statements by retailers/dealers/sellers are things we are all too familiar with...
The propagation of the false statements once we become owners, really does nothing for anyone else.
Ok… That’s my rant

Your thoughts are spot on and in line with mine and pretty much everything I've ever said about "all" of the CF shafts to date.

I've played with every brand so far and your description of the hit/feel/sound VS pure performance is very accurate.

A very simple way to tell a less than experienced person is the same thing I said before:

If your worries are about deflection and performance and you DON'T CARE about feel, the hit, the sound....etc...etc.....well, the revo is a CLEAR winner over the rest.

If your not worried about a little to a lot of deflection but YOU ARE concerned about the hit, feel, sound etc...etc......well, pretty much any of the other brands will meet your needs.

Again, your post was very accurate.

It seems that some people don't like WATER but love H2O.

Good post!
 

gregnice37

Bar Banger, Cue Collector
Silver Member
I believe at this point the only CF I haven't tried yet is the Go Customs, Mezz Ignite and the Pechauer Rogue.

The only one I've absolutely hated and sold away is the Cynergy. I still own 2 Revo 12.4mm, Rush, Becue Prime M 12.0mm, Meucci Pro 12.25mm 30" and the Jacoby Black. As much as I'm used to the all now, I think that I'll always play a little better and enjoy the Revo the most. I feel most confident with it and the sound and feel doesn't matter one bit to me. I believe that I'm so used to the no ferrule look and feel so much with the Revo that the ferrule, no matter the size or material, on the others doesn't feel as good as the Revo. I've won matches and tourney's with them all but the Revo keeps rising to the top for my likes and preferences.

On a side note, must be said that my back is so bad the past 24years and it gets worse year by year, that my break suffers a lot. Ever since I got the rush, it's made breaking so much easier with results. The energy transfer is nuts and the results are phenomenal. Mind you, I only play 8 ball of a bar box, but every single person I play fears that any rack I have a good chance of snapping the 8 in.
 

jrctherake

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I believe at this point the only CF I haven't tried yet is the Go Customs, Mezz Ignite and the Pechauer Rogue.

The only one I've absolutely hated and sold away is the Cynergy. I still own 2 Revo 12.4mm, Rush, Becue Prime M 12.0mm, Meucci Pro 12.25mm 30" and the Jacoby Black. As much as I'm used to the all now, I think that I'll always play a little better and enjoy the Revo the most. I feel most confident with it and the sound and feel doesn't matter one bit to me. I believe that I'm so used to the no ferrule look and feel so much with the Revo that the ferrule, no matter the size or material, on the others doesn't feel as good as the Revo. I've won matches and tourney's with them all but the Revo keeps rising to the top for my likes and preferences.

On a side note, must be said that my back is so bad the past 24years and it gets worse year by year, that my break suffers a lot. Ever since I got the rush, it's made breaking so much easier with results. The energy transfer is nuts and the results are phenomenal. Mind you, I only play 8 ball of a bar box, but every single person I play fears that any rack I have a good chance of snapping the 8 in.

The Rush helped my break as well.

I've always had a faster than average 10 ball break of 22 to 24 mph with most any break cue but, with the rush I can "ease up" a bit and gain even more control while not losing any speed.

I can hit as high as 29ish mph with the rush but...lol....the CB may end up in the parking lot. Even with the rush I'm not really comfortable getting past 25ish mph but around 24ish MPH, well...I feel extremely comfortable with it.

Like you said:

Energy transfer is nuts with it.
 

S.Vaskovskyi

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I recently tried a BeCue and i hated the finish. Way too sticky/tacky feeling. You have to use a glove with these. Finish on a Revo is unbelievably slick.

Honestly I'm curious if c.f.shafts manufacturers actually use a finish on a playing area of the shaft and if they do my question is why? I had some experience with carbon fiber designing some elements in carbon fiber in my car. Once the element was ready on the finish stage after wet sanding it has matte surface with good feeling on touch and the clear coat afterwards is applied only for the look. So I believe c.f. shafts should have a good feeling similar to all without any finish on the playing area. I just don't see a purpose of a finish there. It's not like in case with the wood to seal it ...it's not a porous material.
I've tried Revo...now I have a student who bought Cuetec Cynergy shaft during his business trip to USA recently and he asked me to test the shaft to know my opinion about it. So I have as much time as I want to test it even on my 31" butt (I have the same joint). I can tell I felt the difference in feeling too. The Revo was more slick especially on shots a closed bridge was used. Cynergy is still ok but the difference is definitely there...:shrug:
It will be so fun if there's no secret formula for the best finish out there and the winner is one who just does not use any finish)
 
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garczar

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Honestly I'm curious if c.f.shafts manufacturers actually use a finish on a playing area of the shaft and if they do my question is why? I had some experience with carbon fiber designing some elements in carbon fiber in my car. Once the element was ready on the finish stage after wet sanding it has matte surface with good feeling on touch and the clear coat afterwards is applied only for the look. So I believe c.f. shafts should have a good feeling similar to all without any finish on the playing area. I just don't see a purpose of a finish there. It's not like in case with the wood to seal it ...it's not a porous material.
I've tried Revo...now I have a student who bought Cuetec Cynergy shaft during his business trip to USA recently and he asked me to test the shaft to know my opinion about it. So I have as much time as I want to test it even on my 31" butt (I have the same joint). I can tell I felt the difference in feeling too. The Revo was more slick especially on shots a closed bridge was used. Cynergy is still ok but the difference is definitely there...:shrug:
It will be so fun if there's no secret formula for the best finish out there and the winner is one who just does not use any finish)
Totally agree. I've only hit the Revo and BeCue M. The Revo is waaaaay better than the BC. Played better, sounded better and is way slicker. IF i ever get a cf shaft it will be in the 12.75-12.9mm range. I'd like to hit the GoCustom. Been hearing a lot of good things about their newest shaft. That and the upcoming Pechauer.
 

jrctherake

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Totally agree. I've only hit the Revo and BeCue M. The Revo is waaaaay better than the BC. Played better, sounded better and is way slicker. IF i ever get a cf shaft it will be in the 12.75-12.9mm range. I'd like to hit the GoCustom. Been hearing a lot of good things about their newest shaft. That and the upcoming Pechauer.

Garczar:

I cannot say I've hit / played with the pechauer Rogue but, I've went out of my way to play extensively with pretty much every "production" carbon fiber shaft to date, not to mention, most of the custom CF shafts such as the GoCustom shaft.

I've got well over 1400 hours on table with the various CF shafts. I've got the hours broke down into which shaft, what table, what cloth, brand of balls, which cue ball, weather conditions....etc...etc..yep, very detailed. I did it that way for obvious reasons.

As for the Go shaft: It was at the time, a prototype so, its taper, weight, balance was a little different than most gocustom you would see today.

The Gocustom prototype I hit with was a 12.9 with a very short white ferrule and was extremely comfortably tapered for people that use a closed bridge and because it weighed 4.5 ounces, it was wonderfully balanced so, it made shooting with an open bridge a complete pleasure. The hit, feel, sound (tip/ferrule applies here).... was also a pleasure. It had a g2 soft on it that was cut down and in its prime so, take the feel/sound with a grain of salt as it will rely heavily on the a person's tip/ferrule preference.

To me, when tracking the "cues" performance as in deflection, stiffness etc..etc..well, it was second only to the revo. It IMO, "hit, sounded, felt....etc...etc".. better than the mezz, becue, cuetec and all other CF shaft but, personally I don't care about that part. All I care about is "performance" and its performance was just a bit behind revo but ahead of the rest BUT, it had the "feel, sound"....etc...etc.. that some people seem to need.

So, for people that, for whatever reason care about how the cue sounds, feels....etc..etc....well, they will have to either give a "little" to a "lot" of performance up in trade for the "sound" etc...etc... or hold off and wait till someone comes out with a CF shaft that "has it all".

I've got my hope's up for the pechauer Rogue. If pechauer doesn't end up meeting the "feel, sound...etc..etc" needs while keeping performance on par with the revo or at least closer than others have come, well, I'm afraid that it will always be one or the other:

Performance (measured deflection and energy transfer)

VS

mental (sound, feel) things that mean absolutely nothing to the cue ball.
 

garczar

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Garczar:

I cannot say I've hit / played with the pechauer Rogue but, I've went out of my way to play extensively with pretty much every "production" carbon fiber shaft to date, not to mention, most of the custom CF shafts such as the GoCustom shaft.

I've got well over 1400 hours on table with the various CF shafts. I've got the hours broke down into which shaft, what table, what cloth, brand of balls, which cue ball, weather conditions....etc...etc..yep, very detailed. I did it that way for obvious reasons.

As for the Go shaft: It was at the time, a prototype so, its taper, weight, balance was a little different than most gocustom you would see today.

The Gocustom prototype I hit with was a 12.9 with a very short white ferrule and was extremely comfortably tapered for people that use a closed bridge and because it weighed 4.5 ounces, it was wonderfully balanced so, it made shooting with an open bridge a complete pleasure. The hit, feel, sound (tip/ferrule applies here).... was also a pleasure. It had a g2 soft on it that was cut down and in its prime so, take the feel/sound with a grain of salt as it will rely heavily on the a person's tip/ferrule preference.

To me, when tracking the "cues" performance as in deflection, stiffness etc..etc..well, it was second only to the revo. It IMO, "hit, sounded, felt....etc...etc".. better than the mezz, becue, cuetec and all other CF shaft but, personally I don't care about that part. All I care about is "performance" and its performance was just a bit behind revo but ahead of the rest BUT, it had the "feel, sound"....etc...etc.. that some people seem to need.

So, for people that, for whatever reason care about how the cue sounds, feels....etc..etc....well, they will have to either give a "little" to a "lot" of performance up in trade for the "sound" etc...etc... or hold off and wait till someone comes out with a CF shaft that "has it all".

I've got my hope's up for the pechauer Rogue. If pechauer doesn't end up meeting the "feel, sound...etc..etc" needs while keeping performance on par with the revo or at least closer than others have come, well, I'm afraid that it will always be one or the other:

Performance (measured deflection and energy transfer)

VS

mental (sound, feel) things that mean absolutely nothing to the cue ball.
Thanks. Good info.
 

Klink

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Honestly I'm curious if c.f.shafts manufacturers actually use a finish on a playing area of the shaft and if they do my question is why? I had some experience with carbon fiber designing some elements in carbon fiber in my car. Once the element was ready on the finish stage after wet sanding it has matte surface with good feeling on touch and the clear coat afterwards is applied only for the look. So I believe c.f. shafts should have a good feeling similar to all without any finish on the playing area. I just don't see a purpose of a finish there. It's not like in case with the wood to seal it ...it's not a porous material.
I've tried Revo...now I have a student who bought Cuetec Cynergy shaft during his business trip to USA recently and he asked me to test the shaft to know my opinion about it. So I have as much time as I want to test it even on my 31" butt (I have the same joint). I can tell I felt the difference in feeling too. The Revo was more slick especially on shots a closed bridge was used. Cynergy is still ok but the difference is definitely there...:shrug:
It will be so fun if there's no secret formula for the best finish out there and the winner is one who just does not use any finish)



I have tried the Revo, Becue and Jacoby. None of them have the feel or sound of my regular wood shaft.

I’m going to order the new Mezz tomorrow.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
 

S.Vaskovskyi

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I have tried the Revo, Becue and Jacoby. None of them have the feel or sound of my regular wood shaft.

I’m going to order the new Mezz tomorrow.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
If you mean their Ignite shaft than I can tell I've heard only good reviews about it from the players. I had not possibility to try it yet but I tend to believe it's a really good one. I'm looking forward to have my first experience with Becue in the length I'm comfortable to play with. After having some practice time with Cuetec Cynergy I can say it's also a good shaft and to tell the truth it performs better than I expected. Having such a long pro-taper it is still fairly stiff what I like. When it comes to the deflection ...yes it has definitely more of it in comparison with Revo 12.9 but it was very easy for me to get used to it after my wooden regular LD shaft and my shaft's deflection is somewhere very close to a standard 314-2. I see and feel the pros of c.f. shafts and I really enjoy making certain shots with it like let's say to stun the CB when the angle is very small and make it move much more effortless with more accuracy. Every shaft out there has its own pros and it's good to have more options to choose from. Everyone is free to choose what works better for him and there will be always much more important things in the whole picture than...but why not having fun playing this game?)
 
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highkarate

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I pre-ordered a mezz ignite with the intent of selling it. It hits so good that I had to keep it and now it's my full time playing shaft. Way better feel than a revo (hit with a revo just a few times to be fair) and probably even a better hit than most other LD shafts I've ever played with. Taper is good, 12.2 diameter took a little getting used to but I like it now. Swapped the Zan M to a softer tip and it really plays great
 

CaptainPots

Registered
How would you describe the differences between Ignite and Revo?

I pre-ordered a mezz ignite with the intent of selling it. It hits so good that I had to keep it and now it's my full time playing shaft. Way better feel than a revo (hit with a revo just a few times to be fair) and probably even a better hit than most other LD shafts I've ever played with. Taper is good, 12.2 diameter took a little getting used to but I like it now. Swapped the Zan M to a softer tip and it really plays great
 

bbb

AzB Gold Member
Gold Member
Silver Member
I pre-ordered a mezz ignite with the intent of selling it. It hits so good that I had to keep it and now it's my full time playing shaft. Way better feel than a revo (hit with a revo just a few times to be fair) and probably even a better hit than most other LD shafts I've ever played with. Taper is good, 12.2 diameter took a little getting used to but I like it now. Swapped the Zan M to a softer tip and it really plays great

How would you describe the differences between Ignite and Revo?

while you are at it
could you compare its deflection vs the wx700 and wx900
thanks
 

highkarate

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
How would you describe the differences between Ignite and Revo?

The biggest difference for me was in the quality of the hit. The mezz just gives better feedback, has a better sound, doesn't feel pingy, etc. Other than that they are probably very similar in terms of deflection, energy transfer, all that stuff. Mezz cue has a ferrule, revo doesn't. Lack of a ferrule wouldn't bother me but I know some folks complain about it. My ignite is a wavy pin, so it's wood to wood. I have not hit with the united pin nor with a steel joint,but I imagine the hit would be too firm for my liking. Ignite shaft with wavy joint and soft tip is the nuts for me.
 

highkarate

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
while you are at it
could you compare its deflection vs the wx700 and wx900
thanks

I don't have a ton of experience with those 2 shafts, but what I will say is this: all the super LD shafts and carbon fiber shafts are going to have close to the same amount of deflection. The 700 has noticeably more because it's constructed to be kind of a hybrid between a maple shaft and an LD shaft. The ignite has pretty much the same amount of deflection as my hybrid pro 2. Probably slightly more deflection than the revo. I've never really hit with a 900 to be fair so I can't compare it specifically. I play the majority of my pool on Gold Crowns with sub 4" pockets, so accuracy is important and any really significant change in deflection would cause me to have to make major aiming adjustments. I can pretty much aim the same with a hybrid pro 2, a revo, or the ignite just with some minor adjustments. Any shaft you switch to is going to require some minor adjustments. I would worry less about the minuscule difference in deflection and more about the feel, as that will be your real long-term friend in any cue. Just my 2 cents
 
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