Purchase a cue by "feel," not by name, reviews, or looks.
stardust:
Short answer to would I purchase a cue just based on reviews in a forum? No.
First reason: a cue's "feel" is a very personal thing. What may feel good to some, may not feel good to you. You perhaps may like, oh, say, a rearward-balanced cue, but lots of other folks may like a forward-balanced cue. Or, you might prefer a smaller or larger diameter to the butt/gripping area (don't forget, people come in all shapes and sizes, and there are many different sizes of hands -- one diameter butt does not "fit all"). Many, many other reasons abound, including grip, diameter of shaft, resonance of the cue when hitting the cue ball, etc.
Second reason: one word -- marketing. Predator markets their product so profusely and so prominently, that their name is at the top of every pool player's mind. Predator's name is omni-present precisely because of this successful marketing campaign. I'm not saying this is wrong; I'm just saying don't be a lemming in a long line of lemmings jumping off the Predator cliff sight-unseen, "because it's the safe choice." Try a Predator yourself. Put a blindfold on, if you have to, to prevent the markings and branding on the cue from swaying your decision merely because of "eye candy" (admittedly, that cat logo is very cool). Feel the cue, shoot with it for a while (at least a rack or so). Judge for yourself. You may find you like a Predator cue. Or not. But at least you gave it the ol' "boy scout try." Personally, the only Predator product I liked, was the original 314 shaft. But something changed after that product, and I can't quite put my finger on it -- I find the products after the original 314 to be, for lack of a better term, "ho hum." But that's just my personal impression -- and that's the whole point of my post, to let you know this is a very personal thing. You need to try cues for yourself.
Is that to say that if you purchase a Predator sight-unseen, would you be unhappy with it? No. You might find you'll "adapt" to it, especially if the looks appeal to you (there's that "eye candy" thing again). But the real way to purchase a cue, a cue that you'll really attach to and become part of you, is if you select by feel.
Many a cue I've purchased over my lifetime that was based purely on feel, that I later sold, that I now regret. And yes, I've done the blind purchase thing, and the cue turned out "ok," but it didn't have the magic of the cues that I purchased primarily for their feel and hit.
I hope this is helpful!
-Sean
stardust:
Short answer to would I purchase a cue just based on reviews in a forum? No.
First reason: a cue's "feel" is a very personal thing. What may feel good to some, may not feel good to you. You perhaps may like, oh, say, a rearward-balanced cue, but lots of other folks may like a forward-balanced cue. Or, you might prefer a smaller or larger diameter to the butt/gripping area (don't forget, people come in all shapes and sizes, and there are many different sizes of hands -- one diameter butt does not "fit all"). Many, many other reasons abound, including grip, diameter of shaft, resonance of the cue when hitting the cue ball, etc.
Second reason: one word -- marketing. Predator markets their product so profusely and so prominently, that their name is at the top of every pool player's mind. Predator's name is omni-present precisely because of this successful marketing campaign. I'm not saying this is wrong; I'm just saying don't be a lemming in a long line of lemmings jumping off the Predator cliff sight-unseen, "because it's the safe choice." Try a Predator yourself. Put a blindfold on, if you have to, to prevent the markings and branding on the cue from swaying your decision merely because of "eye candy" (admittedly, that cat logo is very cool). Feel the cue, shoot with it for a while (at least a rack or so). Judge for yourself. You may find you like a Predator cue. Or not. But at least you gave it the ol' "boy scout try." Personally, the only Predator product I liked, was the original 314 shaft. But something changed after that product, and I can't quite put my finger on it -- I find the products after the original 314 to be, for lack of a better term, "ho hum." But that's just my personal impression -- and that's the whole point of my post, to let you know this is a very personal thing. You need to try cues for yourself.
Is that to say that if you purchase a Predator sight-unseen, would you be unhappy with it? No. You might find you'll "adapt" to it, especially if the looks appeal to you (there's that "eye candy" thing again). But the real way to purchase a cue, a cue that you'll really attach to and become part of you, is if you select by feel.
Many a cue I've purchased over my lifetime that was based purely on feel, that I later sold, that I now regret. And yes, I've done the blind purchase thing, and the cue turned out "ok," but it didn't have the magic of the cues that I purchased primarily for their feel and hit.
I hope this is helpful!
-Sean
