It was with a bit of trepidation that I bought this cue over ebay after reading about the problems some members had after buying Filli cues. But while many of those who encountered problems live in more temperate climes, I figured I would be ok since I'm in Malaysia. And so far so good really.
The specs:
- 59" length
- 21oz weight
- 5/16x18tpi stainless steel joint
- ivorine ferrules
- Malaysian redwood butt
- Cobra skin wrap
- mother of pearl and ivory inlays
Weight was originally 19oz with Phenolic joint. I had these changed because I like a hefty hit. Also change to 5/16 joint from uni-loc because of a Players cue I have and the house cues where I play. Was the most common joint for me.
I've had the chance to shoot with McDermott, Fury, Poison, Predator, Lucasi, Players, DC, Dufferin and various made in China cues. This cue is one of the most powerful and hardest hitting cues of the lot. Partly due to the weight and stainless joint no doubt.
I consider myself an average player so I'm still a "banger" to better players. I don't know yet how to appreciate the "finesse" of lighter, more expensive cues with wood joints. So yes, in a way I had this cue made to be a sledgehammer rather than magic wand.
So far I've had about 15+ hours of solid play with this cue and I'm pretty happy with it. The decoration work is well done, no holes or raised inlays, etc.
Bought 2 shafts with the cue, one is a 12.75mm with LePro tip, another 13mm with med-hard Elk Master. The Lepro was sanded down to dime shape while with the Master I tried going with a flatter nickle shape.
Initial testing - with the LePro shaft, absolute disaster! Still not sure what sort of taper is on the "thinner" shaft but didn't like the feel of it going through my fingers. Felt a bit like a toothpick? I tended to spoon the ball when trying to draw and english was sending the cue ball everywhere. I still haven't figured out if this is due to the smaller diameter tip, the taper of the shaft or the tip shape. I've put this shaft aside for the time being.
I'm playing more with the Master more at the moment. The weight of the cue + nickle shape tended to push the cue ball further in a straight line before curving off when using english or attempting masses. This improved a bit when I got the house pro to round the tip up a bit. Can't quite get a dime shape as the tip was too thin. Starting to mushroom a bit after 10+ hours. Thinking of changing back to a LePro which I'm more familiar with.
Left - 12.75mm LePro, dime shape, med-hard.
Right - 13mm Elk Master, nickle shape, med-hard.
Other thing is the wrap - though it was meant to be cobra skin "wrap", the skin is really under a thick layer of varnish / finishing so the cue really feels like a wrapless.
In conclusion - this cue plays like something 2 or 3 times it's price. Value for money and really happy with it.
The specs:
- 59" length
- 21oz weight
- 5/16x18tpi stainless steel joint
- ivorine ferrules
- Malaysian redwood butt
- Cobra skin wrap
- mother of pearl and ivory inlays
Weight was originally 19oz with Phenolic joint. I had these changed because I like a hefty hit. Also change to 5/16 joint from uni-loc because of a Players cue I have and the house cues where I play. Was the most common joint for me.
I've had the chance to shoot with McDermott, Fury, Poison, Predator, Lucasi, Players, DC, Dufferin and various made in China cues. This cue is one of the most powerful and hardest hitting cues of the lot. Partly due to the weight and stainless joint no doubt.
I consider myself an average player so I'm still a "banger" to better players. I don't know yet how to appreciate the "finesse" of lighter, more expensive cues with wood joints. So yes, in a way I had this cue made to be a sledgehammer rather than magic wand.
So far I've had about 15+ hours of solid play with this cue and I'm pretty happy with it. The decoration work is well done, no holes or raised inlays, etc.
Bought 2 shafts with the cue, one is a 12.75mm with LePro tip, another 13mm with med-hard Elk Master. The Lepro was sanded down to dime shape while with the Master I tried going with a flatter nickle shape.
Initial testing - with the LePro shaft, absolute disaster! Still not sure what sort of taper is on the "thinner" shaft but didn't like the feel of it going through my fingers. Felt a bit like a toothpick? I tended to spoon the ball when trying to draw and english was sending the cue ball everywhere. I still haven't figured out if this is due to the smaller diameter tip, the taper of the shaft or the tip shape. I've put this shaft aside for the time being.
I'm playing more with the Master more at the moment. The weight of the cue + nickle shape tended to push the cue ball further in a straight line before curving off when using english or attempting masses. This improved a bit when I got the house pro to round the tip up a bit. Can't quite get a dime shape as the tip was too thin. Starting to mushroom a bit after 10+ hours. Thinking of changing back to a LePro which I'm more familiar with.
Left - 12.75mm LePro, dime shape, med-hard.
Right - 13mm Elk Master, nickle shape, med-hard.
Other thing is the wrap - though it was meant to be cobra skin "wrap", the skin is really under a thick layer of varnish / finishing so the cue really feels like a wrapless.
In conclusion - this cue plays like something 2 or 3 times it's price. Value for money and really happy with it.
