Help with cue, please

G

Gloor

Member
Hello,

I'm looking for a new cue as I plan to get back into the game.
Here is my background:

As a junior I used to play professionally in my country. On weekends I would often train 10+ hours and I won few tournaments. For national championship I ended up on the 8th position which (to date) was my 'best' achievement on that level of play. (it was 9 ball game - not what I preferred as I was 8 ball player but somehow got higher in 9 ball game).
Then I met my first serious girlfriend and I started slacking and eventually stopped playing/training. Now, 25 years later I've decided to pick up the game again and play frequently (1x week for few hours). Until now I would play occasionally once every few months so I'm super rusty.

Anyway, I've noticed that my old cue is warped so I'm looking for a new one. As my life circumstances changed (not a poor student anymore) I'm willing to buy a nice cue as a treat although I don't plan to 'waste' money on just crazy stuff.

I've found this Meucci casino CF cue that looks really nice and the reviews seem good and the price is not crazy (I hope) so I'm leaning towards that but a lot has changed since when I played properly and my old cue was nothing fancy (and definitely not LD one) so I'm sure anything will be awesome but I like the idea of a treat.

What would you suggest? I looked at the predator cues but they seem to be a bit 'boring'

One thing I didn't want to do few weeks ago was to get CF as I thought it was another gimmick. However, looking into it more maybe its the best for me (hence the Meucci).

Little important info - I moved to Canada (Montreal) as the temperature range is crazy here so I think I can't have wood as I'm sure that would warp eventually (as any wood, right?) so I would need a cue that would be ok and also advice on good case that would protect the cue from warping and temperature. (I usually spend about 20-30mins walking to the pool hall and it gets very cold here)

Also, any MTL players here that could help me with other things (like local store, local repair store for tips adjustments etc.)?

Anyway, my main question is - What would you recommend, please?
 
Meucci has turned to crap. They might have been good 25 years ago, today not so much. Today pretty much every one is playing with a Low Deflection Shaft. Depending on your budget is where you begin on cue choice.
 
Yeah, I've noticed that LD is where its at. Well, what brand would you suggest then, please? I think I would like to stay under $2000 and would want a cue that will last me for another 30 or so years. (hence why I am ok to pay more)
CF should last that long, no? Or is there another tech that is good with extreme temperatures? MTL goes often to -30C which doesn't mean that the cue will be exposed to that as it will be in a case but I'm sure the case will let some of that go in if I walk outside for 20-30mins (I don't have a car)

Zerksies said:
Meucci has turned to crap. They might have been good 25 years ago, today not so much. Today pretty much every one is playing with a Low Deflection Shaft. Depending on your budget is where you begin on cue choice.
Click to expand...
 
Gloor said:
Yeah, I've noticed that LD is where its at. Well, what brand would you suggest then, please? I think I would like to stay under $2000 and would want a cue that will last me for another 30 or so years. (hence why I am ok to pay more)
CF should last that long, no? Or is there another tech that is good with extreme temperatures? MTL goes often to -30C which doesn't mean that the cue will be exposed to that as it will be in a case but I'm sure the case will let some of that go in if I walk outside for 20-30mins (I don't have a car)
Click to expand...
CF has been around for a few years now and I don't think it's going anywhere. I even switched to CF and love it, I was using wood shafts for 20+ years.

Are you just looking for a playing cue? And a break cue, Jump cue and Case?

$2000 is a lot for me to spend. I just like to know how to spend it.
 
Grimper said:
Predator REVO or Cuetec Cynergy would be my recommendation.
Click to expand...
The REVO looks great, just not sure what CUE to go with it. Don't really like their offering.
As for Cuetec, I've heard somewhere that they are more fluff & marketing and less performance quality. Why did you say Cuetec, please?
 
For now, not looking for a break cue or jump cue as I will be using my old (slightly warped) cue for breaks.
I was never big on jumps to be honest so its not something I'm crazy about yet. For now its just the cue and a good case that will protect it from the weather. If CF doesn't warp at all (I assume it doesn't, right?) then I would guess that the case doesn't need to be crazy expensive, no?

I love Meucci as I loved the Casino Joker edition - it looks beautiful but at the end of the day, Predator seems to be much cheaper and in all honestly I probably won't notice much difference. The reason why I loved the Meucci is because I saw a nice video on youtube and loved it. I'm sure with time I'll find something I'll love too.
Btw, I prefer linen handle over leather or nothing. Leather will wear off and having nothing isn't something I want as I don't like the feeling in hand. (also reminds me the house cues on touch)



Zerksies said:
CF has been around for a few years now and I don't think it's going anywhere. I even switched to CF and love it.

Are you just looking for a playing cue? And a break cue, Jump cue and Case?

$2000 is a lot for me to spend. I just like to know how to spend it.
Click to expand...
 
Gloor said:
For now, not looking for a break cue or jump cue as I will be using my old (slightly warped) cue for breaks.
I was never big on jumps to be honest so its not something I'm crazy about yet. For now its just the cue and a good case that will protect it from the weather. If CF doesn't warp at all (I assume it doesn't, right?) then I would guess that the case doesn't need to be crazy expensive, no?

I love Meucci as I loved the Casino Joker edition - it looks beautiful but at the end of the day, Predator seems to be much cheaper and in all honestly I probably won't notice much difference. The reason why I loved the Meucci is because I saw a nice video on youtube and loved it. I'm sure with time I'll find something I'll love too.
Btw, I prefer linen handle over leather or nothing. Leather will wear off and having nothing isn't something I want as I don't like the feeling in hand. (also reminds me the house cues on touch)
Click to expand...
Meucci has turned to crap. They are not as good they were years ago.

Predator makes a good cue, I’m using one myself. Any one of their cues can use a CF shaft.
 
Gloor said:
For now, not looking for a break cue or jump cue as I will be using my old (slightly warped) cue for breaks.
I was never big on jumps to be honest so its not something I'm crazy about yet. For now its just the cue and a good case that will protect it from the weather. If CF doesn't warp at all (I assume it doesn't, right?) then I would guess that the case doesn't need to be crazy expensive, no?

I love Meucci as I loved the Casino Joker edition - it looks beautiful but at the end of the day, Predator seems to be much cheaper and in all honestly I probably won't notice much difference. The reason why I loved the Meucci is because I saw a nice video on youtube and loved it. I'm sure with time I'll find something I'll love too.
Btw, I prefer linen handle over leather or nothing. Leather will wear off and having nothing isn't something I want as I don't like the feeling in hand. (also reminds me the house cues on touch)
Click to expand...
You just might want to go to a room and try a few different cues out. Asking for opinions is
like sifting through grains of sand, everyone's is different. Just get out and try a few to see/feel/
experience what feels right for you.

hank
 
I wanted to do that but here in Montreal its a bit 'crappy'. I went to 2 stores. One didn't have anyone knowledgeable so when I asked about LD the staff had no clue and told me that the person that knows these things is not working on that day. (They had 4 people in the store no one knew anything about cues but apparently this one dude that was off that day).
Then I went to another store and the guy told me that I can't try the cues as it would be deemed as 'used' and people wouldn't buy them!!!! (Got me furious and I left). Problem with Montreal - really really bad customer service.
Anyway, I'm still looking for more stores and yesterday I've found one 1h away from Montreal so maybe I'll have more luck there.

To me, opinions are important as I'm so out of date on this tech. A cue that feels good to me may not be the right one in the end. I'm happy to get 'used' to a new cue but I need to know what to look for or where to start. I now know that LD is a must and probably CF too due to weather conditions too. As Meucci got shot down (until I get more opinions) I'm leaning towards REVO as that brand seems to be all over the internet so that tells me 2 things:
1) they have really good marketing team
2) they are that good

Cuetec has nicer looking CF as the white thing (ferrule its called?) is a bit longer than REVO but apparently the LD is not as good.

Also, what is the verdict on Kamui tips? Is that something people prefer? Which lasts longer or is better quality? Ideally for me I want something that requires less maintenance as I don't want to be dealing with the rudeness here too often.

I was also thinking to drive to Toronto for a trip or to the USA and find something there. (in a reasonable radius from MTL of course) :-D


TheBasics said:
You just might want to go to a room and try a few different cues out. Asking for opinions is
like sifting through grains of sand, everyone's is different. Just get out and try a few to see/feel/
experience what feels right for you.

hank
Click to expand...
 
Gloor said:
The REVO looks great, just not sure what CUE to go with it. Don't really like their offering.
As for Cuetec, I've heard somewhere that they are more fluff & marketing and less performance quality. Why did you say Cuetec, please?
Click to expand...
The main difference (to me) between the Cuetec and the Predator is in the taper. Cuetec is big on "super slim taper" -- ideally if you have friends with each cue it would be great if you could try both.

I, much like you, got back into pool after an absence of 30 years. Predator and Cuetec (and Carbon Fiber) seemed to be the "big dogs" in the arena, so I bought one of each, figuring I'd find the one I preferred and then sell the other. They're both great cues, and for the longest time I mainly played with the Cuetec CT948 playing cue.

Over the course of the last year, though, I've slowly gone over to the Predator REVO side. So I finally sold my two cues I'd bought (actually, 3 -- a McDermott with the CF Defy shaft), put the money together and splurged on a Predator P3 with a 12.9mm tip. I'm the kind of OCD person that would constantly be searching for that "perfect cue" if I didn't just put my foot down and make myself stop :)

Honestly, for less than $1,000 I don't think you would be disappointed with either the Revo or Cynergy. Just be sure to try out that Cuetec "super slim" taper -- because it really is!

Here's the Predator P3 I settled on:

www.predatorcues.com

Predator P3 REVO Bocote Pool Cue - Luxe Leather Wrap

www.predatorcues.com www.predatorcues.com
 
One option you may want to try is getting the cue that you want and like the look of (like the Meucci) and then find a better LD/CF shaft than what Meucci offers. This way you get the best of both worlds. Most manufacturers make CF shafts with multiple joint options.
 
Looks great! Not a big fan of leather wraps but the cue looks nice.
I'm little OCD too in a way that I tend to chase the "perfect" thing which is exhausting as internet is full of fake reviews, exaggerated claims and marketing bullshit. I almost feel that marketing should be 100% true and if its not it should not be allowed. (one example is the Gillette razor commercial - no way one can shave with just one move :-) )

I'm leaning towards REVO for now. I don't know the difference between the tip size but I'd assume that 12.5mm is probably good enough for me.

What tip is good on that one, please? Does it matter?


Grimper said:
The main difference (to me) between the Cuetec and the Predator is in the taper. Cuetec is big on "super slim taper" -- ideally if you have friends with each cue it would be great if you could try both.

I, much like you, got back into pool after an absence of 30 years. Predator and Cuetec (and Carbon Fiber) seemed to be the "big dogs" in the arena, so I bought one of each, figuring I'd find the one I preferred and then sell the other. They're both great cues, and for the longest time I mainly played with the Cuetec CT948 playing cue.

Over the course of the last year, though, I've slowly gone over to the Predator REVO side. So I finally sold my two cues I'd bought (actually, 3 -- a McDermott with the CF Defy shaft), put the money together and splurged on a Predator P3 with a 12.9mm tip. I'm the kind of OCD person that would constantly be searching for that "perfect cue" if I didn't just put my foot down and make myself stop :)

Honestly, for less than $1,000 I don't think you would be disappointed with either the Revo or Cynergy. Just be sure to try out that Cuetec "super slim" taper -- because it really is!

Here's the Predator P3 I settled on:

www.predatorcues.com

Predator P3 REVO Bocote Pool Cue - Luxe Leather Wrap

www.predatorcues.com www.predatorcues.com
Click to expand...
 
I was thinking that too. I was also contemplating the idea to use my old butt and just get the shaft and play with that in the meantime before I find a cue I like. I really like the Meucci one but on this forum people are not as hot about Meucci. Also, apparently their customer service is horrible and last thing I want to deal with is some representative not caring when you spend this much money. As its family business its surprising that the CS is this bad (as people say).
I will later post a picture of my cue (as crappy and as embarrassing the cue is just to get help what the lock is etc.) ;-)

ACL said:
One option you may want to try is getting the cue that you want and like the look of (like the Meucci) and then find a better LD/CF shaft than what Meucci offers. This way you get the best of both worlds. Most manufacturers make CF shafts with multiple joint options.
Click to expand...
 
Gloor said:
I was thinking that too. I was also contemplating the idea to use my old butt and just get the shaft and play with that in the meantime before I find a cue I like. I really like the Meucci one but on this forum people are not as hot about Meucci. Also, apparently their customer service is horrible and last thing I want to deal with is some representative not caring when you spend this much money. As its family business its surprising that the CS is this bad (as people say).
I will later post a picture of my cue (as crappy and as embarrassing the cue is just to get help what the lock is etc.) ;-)
Click to expand...
I can confirm that the CS at Meucci is horrific. I have a Meucci Original that I bought 30+ years ago and I called to ask them questions about it. They were rude and very unhelpful. That said, I love my old cue but wanted to keep up with technology. I ended up having a custom Hsunami (kielwood) shaft made for it and it hit like a dream. The downside to having a shaft like that made is that it took about 15 weeks.
 
Meucci is changing quickly. The company was sold in October to two guys who are taking things seriously. I bought my first Meucci 30 years ago and just got it back from a complete refurbish, it looks brand new. I also have purchased four new Meucci's in the past six months, in both wood and CF shafts. I have a Revo, Defy, and Meucci CF. I prefer the Meucci.

I own the Casino-8, it is a great shooter.

Yes, their CS has been shitty lately but is clearly improving.
 
I wrote to them a month ago and still haven't received any response. (and i was asking about a custom cue etc.)
How can a company ignore a potential sale worth around $2000 is beyond me.

tg_vegas said:
Meucci is changing quickly. The company was sold in October to two guys who are taking things seriously. I bought my first Meucci 30 years ago and just got it back from a complete refurbish, it looks brand new. I also have purchased four new Meucci's in the past six months, in both wood and CF shafts. I have a Revo, Defy, and Meucci CF. I prefer the Meucci.

I own the Casino-8, it is a great shooter.

Yes, their CS has been shitty lately but is clearly improving.
Click to expand...
 
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