Having spent hours upon hours working on my stroke, I have noticed several things about my shaft (Predator Z2) that are difficult to notice any other way. I'm talking about shooting straight in drawshots at various speeds on a snooker table (though I mainly use it for pool), slow rolling balls over and over again as well as shooting shots at ridiculously high speeds to find weaknesses.
I've come to the conclusion that this shaft is in fact costing me misses and matches! I should say that up until now I have been very happy with my cue/shaft combination, but having spent a lot of time with it (having used this for my main player, ever since it came out, and the Z before that) I've noticed that it's behaviour under certain conditions is less than predictable. Of course my level of play (and competition) has increased to the point where a single mistake will cost a lot more.
Slow rolls: I've noticed that, especially when tight against the cushion, playing softly, the shaft tends to bounce off the cueball rather than go through. That is in fact what it is designed to do with sidespin, but when shooting from the cushion or over a ball, it's not a good thing! You need a better stroke to avoid miscues with this shaft than with others with more endmass. I know about contact times etc, but I don't care if this is a result of pre-impact or at-impact effects. The results are there, at least for me. If you hit it perfectly, it won't matter, but with less than optimal strokes, a miscue may result! I know the downward press techniques etc, but still, you are getting this effect for free with a heavier front shaft.
Draw shots: This is where I was surprised. I videotaped myself directly from the front, shooting a hard drawshot (with the aim to scratch in the pocket behind the ball). One stroke in particular was near perfect, but the shafts behaviour was not! It was a powerful stroke in a straight line, but the shaft bent violently downwards, and was then kicked up into the air and out of my bridge (this was with light snooker balls and an open bridge), i was completely stationary with the bridgehand. While most shafts will do this to a degree, I was shocked by how violent the movement of this shaft was!
The same is true for powerful top spin shots(in reverse) but much less of a problem, especially since you don't get the rebound the same way.
The behavior of the shaft seems to be completely different with varying speeds, and even though my speed control is satisfactory (but a work in progress), I still feel that the erratic bending and bouncing of the shaft is lessening the feel and feedback. You never get the solid feeling of driving through the ball, as you would with a snooker cue for instance. Tactile feedback is important to me and others to guide our speed control. I think the erratic behavior of this and other shafts like it, is why nearly every top player I know stopped using them after a while. They changed to the 314, that has a bit more mass in the front. The speed control of the lighter z2 is just too inexact.
The lesser weight in the end is IMO decreasing the accuracy of tip placement on very slow, delicate shots, as you might need in 14.1.
If you have a difficult stretch shot over the rack, the small diameter may be helpful, but if your stance is slightly awkward, the low endmass makes the shot more difficult (accurately placing the tip when the tip is light). I find it easier to guide a heavier shaft (with more endmass) in a PERFECTLY straight and accurate line on these shots. The endmass is also impacting the balance of the cue in subtle ways.
I find that with this shaft, I need to hit certain shots with a closed bridge, that I would otherwise shoot with an open bridge (for the reasons previously mentioned). Being a snooker/pool player I don't like it.
I'm sure there will be a lot of hate from the lovers of these, and other ld-shafts, but these are merely my observations, not a physics term paper, nor a definitive work on cue playability. Also I've owned and used this shaft seemingly forever and always defended it, but I've finally realized several weaknesses.
