Mezz Cue "Stiff Hit" vs. Custom Cuemakers "Stiff Hit"

JAMSGOLF

JAMSGOLF

Golf & Pool-I'm addicted!
Silver Member
Okay, before anyone starts in on the "it's subjective" comments...I already know that...

I recently picked up a few Mezz Cues on trades, and I've never hit a cue that was as stiff as these!!! I've played other production cues (Adams/Balabushka, Schon, Joss) along with just about every LD shaft out there... I have NEVER hit a cue (production or customs) with as stiff of a hit that I've gotten out of these Mezz cues (both the stock Mezz Shaft and the WD700 - both are very very stiff). The closest LD shaft I've come across was a Meucci Black Dot with a 5/16x14 thread I put on one of my Joss cues. Bottom line, I've come to learn this is the feel I think I've been looking for...

I'm looking for input and opinions from individuals who have shot with Mezz cues...and own (or have shot with on more than one occasion) custom cues with the custom cue's stock shaft being played...

IN YOUR OPINION: Using the "stiffness" of the Mezz as a comparison, what custom cuemaker's cues do you think have AS stiff of a hit as Mezz Cues (or even stiffer...if that's even possible)???


Thanks for any and all input...

Jason
 
Wow...nothin...sheesh...anyone?...anyone?...Bueller...Bueller... :boring2:


Jason
 
Many, many custom builders use stiff tapers that equal or surpass the stiffness of Mezz. I don't find Mezz to be overly stiff. I think they are just about right, and play wonderfully. There is indeed a huge gap between them and other production cue companies. What you are noticing may not actually be "stiffness", but the life of a top grade shaft. Good shafts are resilient & strong. Mezz somehow uses only good wood in their shafts. It's hard for production cues to do this because of output, but Mezz must have somebody on the payrole that knows what to look for & they weed out the crap wood. Mind you, good wood & bad wood look exactly alike. Somebody at Mezz knows what they're doing. I have said it before, Mezz is the paramount production cue & up there with even the best custom builders in terms of playability.
 
You already said you didn't want any "subjective" comments. What else did you expect? Besides, what's the big deal about a stiff hitting cue? You need flex to play pool.
 
qbilder said:
Many, many custom builders use stiff tapers that equal or surpass the stiffness of Mezz. I don't find Mezz to be overly stiff. I think they are just about right, and play wonderfully. There is indeed a huge gap between them and other production cue companies. What you are noticing may not actually be "stiffness", but the life of a top grade shaft. Good shafts are resilient & strong. Mezz somehow uses only good wood in their shafts. It's hard for production cues to do this because of output, but Mezz must have somebody on the payrole that knows what to look for & they weed out the crap wood. Mind you, good wood & bad wood look exactly alike. Somebody at Mezz knows what they're doing. I have said it before, Mezz is the paramount production cue & up there with even the best custom builders in terms of playability.
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GREAT INPUT - Thank you very much!!!

Mitchxout said:
You already said you didn't want any "subjective" comments. What else did you expect? Besides, what's the big deal about a stiff hitting cue? You need flex to play pool.
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NOT SO GREAT INPUT - I usually dislike conversations in a written form, because people tend to "read" their own inflections in someone else's writing...to me you sound like a snot...but that's just my opinion and maybe I read your inflection incorrectly!

I didn't say I didn't want any "subjective" comments, so before you start writing anything that comes accross too snippy, be aware of what's really being asked...we've all seen the "what's the stiffest hitting cue" threads, which always get comments with regards to "stiffness" being such a subjective term and I wanted to head off any unwarranted and unnecessary replies by idiots who have no real input on the subject...but since it's a public forum, I guess I was naive to think I could have a thread filled with valuable input without SOMEONE interjecting nothing of any real value or ANYTHING of a positive nature!

I am/was looking for individuals who have hit with a Mezz cue and can compare their impression of the "stiffness" of a Mezz cue with that of any custom cuemakers they might have experience with...

Jason
 
qbilder said:
Many, many custom builders use stiff tapers that equal or surpass the stiffness of Mezz. I don't find Mezz to be overly stiff. I think they are just about right, and play wonderfully. There is indeed a huge gap between them and other production cue companies. What you are noticing may not actually be "stiffness", but the life of a top grade shaft. Good shafts are resilient & strong. Mezz somehow uses only good wood in their shafts. It's hard for production cues to do this because of output, but Mezz must have somebody on the payrole that knows what to look for & they weed out the crap wood. Mind you, good wood & bad wood look exactly alike. Somebody at Mezz knows what they're doing. I have said it before, Mezz is the paramount production cue & up there with even the best custom builders in terms of playability.
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There quality control must be why their cues are so ludicrously expensive.
 
TheThaiger said:
There quality control must be why their cues are so ludicrously expensive.
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Like anything else, you pay a lot more for the good stuff than you do the run of the mill stuff. You pay ludicrous prices for a Benz, compared to the more common Ford, Chevy, Toyota, Honda, etc. But you get something of much higher quality control, finer, nicer. There's a reason Mezz cost so much.
 
qbilder said:
Like anything else, you pay a lot more for the good stuff than you do the run of the mill stuff. You pay ludicrous prices for a Benz, compared to the more common Ford, Chevy, Toyota, Honda, etc. But you get something of much higher quality control, finer, nicer. There's a reason Mezz cost so much.
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I'm waiting to see the "longevity" factor come into play, but so far, I have to agree with Mezz being the premier production cuemaker I've encountered. I say "longevity" because I'm waiting to see how the shafts hold up to any warping issues over time... Look at both Joss and Schon cues (two of the supposed "top" production cuemakers) and there seem to be more "used" cues with shaft issues (rollout/warp/lift) than not. I know some of the issues are user related with regards to storage/location/humidity, and not all the blame belongs to the cumakers, but I think most cuemakers concentrate more on the aesthetics of the butt and put the performance of the shaft on the "back-burner" (NOT ALL OF THEM....).

This is why I wanted input from Mezz users. I like the hit of a Mezz and would like to see a custom cuemaker be able to make a cue to my aesthetic design with that same type of feeling I get from my Mezz...

Jason
 
Mezz has been around a long time. You might talk to Caroline from Mezz USA. She'd be able to help you with any questions.
 
I play with a Bobby Hunter and its got a real stiff hit.

Ive hit with the mezzo pu standard shaft and that plays pretty similar.
I also test hit the Alpha shaft and love the stiffness of it.
Its got the stiff hit of a standard shaft with a little less deflection.
 
I found Mezz with the wd700 shafts not that stiff at all and deflected much more than what I like.Now a Custom cuemaker can make tweak any shaft including a Mezz and it'll play all the better.Granted I like Predator alot,but again most of the LD shafts are universal where a cuemaker that uses premium wood can make you exactly what you want to a tee including low deflection.Some people may not be picky,some may not want to wait for a cue to be built,others might be a financial thing or a mental one.Whatever you feel makes your game better do it but for me I've heard the hype of all production cues and some are fantastic but there's something special about supporting a cuemaker to make you your dream cue and at the same time knowing your helping his life and family.Sorry for going a little off topic:smile:
 
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sugeknight said:
I play with a Bobby Hunter and its got a real stiff hit.

Ive hit with the mezzo pu standard shaft and that plays pretty similar.
I also test hit the Alpha shaft and love the stiffness of it.
Its got the stiff hit of a standard shaft with a little less deflection.
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Thank you very much for the input!!! This is what I'm looking for...I know people keep saying cuemakers can make a cue hit whatever way you want...I'm just looking for examples like this as to any cuemakers who actually HAVE ALREADY created a cue(s) with the same "feeling of hit" as a Mezz. So thank you very much!

scsuxci said:
...there's something special about supporting a cuemaker to make you your dream cue and at the same time knowing your helping his life and family.Sorry for going a little off topic:smile:
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I don't think you're off topic at all!!! That's the reason for this thread. I'm finding I'm more addicted to buying/trying cues...I have a certain design in my head that I would love to have as my "ultimate" playing cue...but I want it to be foremost a playing cue! I've played with a lot of production cues as well as a lot of different custom cues...I like the feeling of the hit with the Mezz. If I can find a custom cuemaker that can replicate that same hit with the aesthetic properties I'm wanting...I'm all over his/her cues!!!

Jason
 
JAMSGOLF said:
I have a certain design in my head that I would love to have as my "ultimate" playing cue...but I want it to be foremost a playing cue! I've played with a lot of production cues as well as a lot of different custom cues...I like the feeling of the hit with the Mezz. If I can find a custom cuemaker that can replicate that same hit with the aesthetic properties I'm wanting...I'm all over his/her cues!!!

Jason
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I purchased a Mezz with a WD700 shaft from Caroline Pao after a few conversations with Eric Crisp (qbilder). It plays very nicely but not overly stiff. I feel my Josey with a Timeless Timber shaft plays far stiffer. For that matter, my Sugartree and Mike Webb play stiffer as well.

My question to you is - What are you exactly looking for in a design that Mezz (or their high end division Exceed) not offer in looks that you want? It will be difficult for a CM to exactly replicate the "hit" of a Mezz. It may be close but never exact.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
CMD said:
I feel my Josey with a Timeless Timber shaft plays far stiffer. For that matter, my Sugartree and Mike Webb play stiffer as well.
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Perfect...these are the types of examples I'm looking for...now if I can just get you to agree to send those to me to "test hit", I'll be all set! ;) (Just Kidding!)

It's just when people are stuck in the middle of B.F.E. with no access to busy pool halls, they never get the chance to "test hit" other people's custom cues (which happens quite frequently for people). So, those of us out here in the middle of nowhere, we have to rely on people's comparisons to what we can each relate to.

The hit of a Mezz is the hit of a Mezz... One person may describe it as "extremely stiff" another person may describe it as "moderately stiff". Regardless of what words someone uses to decribe the hit, I can benefit from people who have found certain custom cuemakers cues to be a "similar" style of hit...

CMD said:
My question to you is - What are you exactly looking for in a design
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I hate to say it...but more of a traditional "Bushka" style cue (mind you with certain veneer colors/woods/inlays)...but essentially a more "traditional" looking cue.

Don't get me wrong, I love the looks of the higher end Mezz cues...but again, I like the traditional look as well...

Jason
 
JAMSGOLF said:
I hate to say it...but more of a traditional "Bushka" style cue (mind you with certain veneer colors/woods/inlays)...but essentially a more "traditional" looking cue.

Don't get me wrong, I love the looks of the higher end Mezz cues...but again, I like the traditional look as well...

Jason
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PM Wes Hunter here. He goes by, mission, on here. His cues are about the stiffest I know of & I believe he may have a cue on hand with a traditional design. If not, he does build exceptional traditional style cues. If stiff is what you are after, Wes is a good place to look.
 
Anyone else have a custom cuemaker in mind whose cues hit somewhat comparable to that of a Mezz...???

I really appreciate all the input thus far...

Jason
 
Why don't you get a cue maker to build the butt exactly like you want to fit a Mezz WD700 shaft? This might get you what you are looking for.
 
Not that stiff

I play with WD 700 on Joss. I think Joss shaft that came with the cue is stiffer than WD700, but JOSS shaft has lot more deflection.
WD700 is not that stiff, in my opinion.
 
I have owned probally about 6 Mezz cues. A few ZZ series -a EC7 and a MCP2.

I tried the WD700 and Hybrid Pro2 and prefer the WD700 as far a feel, but if you wan stiffer give the Hybrid Pro2 a try cause with the Carbon fiber center it's really stiff, and a slighty duller hit, but it's still a shaft that is prefered by allot of Mezz user's.
 
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