Mezz WD 700 Shafts

[JoeyA]

For those of you who have shot with a MEZZ WD 700 shaft, what are your thoughts about its performance. Comparisons would be great as well.

I have always wanted to hit some balls with a Mezz WD700 shaft to see how they play but my Bender cue uses a different thread than what is offered on the MEZZ cue web site.

Thanks,

 

[~jj~]

They have the feel of a 1 piece maple shaft because they are. The hit feels a little stiffer, but not quite as solid through the cue ball as a solid shaft. To me, the predators feel dead in comparison and I get more feedback with the mezz. The performance of the wd700 is similar to an original 314 as far as deflection goes. It's really not all that noticeable to me.

I just hit with all three shafts last night. The mezz feels way better than the first gen predator and performs equally. The conventional shaft really goes through the cue ball the best, but the mezz is pretty close in comparison.

you can get as many opinions as you like, but you know you just gotta try one out.

 

[Wedge]

Mezz WD700

My good friend Zion Zvi (Pro Player) talked me into using the Mezz WD700 and it plays great. Also you can't discount the fact that Mika Immonen uses it. I highly suggest trying it.

Wedhe

 

[JoeyA]

My good friend Zion Zvi (Pro Player) talked me into using the Mezz WD700 and it plays great. Also you can't discount the fact that Mika Immonen uses it. I highly suggest trying it.

Wedhe

I don't know what I would do if I liked the shaft, since they don't offer the thread I need for my Bender cue. Still, I would like to hit some balls with the WD700.

 

[~jj~]

I don't know what I would do if I liked the shaft, since they don't offer the thread I need for my Bender cue. Still, I would like to hit some balls with the WD700.

i'm not sure what thread the bender has, but you can get quite a few different options from mezz. The radial and the wavy joint are wood to wood as well, so I assume it's possible to get a mezz blank although I haven't heard of anyone doing this.

You could also get a radial or wavy, fill it and retap it too. If you wanted, i'm pretty sure you could make it work.

also, the standard united joint fits 5/16x14.

 

[JoeyA]

i'm not sure what thread the bender has, but you can get quite a few different options from mezz. The radial and the wavy joint are wood to wood as well, so I assume it's possible to get a mezz blank although I haven't heard of anyone doing this.

You could also get a radial or wavy, fill it and retap it too. If you wanted, i'm pretty sure you could make it work.

also, the standard united joint fits 5/16x14.

I don't see a "blank" WD 700 on their website. Maybe I will email them, AFTER I TEST DRIVE ONE.

Thanks,

 

[Wedge]

Suggestion

I recently had 2 custom cues made and ordered no shafts. Instead I sent the cuemaker 2 WD700 and he cut out the joint rings, matched them to my shafts and joint size. If you have a cuemaker, perhaps Bender, you deal with I am sure they can do it for you.

Hope this helps

Wedge

 

[~jj~]

I honestly can't believe this one hasn't sold. I'm really tempted to buy it even though I dont have a cue it would fit. I feel it is underpriced.

that being said, if you have a 5/16x14 lying around it would be tough to go wrong here:
http://forums.azbilliards.com/showthread.php?t=252656&highlight=wd700

 

[scottjen26]

I've been interested in these too, although someone mentioned to me how much they liked the Hybrid Pro II model, which I think is still 12.5 mm but has even less deflection than the WD700 model. Might be closer to a newer 314-2 I'm guessing but with a potentially more solid hit.

Anyone hit with these as well, to compare against WD700 or Predator? I hate to switch shafts (again) for no reason, and the price is up there, but a few things appeal to me. 12.5mm is the perfect size, can't find that in other LD shafts. Thread is perfect fit for Schon cue with nice deep pilot, unlike other shafts with thinner pilot. In theory, more solid hit and feel than Predator but with potentially same LD characteristics.

It would all come down to feel and english adjustments with the shaft, I sure would love to try before I buy but don't know anyone around who has one to try, same as Joey...

Scott

 

[Mainplayer]

This shafts shoots really straight!! It is a little to stiff for my liking though. It hit well on a uni-lock joint.

 

[8pack]

For those of you who have shot with a MEZZ WD 700 shaft, what are your thoughts about its performance. Comparisons would be great as well.

I have always wanted to hit some balls with a Mezz WD700 shaft to see how they play but my Bender cue uses a different thread than what is offered on the MEZZ cue web site.

Thanks,

They play great.The deflection is not as low as the predator 314-2 but still a great hitting shaft.

 

[Anecdote]

I've been playing with a Hybrid Pro II-shaft for the last four years now. It's a great shaft, very low deflection and can produce a lot of juice. Last fall, I bought a WD700-shaft and only recently started practicing with it. I'm kinda switching back and forth.

The WD700 is a great shaft. It's even easier to spin the ball and the deflection is even lower than the HPII. Even though Mezz says the Hybrid has the least deflection of all the Mezz-shafts. The hit of the WD700 is very crisp, it has a lot of feel to it. Shaft is very stiff, it gives me a lot of feedback.

A couple of things that caught my eye:

• On slow spin shots, the cue ball doesn't curve much. It's very predictable.
• Somehow I can't draw the ball as well as with the HPII, eventhough it's easier to spin the ball (left, right and high English). I guess it's just me having to adjust to the balance point, which is different from the HPII.
• It's very easy to adjust to the shaft, if you have played with a low deflection shaft before.

Hope that helps!

P.S. Love your commentary on some matches you did, JoeyA!

 

[nossi]

The good thing about WD700 shafts in comparison with 314shafts is that the hit feels better than a 314 shafts, but IMHO still not near as solid as a normal shaft because hollow in the front end after all. Regarding everything else they are like 314 shafts.

BUT WD700 shafts have the problem that they are made from lesser good wood quality (only few year rings, knothole eyes etc.) So the wood tends to be inhomogeneous which is IMHO a bad thing and as most cuemakers will confirm. Due to the lamination of multiple wood pieces the 314shafts dont have that problem (i think that might be one of the reasons for predator to use the laminated construction).

But i have the ULTIMATE solution for people wanting a low deflection shaft that hits and feels almost exactely like a normal shaft:
Buy a Hybrid Pro II shaft, send it to your cuemaker and let the european taper be adjusted to a Pro Taper.
The result is a shaft that is:
1. low deflection
2. made from good wood quality (mezz uses WAY better wood for these shafts than for the WD700 shafts. If you get to see many of them lying next to each other you can see it right away!)
3. hits extremely nice (due to the cabon fiber core in the front end and the better wood, which is usually more dense which results in a better hit)
4. is balanced properly (WD700 and 314 shafts IMHO have a poor weight distribution due to the hole in the front end. they tend to make every cue lesser forward balanced)
5. one more advantage IMHO is that this shaft will not tend to "overpower" every shot. 314 and WD700 shafts are spin monsters IMHO. Its so easy to apply a lot of spin that you might tend to have problems not shooting avery shot with maximum spin if you apply any of it.
6. and of course, after removing the ulta conical striff european taper, you have a nice taper as you know it from most good shafts.

I personally was really searching for a solution for that low deflextion misery of having shafts with no hit and no feel and alway maxium spin. The aforementioned really really made me happy!!!

 

[JoeyA]

I recently had 2 custom cues made and ordered no shafts. Instead I sent the cuemaker 2 WD700 and he cut out the joint rings, matched them to my shafts and joint size. If you have a cuemaker, perhaps Bender, you deal with I am sure they can do it for you.

Hope this helps

Wedge

It does help but I am curious to know if the shafts you purchased had the same THREAD SIZE on the Mezz shafts as you did on the custom cues?

I honestly can't believe this one hasn't sold. I'm really tempted to buy it even though I dont have a cue it would fit. I feel it is underpriced.

that being said, if you have a 5/16x14 lying around it would be tough to go wrong here:
http://forums.azbilliards.com/showthread.php?t=252656&highlight=wd700

Seems like a good price.....

I've been interested in these too, although someone mentioned to me how much they liked the Hybrid Pro II model, which I think is still 12.5 mm but has even less deflection than the WD700 model. Might be closer to a newer 314-2 I'm guessing but with a potentially more solid hit.

Anyone hit with these as well, to compare against WD700 or Predator? I hate to switch shafts (again) for no reason, and the price is up there, but a few things appeal to me. 12.5mm is the perfect size, can't find that in other LD shafts. Thread is perfect fit for Schon cue with nice deep pilot, unlike other shafts with thinner pilot. In theory, more solid hit and feel than Predator but with potentially same LD characteristics.

It would all come down to feel and english adjustments with the shaft, I sure would love to try before I buy but don't know anyone around who has one to try, same as Joey...

Scott

I am starting to wonder if a shaft can have too little deflection. I've played with LOTS of different shafts and am thinking that a little less low deflection might not be a bad thing.

This shafts shoots really straight!! It is a little to stiff for my liking though. It hit well on a uni-lock joint.

Thanks, Mike. Coming from a pro like yourself, your opinion is greatly valued. Still, as you already know, playability of a shaft is often in the brain of the player.

They play great.The deflection is not as low as the predator 314-2 but still a great hitting shaft.

that may not be a bad thing as I mentioned above.

I've been playing with a Hybrid Pro II-shaft for the last four years now. It's a great shaft, very low deflection and can produce a lot of juice. Last fall, I bought a WD700-shaft and only recently started practicing with it. I'm kinda switching back and forth.

The WD700 is a great shaft. It's even easier to spin the ball and the deflection is even lower than the HPII. Even though Mezz says the Hybrid has the least deflection of all the Mezz-shafts. The hit of the WD700 is very crisp, it has a lot of feel to it. Shaft is very stiff, it gives me a lot of feedback.

A couple of things that caught my eye:

• On slow spin shots, the cue ball doesn't curve much. It's very predictable.
• Somehow I can't draw the ball as well as with the HPII, eventhough it's easier to spin the ball (left, right and high English). I guess it's just me having to adjust to the balance point, which is different from the HPII.
• It's very easy to adjust to the shaft, if you have played with a low deflection shaft before.

Hope that helps!

P.S. Love your commentary on some matches you did, JoeyA!

WOW! Nice report, Anecdote!
When you can spin your rock easily, it just means that you can afford to stay closer to the center of the cue ball (vertical axis) and still get the spin you need without the unwanted squirt and that's a very good thing. Thanks for the nice words about the commentary. I'll be doing a little more commentary in the near future, at White Diamonds in Lafayette, LA March 10-11 and also at 4 Bears Classic tournament in North Dakota, April 19-22nd. There's some big money at stake, paying deep in the field so I will be playing in the 9 ball and the 8 ball events. You can tune in at www.poolactiontv.com for the details.

The good thing about WD700 shafts in comparison with 314shafts is that the hit feels better than a 314 shafts, but IMHO still not near as solid as a normal shaft because hollow in the front end after all. Regarding everything else they are like 314 shafts.

BUT WD700 shafts have the problem that they are made from lesser good wood quality (only few year rings, knothole eyes etc.) So the wood tends to be inhomogeneous which is IMHO a bad thing and as most cuemakers will confirm. Due to the lamination of multiple wood pieces the 314shafts dont have that problem (i think that might be one of the reasons for predator to use the laminated construction).

But i have the ULTIMATE solution for people wanting a low deflection shaft that hits and feels almost exactely like a normal shaft:
Buy a Hybrid Pro II shaft, send it to your cuemaker and let the european taper be adjusted to a Pro Taper.
The result is a shaft that is:
1. low deflection
2. made from good wood quality (mezz uses WAY better wood for these shafts than for the WD700 shafts. If you get to see many of them lying next to each other you can see it right away!)
3. hits extremely nice (due to the cabon fiber core in the front end and the better wood, which is usually more dense which results in a better hit)
4. is balanced properly (WD700 and 314 shafts IMHO have a poor weight distribution due to the hole in the front end. they tend to make every cue lesser forward balanced)
5. one more advantage IMHO is that this shaft will not tend to "overpower" every shot. 314 and WD700 shafts are spin monsters IMHO. Its so easy to apply a lot of spin that you might tend to have problems not shooting avery shot with maximum spin if you apply any of it.
6. and of course, after removing the ulta conical striff european taper, you have a nice taper as you know it from most good shafts.

I personally was really searching for a solution for that low deflextion misery of having shafts with no hit and no feel and alway maxium spin. The aforementioned really really made me happy!!!

VERY NICE POST! It would be nice to hit some balls with that after market Super Hybrid shaft as well. Sounds interesting.............

 

[RackOnTour]

WD700 info

They certainly hit great.
A lot of players over here are switching from the Predator shafts to the Mezz products - after the compulsory blindfold test.

Mezz are very helpful with special orders and try to accomodate any request. They may take a couple of months as they wait until they are doing production runs and that way they don't interfere with the quality. This is due to working on the same product at the same time = fantastic quality control. I have had a couple of custom requests made up and the customers were very happy.

Call Caroline at Mezz USA as a direct request from a dealer may get a better response and they may already have a special order list running that they can add to.

Richard - OzBilliards

PS - I am the Mezz agent for Australia. If you get stuck, PM me as I am in Japan a couple of times a year and have one special order that is going through soon

 

[nossi]

I am starting to wonder if a shaft can have too little deflection.

I kind of agree!
Low deflection can cause that you have to aim way off the normal line in an unusual way. This is simply because on slow speed maximum spin shots the swerfe/curve of the cueball will cause a higher direction deviation than the squirt. So for example: If i shoot a ball to the right and apply left hand spin on a slow speed shot the cueball wont squirt mutch to the right because of the low deflection shaft, but then especially with higher amounts of english it will swerfe a lot to the left right out of that squirt angle. This results in the fact, that you shoot a ball to the right with left hand spin and have to aim the ball THICKER, than with a no spin shot.
I will call that the low-deflection-paradox.
Just to be clear: With a normal shaft the abovementioned would not be the case becuase the higher amount of squirt would kind of compensate the swerfe, resulting that you might be able to aim completely like you wouldn`t apply any spin.

VERY NICE POST! It would be nice to hit some balls with that after market Super Hybrid shaft as well. Sounds interesting.............

Thanks for the nice words. Unfortunately i`m living on the other side of the pond (germany), so it`ll be quite difficult for you to hit some balls that shaft. I`ll be in the San Diego area in March and will stay there for a couple of month. Havent yet decided if i`ll bring my cue with me, or buy something on the second hand market in the USA.

 

[thefonz]

deflection deschmection

who care's about how much it deflects compared to a predator???

it hits the sh** and moves the ball around with ease. there's a reason why a lot of pro's play with them. makes playing pool fun.:thumbup:

 

[luke]

I find balance,feel and weight to be more important the the amount of deflection.

 

[mrinsatiable]

WD700 = Great Quality

BUT WD700 shafts have the problem that they are made from lesser good wood quality (only few year rings, knothole eyes etc.) So the wood tends to be inhomogeneous which is IMHO a bad thing and as most cuemakers will confirm.

Due to the lamination of multiple wood pieces the 314 shafts dont have that problem (i think that might be one of the reasons for predator to use the laminated construction).

This is not necessarily correct. As all the WD700 shafts I have are of super tight grain count and the wood quality is excellent. When given the opportunity look at all my shafts before purchasing them and hand pick thru them.

I bought a WD700 in Las Vegas directly from Caroline Pao and it was filled with super tight grain lines.

Predator uses the pie shape for two reasons:

1) They market the uniform stability of the shaft from 360 degrees

2) They can use any quality woods and simply cut them into pie pieces and glue them together for their shafts. Therefore no need to find highest quality of shaft wood to complete their products

Mezz on the other hand has uber quality standards and especially the WD700 shafts. I have owned 4 WD700's and all of them were great quality.

 

[mrinsatiable]

In terms of how to get a Bender version of a Mezz WD700:

-buy a 3/8-10 flat face version *I have a newer one for sale.*

-have either Bender or your local cue maker drill out the thread

-refill the thread with phenolic and glue

-retap the thread for your Bender..which I believe is 3/8-14

Any skilled cue maker should be able to help you out.