I, for one, like to see an American company try to support pool. Good for them.
Heaven forbid they try to change their products and try something new. The same comments were made when companies first went to carbon fiber and we see how that turned out.
It's not surprising that pool has a hard time gaining traction when the people who play it constantly want to tear it down.
I am not tearing OB down, Quite the opposite. I have invested in OB products from the start (I have 6 OB Classic shafts for three cues, an OB cue butt and a Digi Cue Blue).
I support pool ( payed for streaming matches, payed for instruction, played in numerous tournaments, cash leagues and purchased many cases, tips, accessories and cues over my life).
As a customer I have the right to share my opinion (I have invested).
So when OB collapsed it was disappointing that the new owner dumped all the past products (it appears to be a manufacturing cost issue).
If OB's new products are an improvement over the old line then their marketing is poor. There is little explanation on the web site of the technology in the new versus the old.
I would support OB in the future if I was confident that they are doing right by the customer once again. My last experience was waiting months for a warranty repair and then the company changed owners.
So I am entitled to feel the way I do (not tearing anyone down). Just sharing my thoughts...