I switched to the Revo at the beginning of the year. It is a 12.4m with the radial pin using a Kamui black soft tip on my Samsara cue stick. My former shaft was a 314-2 which was very thin and very low deflection.
Purpose of the switch: I was not looking for a magical shaft that would miss less balls. The main purpose of the switch is to acquire a shaft that didn't ding and didn't wear down. What prompted me to post today was a thread on 'how to get a ding out of a shaft'. Ug. That used to be me posting. It might have only been a couple of times a year, but it felt like I was always wetting my cue, taping it up, sanding it off. Or paying someone to do it. Or playing with dings. Or all of the above.
Then, after 10 years of playing my shaft seemed to have thinned out a bit. It was always a thin shaft, but it had gotten even thinner making the tip very narrow diameter. Striking the cue ball accurately felt it was getting more difficult, for example if I was close to a ball shooting to a distant pocket the slightest mishit could result in unwanted spin which would twist the ball out of the pocket. Getting a different 314-2 didn't appeal as each one seemed to hit slightly differently and I'd still contend with these other issues. Bottom line, the idea of having the last shaft of my life which wouldn't ding or wear down was very appealing.
How it hits: Interestingly enough the Revo has more deflection than my 314-2 did. Maybe my 314-2 was thinned out and deflecting less (it was as close to no deflection as I've ever used). I don't know. But I don't much care. Centerball doesn't deflect at all, and with a wider diameter tip I can strike center more easily, so in that way it's lower deflection (I understand this would be a benefit of any wider diameter but it's part of my overall comparison). Using moderate sidespin and moderate speed (less than one tip and at an average speed of delivery) it deflects a little, but not much. It is consistent and easy to account for. At high speed with extreme sidespin it deflects quite a bit more than my old shaft. Fortunately I don't hit warp speed strokes with extreme english on difficult shots very often. When I do my success rate is equally dismal regardless of shaft type. I have learned to adjust and make these shots with the closest thing to consistency I'll ever achieve. So overall I wasn't thrilled with the low deflection, but it wasn't too disappointing.
What I do enjoy is the solid feeling of the hit. I have deleted this sentence a number of times because it's hard to explain. Let me just say on 3/4 table shots I feel like I am pointing and clicking. I line up, bring the cue stick back straight, and smooth forward with a smooth delivery, and that cue ball goes right where I'm staring. OK, shouldn't all cue sticks do that? Of course. But with my last cue stick it felt like there was more distance to the object ball, or more adversity to be overcome to do exactly that. Point and click is the best way I can explain it. On shots where I have a flat angle and have to use a firmer pace to stun the cue ball my accuracy has gone up tremendously. These are very crucial shots in rotation games and I love it.
Finally (this could just be due to tip size, nothing particular with the Revo), I am able to get more on the cue ball. Shots where I cut a ball down the side rail with low outside I can get a full diamond further up the other side rail. You know the shot. It's like I can really grab the ball and twist it in the hole, and the draw on the ball bends the cue ball back, then the english grabs the rail and flings me up table. It's almost like before I could stun with a twist of outside, now I'm getting draw action with real spin.
Overall switching experience: The first few days I was excited to try and only noticed the positives. Then after a few weeks I went through a depression. Certain finesse shots seemed challenging. Gentle half masses, throw shots, touch shots. The greater deflection on hard spin shots. It was really a challenge, and for a couple of weeks I felt like giving it up. Then I looked over at my worn 314-2 with dings and decided to stick it out.
Ever since then I've grown to love it. I've gotten used to the feel of it and can now handle all of the little finesse and touch shots. My masse shots are still a hair off, this is the only thing that hasn't fully come back. But everything else is easier. I have a cue that feels brand new every day, that hits the cue ball where I'm looking, and allows me to generate more speed and power with a thrilling degree of accuracy. I feel more solid at the table and am playing better than ever. I don't credit the cue stick for being magic. I am the one doing the shooting. But it is nice to have a shaft that delivers what I ask of it.
Let me know if you have any questions and I'll be happy to share my thoughts. I should mention I play mostly 9/10 ball, then a mix of bar table 8 ball, one pocket, straight pool, and three cushion billiards in descending order of frequency.
Purpose of the switch: I was not looking for a magical shaft that would miss less balls. The main purpose of the switch is to acquire a shaft that didn't ding and didn't wear down. What prompted me to post today was a thread on 'how to get a ding out of a shaft'. Ug. That used to be me posting. It might have only been a couple of times a year, but it felt like I was always wetting my cue, taping it up, sanding it off. Or paying someone to do it. Or playing with dings. Or all of the above.
Then, after 10 years of playing my shaft seemed to have thinned out a bit. It was always a thin shaft, but it had gotten even thinner making the tip very narrow diameter. Striking the cue ball accurately felt it was getting more difficult, for example if I was close to a ball shooting to a distant pocket the slightest mishit could result in unwanted spin which would twist the ball out of the pocket. Getting a different 314-2 didn't appeal as each one seemed to hit slightly differently and I'd still contend with these other issues. Bottom line, the idea of having the last shaft of my life which wouldn't ding or wear down was very appealing.
How it hits: Interestingly enough the Revo has more deflection than my 314-2 did. Maybe my 314-2 was thinned out and deflecting less (it was as close to no deflection as I've ever used). I don't know. But I don't much care. Centerball doesn't deflect at all, and with a wider diameter tip I can strike center more easily, so in that way it's lower deflection (I understand this would be a benefit of any wider diameter but it's part of my overall comparison). Using moderate sidespin and moderate speed (less than one tip and at an average speed of delivery) it deflects a little, but not much. It is consistent and easy to account for. At high speed with extreme sidespin it deflects quite a bit more than my old shaft. Fortunately I don't hit warp speed strokes with extreme english on difficult shots very often. When I do my success rate is equally dismal regardless of shaft type. I have learned to adjust and make these shots with the closest thing to consistency I'll ever achieve. So overall I wasn't thrilled with the low deflection, but it wasn't too disappointing.
What I do enjoy is the solid feeling of the hit. I have deleted this sentence a number of times because it's hard to explain. Let me just say on 3/4 table shots I feel like I am pointing and clicking. I line up, bring the cue stick back straight, and smooth forward with a smooth delivery, and that cue ball goes right where I'm staring. OK, shouldn't all cue sticks do that? Of course. But with my last cue stick it felt like there was more distance to the object ball, or more adversity to be overcome to do exactly that. Point and click is the best way I can explain it. On shots where I have a flat angle and have to use a firmer pace to stun the cue ball my accuracy has gone up tremendously. These are very crucial shots in rotation games and I love it.
Finally (this could just be due to tip size, nothing particular with the Revo), I am able to get more on the cue ball. Shots where I cut a ball down the side rail with low outside I can get a full diamond further up the other side rail. You know the shot. It's like I can really grab the ball and twist it in the hole, and the draw on the ball bends the cue ball back, then the english grabs the rail and flings me up table. It's almost like before I could stun with a twist of outside, now I'm getting draw action with real spin.
Overall switching experience: The first few days I was excited to try and only noticed the positives. Then after a few weeks I went through a depression. Certain finesse shots seemed challenging. Gentle half masses, throw shots, touch shots. The greater deflection on hard spin shots. It was really a challenge, and for a couple of weeks I felt like giving it up. Then I looked over at my worn 314-2 with dings and decided to stick it out.
Ever since then I've grown to love it. I've gotten used to the feel of it and can now handle all of the little finesse and touch shots. My masse shots are still a hair off, this is the only thing that hasn't fully come back. But everything else is easier. I have a cue that feels brand new every day, that hits the cue ball where I'm looking, and allows me to generate more speed and power with a thrilling degree of accuracy. I feel more solid at the table and am playing better than ever. I don't credit the cue stick for being magic. I am the one doing the shooting. But it is nice to have a shaft that delivers what I ask of it.
Let me know if you have any questions and I'll be happy to share my thoughts. I should mention I play mostly 9/10 ball, then a mix of bar table 8 ball, one pocket, straight pool, and three cushion billiards in descending order of frequency.
