Thoughts on the Z² shaft.

Luther Blissett

Luther Blissett

on the clapham omnibus
Silver Member
Thoughts on the Z² shaft please.

If you've played with one for any length of time, what did you think of it?

Do you use one now as your regular playing shaft?

I played with a Z² for a few months, then it suffered some damage and I tried a 314² for a couple of months while it was at the menders (had to be sent abroad), and now I'm back to the Z².

Having learnt English pool first, I quite like the narrower feel, which is somewhere between a standard American cue and a standard English cue.

As I've always been a bit of a non-conformist I also like being the only player at the tournament who uses one. :)

On the other had though, most of the greats use a 12.75 or 13mm tip, and so I wonder if there is not actually something a bit stupid about using an 11.75mm tip in American pool.

I'm at the point now where it's going to be really strange making the switch back to a wider tip, and if I leave it much longer before making a totally firm decision then it might end up being just too hard to make the change in future. So, if you think it's not just totally down to personal preference and you have some killer persuasive arguments about what tip width is best, now is the time to chime in. :smile:
 
Very,very good shaft with super-low deflection but has 1 drawback
for me.
If your off at all,this shaft will magnify your flaws 10 fold with no room
for forgiveness.
On the other hand,if your stroke is solid and straight the shaft is
a deadly tool.
I'm using the 314-2 and love it for my style but the Z2 may fit yours.
The butt will play a big part on how the Predator shaft feels.
Some will disagree,but the shaft I'm using now felt dead and crappy.
I put the same shaft on another butt and it suddenly became
alive with great feel.
The Z2 shafts I've had weighed close to 4ounces,so make sure you get a weight that doesn't throw your balance point for a loop.Goodluck
 
Z2

For me, I am King of the Basement at home with it, in a match at the pool room, with a little pressure, I'm horrible. Not forgiving for me, others love it.
 
Its a very low squirt cue, that's the only benefit to it I've found. I actually like it a lot. People say they have no feel. What is feel? I don't have a clue...

I play with either a 314 or a 314-2 both 11.75mm with 5/16x18 joints and they're phenomenal. When they're turned down to 11.75mm the squirt is almost identical if not the same to the Z2. The Z2 is in Uni Loc and the 314s are 5/16x18 (which is my prefered joint for some unknown reason) so that, and my Uni Loc butts are only used if I have no other option is why I prefer the 11.75mm 314s.

I play with them on a Craftsman Cues custom butt that I picked up from their shop in Leeds, which if you haven't visited I highly recommend it.

In the end it comes down to what you like. If, like me, you come from a snooker or English pool background then the smaller diameters and conical tapers will be the closest you are going to get to that. The conical taper will stiffen the shaft a little, which I prefer and can make a closed bridge something of an effort. I'm guessing you use an open bridge mostly so it shouldn't be a problem.

Anyways, good luck finding the right shaft.
 
scsuxci said:
If your off at all,this shaft will magnify your flaws 10 fold with no room for forgiveness.
Click to expand...
Why does this myth get repeated so much? Shafts with small tip diameter don't magnify stroke errors.

Higher squirt might "autocorrect" a little more for stroke errors than lower squirt, but that difference probably won't save many shots.

pj
chgo
 
From my own subjective experience with the Z2:

-It is deadly if your stroke is on, and humbling if off. If you have flaws with your cueing and you miss, the Z2 shaft will let you know how bad you missed.

-You get much more action off the cue ball. Drawing/following/applying english seems to take less effort.

I tried out the Z2 when I was more of a beginner. I would like to hear from a decent player who's played with several shafts.
 
Patrick Johnson said:
Why does this myth get repeated so much? Shafts with small tip diameter don't magnify stroke errors.

Higher squirt might "autocorrect" a little more for stroke errors than lower squirt, but that difference probably won't save many shots.

pj
chgo
Click to expand...
I find that with a smaller tip for pool,my focus level has to be through the roof to stay consistent for a long period of time.
There are many differences in how a small tip and a larger tip hit the ball.
Most snooker players use a small tip for a reason,I would think that same reason flipped around would be why most players use a larger than snooker
tip for pool.
I know guys say the bigger tip is for the weight increase in balls but
there are different aim spots I use playing 9ball with a small tip
compared to when I use a bigger one.
With a small tip,unwanted english is on the top of my list of issues.
 
I play with a Z, a 12 mm and a Black Dot, which I believe is a 13.75.

Anything bigger and I feel like I have a telephone pole in my hand.

I'm having a 3 K 4 professionally finished at the moment and it will be coming back to me with a Z 2. Looking forward to playing with it.
 
Patrick Johnson said:
Why does this myth get repeated so much? Shafts with small tip diameter don't magnify stroke errors.

Higher squirt might "autocorrect" a little more for stroke errors than lower squirt, but that difference probably won't save many shots.

pj
chgo
Click to expand...
That's a good question. I put it down to people using it as an excuse.

"Damn, I would have made that with a 13mm shaft but this 11.75mm shaft just makes it so friggin' hard to hit centre CB!"....No.

I remember trying to explain in great length to a guy in another thread why this isn't true. The centre of the tip is still the centre of the tip. If you hit 3mm to the right of centre on the CB with an 11.75mm tip you would hit 3mm to the right with a 13mm tip.

The way I see it, if you think 11.75mm shafts amplify flaws because of the tip size then you must have a poor stroke. No doubt shots are missed with unintentional english because the pivot point is behind your bridge and a RS shaft will be much closer to the bridge.
 
Patrick Johnson said:
Describe a couple.

pj
chgo
Click to expand...
Well with a smaller tip your hitting less of the ball,so if your cueball is pinched
on the rail,your margin for error goes up because less tip is connecting the
cueball.
Its like comparing hitting a baseball with a broom handle or a bat,and which
one will give you what your looking for.

Do you not find a difference when you've tried both?
 
scsuxci said:
Well with a smaller tip your hitting less of the ball,so if your cueball is pinched
on the rail,your margin for error goes up because less tip is connecting the
cueball.
Its like comparing hitting a baseball with a broom handle or a bat,and which
one will give you what your looking for.

Do you not find a difference when you've tried both?
Click to expand...
Both tips would be shaped in either a dime or a nikel curvature so the contact on the CB will be the same....
 
Thanks for all the replies so far. Been reading them with interest. :)

I'll hold my tongue for a while longer while more users have a chance to contribute, although I will just confirm...

Pidge said:
I'm guessing you use an open bridge mostly so it shouldn't be a problem.
Click to expand...
Yes. I literally NEVER use a closed bridge.
 
Here's my $0.02. We had a 'conversation' regarding conical taper vs pro taper. Keep that in mind. If you shoot most shots with english, then I think you'll be fine. If you're a center ball shooter, well I disagree about the tip size hiiting the same. If the angle of the cue is 'pivoted' to one side in the stroke the smaller tip will, IMHO, hit a bit farther off center than the larger tip. Now that being said & as has been asked earlier, will that difference save you a shot? I would say, it would depend on the shot.

Not much help I know but, english? Yes. Center CB, maybe not.

Best Wishes,
 
When your stroking good it's deadly can't be beat. If your off you will get punished. Been playing with Predator Shafts for 11 years now, started with the 314 graduated to the Z, and then the Z2. I won't play with anything else if the game means something.

Black Cat :cool:
 
My opinion is use what feels comfortable to you. Before I even learned how to really "play" pool I bought a Z2 and that was a big mistake. Could not really control whitey and my stroke was not straight to begin with....hell it probably still isn't but you get the idea. I shoot with a 314 and like that alot better but if I ever switched back I might like it now but I have no reason too.

And there are some great players that shoot with a Z2 or other equivalent shafts of that size. Off the top of my head I know Corey Deuel and Mike Davis do.
 
I played well (for me...) with a 314 for several years, then switched to a Z for 2 or 3 years, then switched back to a 314 for about the past 5 years.

I think after the initial adjustment period, I played the same with each one. I still have my Z's and Z-2's, that I will screw onto my shaft once in a while. They certainly feel skinny in my fingers, since I'm so used to the 314.

In my mid level experience, there is no other commercially available shaft on the market that has lower squirt than a Z/Z-2. (and I've tried almost every low squirt shaft that came out in the past 15 years).
 
I love mine

I play with an 11.25 mm Z2 and I love it. I need the shaft to be thin and traditional shafts get really whippy under 12 mm in my experience.
 
my experience .
Maybe my A-game is better when i play with the Z2 but the 314-2 or SS360 i play with now improves my B-game .
As i can't excercise a lot i descided to put away the Z2 and since then my results in tournaments are much better .
Putting down the Z2 is the best decision i made since i play pool .
 
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