IMHO, I think that the Uni-Loc joint system is one of the worst on the market today. From an engineering perspective, the 5/16 x 18 is far superior. It's down-side however is that it takes 18 turns to move 1". Conversely, the appeal of the Uni-Loc is 1 turn and you're connected but therein lies it's weakness, just 1 thread holding your shaft to the handle. I've had people with Uni-Locs come to me saying that the shaft will sometimes loosen during play for no apparent reason and I've had others come to me saying that sometimes their cue will lockup and they can't get it apart. Both issues are a direct result of this pin/insert.
The appeal of the Uni-Loc is that it is 'trick' & one of the newest advancements(?) in cues. I humbly submit that just because something is new or 'trick' doesn't mean it's better.
Uni-Loc parts are expensive, comparitively speaking, and can be difficult to install and equally difficult to work on.
Now having said all this, I'm certain this thread will ignite with opinion. To add more fuel to the fire, I'm someone who works on Uni-Loc jointed cues every day. No offense to anyone but the question was asked.
As to the Predator finish, I haven't asked anyone at Predator but my guess would be that it's ultra-violet at least that's the impression I've gotten from doing finish repair work. It should be noted that Predator has had several different large scale builders build their handles and I would think that the builder would shoot whatever finish they normally do. This could vary from builder to builder.
