First off, let me say that this is my 1st Unity Cue I received in trade for my Nikon D70, so I have had no previous experience with these cues. I received this cue today 1/27/2011 after a little battle with the post office because it should have been delivered yesterday according to my tracking info. Anyways, I got it today and yes, I hunted down the postman 
My review will be an ongoing one throughout the weekend probably because I haven't really had the chance to properly check it out in a pool room or on a table, this is only a visual check.
My 1st look at the cue was very quick but I did notice the wood used to build it with was outstanding! This cue has some of the best curly maple I've ever seen in any cue, let alone one not built by a 'master cue-maker'. The 'curls' are just magnificent, and it seems to be well built. My 2nd look at it was a more in depth look at various items in the cue, like the 3/8x10 pin, buttcap, trim rings, and the wrap. Now, I was rightfully accused, by who I got it from, of being 'pretty particular' when it comes to my cues. He knew I'd find a few flaws he doesn't find when looking at cues. I don't understand that, but I guess I don't have to. First, I looked at the pin since it's the old style 3/8x10 pin, which I wanted so my other main playing shafts would fit it in case I didn't like the cue's original shaft. The pin appears to be well installed and there are no rough spots around the pin, so well done guys! Right below it are some simple black trim rings with white rings inside. One thing I noticed off the bat was that the white rings inside appear to not be the same width all the way around. They looked like they weren't cut with a sharp blade so they are a little 'jagged' in some small areas, but that's not a major concern to me. You have to really look for that to see it, so I'm ok with it. My other concern with the white rings is the fact that they aren't completely white. In some spots they look dirty so they have a darker tint to them, but again, not a big concern to me and you have to look for it to see it, so I'm ok with this also. Next I looked at the wrap once I got past the beautiful curly maple used in this forearm! It's nice and smooth like new linen should be, and it looks to be nicely installed to me, but I know not much about wraps so maybe someone else could see something I don't. One thing I did notice however, is the fact that it seems like either the wrap groove was cut just a hair too deep or the linen isn't consistently the same size, as in one little spot I can feel where the forearm is just a hair bigger than where the linen meets it. It really is minor as it's only like a hair in size difference, so again, I'm perfectly fine with it. Where the linen meets the buttsleeve is perfect to me, so it makes me believe it may be just a bad spot in the linen itself? Anyways, I'm ok with the product as of yet. After getting past the gorgeous wood in the butt-sleeve I came to the black buttcap which unfortunately has the same flaws as the trim ring by the joint. The white rings look not consistent all the way around and are dirty in spots. At the base of the buttcap is a little nick, which I can only imagine happened after it was shipped around, but once again, very minor and ok with me. On the bottom of the buttcap is a round squared-off stopper like you'd find in a BCM Cue, I kinda like it! I pulled it out to find what looks to be a hole drilled to add a weight bolt, though at the moment it lacks one and is a hair light for me. I'm hoping to change that soon.
Next, my shaft review: At first glance it looks pretty nice, though it does have minor 'sugar marks' here or there. Only 1 straight down but very very thin by the ferrule so I'm not worried about it. It might actually be useful to keep it facing 'up' so I constantly have the shaft the same way and get consistent results regarding 'english' and such. The tip used appears to be a Le Pro, but I'll use it for a while and check it out. Maybe I'll like it on this cue? The shaft taper appears to be very nice, and the shaft is nice and smooth like a new shaft should be. Again, WELL DONE GUYS! I'm not sure what the ferrule is made of, I've never been good at identifying material used for ferrules, BUT there is no difference in ferrule size than the shaft size. It's a nice smooth transition which gives me hope about these cues as well as the niceness of the butt. The trim ring at the joint has the same issue as the other trim rings...dirty and 'jagged' white rings, BUT I'm ok with them. The threads of this shaft seem to be well installed as they are very clean so I have no issues with them.
Well, that is my initial 'look over' review of a UNITY CUE I now have in my possession and I'll have a playing review this weekend I'm sure. All-In-All I have found NOTHING terrible about this cue, only minor flaws that maybe someone else wouldn't notice. I'm hoping this cue plays as well as it looks to me, I'd love to keep it, love it, hug it, and call it George! lmao! If this cue plays half as good as it looks, these cues are definitely winners in my book! Thanks for reading my review! Jeff Duke
My review will be an ongoing one throughout the weekend probably because I haven't really had the chance to properly check it out in a pool room or on a table, this is only a visual check. My 1st look at the cue was very quick but I did notice the wood used to build it with was outstanding! This cue has some of the best curly maple I've ever seen in any cue, let alone one not built by a 'master cue-maker'. The 'curls' are just magnificent, and it seems to be well built. My 2nd look at it was a more in depth look at various items in the cue, like the 3/8x10 pin, buttcap, trim rings, and the wrap. Now, I was rightfully accused, by who I got it from, of being 'pretty particular' when it comes to my cues. He knew I'd find a few flaws he doesn't find when looking at cues. I don't understand that, but I guess I don't have to. First, I looked at the pin since it's the old style 3/8x10 pin, which I wanted so my other main playing shafts would fit it in case I didn't like the cue's original shaft. The pin appears to be well installed and there are no rough spots around the pin, so well done guys! Right below it are some simple black trim rings with white rings inside. One thing I noticed off the bat was that the white rings inside appear to not be the same width all the way around. They looked like they weren't cut with a sharp blade so they are a little 'jagged' in some small areas, but that's not a major concern to me. You have to really look for that to see it, so I'm ok with it. My other concern with the white rings is the fact that they aren't completely white. In some spots they look dirty so they have a darker tint to them, but again, not a big concern to me and you have to look for it to see it, so I'm ok with this also. Next I looked at the wrap once I got past the beautiful curly maple used in this forearm! It's nice and smooth like new linen should be, and it looks to be nicely installed to me, but I know not much about wraps so maybe someone else could see something I don't. One thing I did notice however, is the fact that it seems like either the wrap groove was cut just a hair too deep or the linen isn't consistently the same size, as in one little spot I can feel where the forearm is just a hair bigger than where the linen meets it. It really is minor as it's only like a hair in size difference, so again, I'm perfectly fine with it. Where the linen meets the buttsleeve is perfect to me, so it makes me believe it may be just a bad spot in the linen itself? Anyways, I'm ok with the product as of yet. After getting past the gorgeous wood in the butt-sleeve I came to the black buttcap which unfortunately has the same flaws as the trim ring by the joint. The white rings look not consistent all the way around and are dirty in spots. At the base of the buttcap is a little nick, which I can only imagine happened after it was shipped around, but once again, very minor and ok with me. On the bottom of the buttcap is a round squared-off stopper like you'd find in a BCM Cue, I kinda like it! I pulled it out to find what looks to be a hole drilled to add a weight bolt, though at the moment it lacks one and is a hair light for me. I'm hoping to change that soon.
Next, my shaft review: At first glance it looks pretty nice, though it does have minor 'sugar marks' here or there. Only 1 straight down but very very thin by the ferrule so I'm not worried about it. It might actually be useful to keep it facing 'up' so I constantly have the shaft the same way and get consistent results regarding 'english' and such. The tip used appears to be a Le Pro, but I'll use it for a while and check it out. Maybe I'll like it on this cue? The shaft taper appears to be very nice, and the shaft is nice and smooth like a new shaft should be. Again, WELL DONE GUYS! I'm not sure what the ferrule is made of, I've never been good at identifying material used for ferrules, BUT there is no difference in ferrule size than the shaft size. It's a nice smooth transition which gives me hope about these cues as well as the niceness of the butt. The trim ring at the joint has the same issue as the other trim rings...dirty and 'jagged' white rings, BUT I'm ok with them. The threads of this shaft seem to be well installed as they are very clean so I have no issues with them.
Well, that is my initial 'look over' review of a UNITY CUE I now have in my possession and I'll have a playing review this weekend I'm sure. All-In-All I have found NOTHING terrible about this cue, only minor flaws that maybe someone else wouldn't notice. I'm hoping this cue plays as well as it looks to me, I'd love to keep it, love it, hug it, and call it George! lmao! If this cue plays half as good as it looks, these cues are definitely winners in my book! Thanks for reading my review! Jeff Duke
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