OB Classic Shaft Review

Low deflection shafts seem to be picking up steam over the last few years.  I remember several years back when Predator shafts were the ones to have.  They took pie shaped wedges and glued them together to create a stiff shaft.  Lately, OB Cues seem to be the rage.  I have wanted an OB cue or at least a shaft for a little while now.  I was impressed with the layered technology and the way the shafts are constructed.  Well, I finally took the plunge and bought one.

I purchased an OB Classic shaft (12.75 mm, 1/4" ferrule) with the radial pin to fit a Lucasi Ltd. cue I've had for maybe 3-4 years now.  I was excited after receiving the shaft to go hit some balls.

I first played a few racks of 9-ball with the shaft that came with the cue.  I had been using a different cue for a few months now, so I made sure to hit several racks of balls to familiarize myself with the way the Lucasi played.  As a side note, in my opinion, a radial pin is the way to go.  I have played with many joint types over the years and so far, I have found the radial pin feels like the most solid hit for me.

So after getting a feel for the cue again, I switched out the shaft for the new OB Classic.  It came with, I believe, an Everest layered tip.  When first hitting some balls, the short ferrule threw me until I got used to it, then I didn't even notice it.  The tip is a tad soft for my taste as I usually play with a little bit harder tip.  I will probably get a new tip soon.  The shaft itself needed a light sanding with some really fine grit sandpaper.  After a quick sanding, it was smooth as butter.

My first impressions of the OB Classic shaft was why did I just spend $200 for this shaft?  That is, until I hit some really long, firm draw shots.  You can put some terrific english on the cue ball using this shaft!!  I drew the cue ball back nearly 8 feet after pocketing a ball in the corner, but not only that, it seemed like it required less effort to do so.

After playing with it for about 3 days now, I believe it was a good purchase.  It's not something that is going to completely change my game, but due to the low deflection, will help improve my game over time.

So if you are thinking about getting a low deflection shaft of some kind, I would encourage you to go down to your local pool retailer and hit a few balls with the shaft you are considering or any low deflection shaft, really, to see how it feels to you.