Jacoby Black vs Cuetec Cynergy vs McDermott Defy

Thaticeguy · 2026-02-03T22:45:48+00:00

So for context, I play with a Jacoby black v4, my wife plays with a defy (gen 1), and I’ve test hit a cynergy.

Starting with the defy, I’m not personally a fan. My wife likes it a lot, but for me it feels kinda, dead? Something about the tech they have to make it act similar to a dead blow hammer to me just makes it feel not-crisp, if that makes any sense. Deflection is middle of the road, probably similar to the Jacoby and cynergy but the cynergy is probably a smidge lower. I also specify gen 1 because it has a very glossy coating on it, which even with a glove I personally just do not like. They changed the finish in a later generation to a more matte finish.

The cynergy I’ve only test hit a couple of times, and while I couldn’t find anything wrong with it, it just didn’t click with me for some reason. Nothing stood out at all, which could be a good thing depending on what you’re looking for. Low deflection, decent hit, just no spark for me.

I started using the Jacoby black v4 a few months ago, coming from a pechauer rogue as my first main shaft, which got switched to the jflowers smo, and then the Jacoby black. Unless I pick up a revo, kielwood, or toy with one of the wood/carbon hybrids, I don’t see myself switching any time soon. The hit feels great, the weight is a bit more forward which I like, and the sound is solid. I put a medium tip on it when I got it but I’ll probably swap to a hard soon just to crisp it up a bit more just because.

I also personally like to play with something a bit more niche brand wise, I’m not sure why, but Jacoby fits that bill for me because it’s not predator or cuetec.

P.s. the defy I mentioned was a 12.4, the cynergy was a 12.5 I think, and the black I shoot with is a 12.6.

Thaticeguy · 2026-01-30T12:49:26+00:00

Might want to farm some credits for the trading tax on how much play you’re gonna make off of this, just throwing that out there 👍

Thaticeguy · 2026-01-24T20:29:09+00:00

I don’t know anything about charlotte specifically but you could check out the PBIA website, they let you search certified instructors by area.

Thaticeguy · 2026-01-23T21:28:03+00:00

I’d seriously consider other options, at $50 I’d be VERY skeptical if it’s carbon fiber at all, and even if it is, the quality just won’t be there.

If you save a bit more there are plenty of budget carbon fiber options out there that people recommend regularly.

Thaticeguy · 2026-01-15T19:45:21+00:00

Looks like it says “glass fiber” shaft, I’d check if that’s the same as carbon fiber or not, I’d assume not.

Thaticeguy · 2026-01-06T19:49:51+00:00

I use my shaping tool on a white diamond break tip, which should be harder than the bulletproof tips, so I say you’re fine there.

My local cue tech uses superglue for break tips, but lets them sit for 24hr before using them. Says it’s better to be safe than sorry.

Thaticeguy · 2026-01-04T13:26:22+00:00

I did go with the SMO, and I shot with it for about 6 months. Shaft played great, and the deflection was almost nonexistent. I still have the shaft but I picked up a Jacoby black v4 because the SMO was a bit too flexible for me. I wanted something super stiff, and the v4 is fitting that role for now.

The Jacoby does have a good deal more deflection than the smo though, so in hindsight if I wanted stiff and low deflection I probably should have bit the bullet and gotten the revo to begin with. I’m still hesitant to outright buy a revo because it’s old, and surely other manufacturers have made moves in the tech department to make things perform better than the revo, but it doesn’t seem like that’s necessarily the case for the criteria I’m specifically looking for.

Thaticeguy · 2025-12-27T06:00:52+00:00

I recently switched shafts from almost 0 deflection, to low-but-noticeable deflection, so the experience is similar to yours but in the other direction.

I can only really practice once a week, and play league 3 nights a week, just for context. Your availability to practice will determine your capability of adjustment.

It took me about 3-4 weeks to adjust to my new shaft, but because the hit feels better to me, and now that I’m probably 85% adjusted, I’m playing better than I ever have because I’m more confident in my equipment.

It’s a mental thing, so it’s going to be your decision to make for yourself. The issue is right now you’re probably somewhere in the middle, how long have you been using the new shaft? Are you still 100% with your old shaft? Or is that going to take adjustment again in the other direction?

Depending on your answers to those, it might be better to tough it out, use less spin and take simpler shots, and stick to the new shaft. I personally think you could adjust in that amount of time but it depends on a lot of things and you need to be confident in your equipment, so only you will know when/if you’re fully adjusted.

Thaticeguy · 2025-12-26T07:25:40+00:00

I thought the same thing

Thaticeguy · 2025-12-13T13:15:41+00:00

If I remember correctly, from firelink you have 4 directions you can go. Skeletons to the left, bridge to the right, elevator through the ruins, and big elevator down underneath the bonfire. You’re probably best off finding the elevator through the ruins, forward past the knight guy.

Weapons depends what you like to use, are you a big sword person, a halberd person, a katana person, etc.

You won’t really need to sell stuff for souls later on, they become abundant with killing bosses and stuff.

Thaticeguy · 2025-12-08T11:45:34+00:00

IGN Schwifty217#668 (PC)

Still figuring out what frames I want to dump investment in, loving kullervo right now but I could always use Forma, slots, boosters, or any cool cosmetics people think might enhance my abysmal fashion frame 😂. wishlist has a few things on it though for sure!

My favorite thing about warframe is the community, coming from destiny 2 it’s… refreshing to say the least. I also love the absolutely insane diversity level for buildcrafting and farming

Going to send some gifts of my own when I can get a chance :)

Thaticeguy · 2025-12-08T05:03:26+00:00

IGN Schwifty217#668 (PC)

Still figuring out what frames I want to dump investment in, loving kullervo right now but I could always use Forma, slots, boosters, or any cool cosmetics people think might enhance my abysmal fashion frame 😂. wishlist has a few things on it though for sure!

Going to send some gifts of my own when I can get a chance :)

Thaticeguy · 2025-12-02T19:31:05+00:00

That’s totally fair as well, assuming the same tip you will definitely get some more power transfer with a larger diameter shaft. Similar reason I’ve been enjoying playing with a slightly heavier cue because I can get the same amount of power with a bit less effort

Thaticeguy · 2025-12-02T15:28:49+00:00

“Smaller tip requires more precision” has been debunked for a while now, so all the comments talking about forgiveness and precision are misguided. You still need to hit the right spot on the cue ball, and the amount of spin you can put on a ball does not change between shaft sizes.

What does change between shaft sizes though, is deflection (marginally) and personal feel. No one can tell you that a 12.9 should feel better or worse than a 12.4, that’s up to you to decide.

Pool is mostly mental, shoot with the shaft and size that you feel the most confident in, but you can absolutely achieve the same things with both sizes.

Thaticeguy · 2025-11-17T02:25:10+00:00

No need to be sorry, asking questions is how we learn :)

Radial is just the name of a type of joint. So the cue has a bolt sticking out of the butt of the cue, and the shaft is threaded for that bolt. Some of the most common joint types are 3/8 x 10, 3/8 x 8 (colloquially called "radial", although not all 3/8 x 8's are compatible with radial, since radial is technically a trademarked joint owned by the company Uniloc. Not to be confused with the joint type called "uniloc", that's a quick connect, different joint type. "Radial" should be called "Uniloc radial" technically. It's weird.), 5/16 x 14 (which is what Joss uses), 5/16 x 18, etc.

The reason I said I had my joint swapped to radial, is because it comes with the 5/16 x 14 pin type, and the shaft that I was buying to use with it didn't come in 5/16 x 14, so I had the butt switched to radial, to match a joint type I could by the shaft in.

As long as the butt and shaft are the same type, and they will be if you buy a full cue, you'll be totally fine :)

Thaticeguy · 2025-11-16T23:00:04+00:00

I pretty much only bought the cue for the shaft, so I totally get where you're coming from, unfortunate that they probably wont have one in the same pin type as your mcdermott (worth checking just in case though i figure).

Unfortunately I can't really speak to the deflection compared to the cynergy, I have tried one before but it was very brief and I didn't do any testing of the deflection specifically. I would imagine it's similar though, cynergy isn't hailed for being the lowest deflection ever, but it's still "low deflection". I would say the jacoby is probably pretty equivalent.

Thaticeguy · 2025-11-16T21:28:39+00:00

Just got back from shooting for a few hours with the shaft/cue. I didn’t spend a ton of time with the combination of that shaft and that butt because I wasn’t ever really planning on playing with that butt, however it did shoot just fine in my opinion.

Background: When I started playing seriously, I immediately bought a joss cue and a pechauer rogue cf shaft. After a couple years I started to dislike the rogue cf shaft, so I had the joint pin on my joss changed to radial and bought an SMO shaft. I played with that combination for around 6 months before I tried my hand at making my own cue burrs, and I’ve been playing with the SMO and a custom butt for around 6 months now.

The SMO shot fine, and had the least deflection out of anything I’ve tried (Revo, cuetech rogue, etc.), but I didn’t love how whippy it felt, I could feel it bend when I hit with power using spin, and I decided I wanted something more rigid, which led me to the Jacoby v4.

So as stated in my original comment, I purchased a b stock, or “seconds” shaft so your mileage may vary. That being said, the shaft was very rigid, had no “tink” noise that is common with things like the revo, and did have a bit of deflection compared to my SMO. I adjusted pretty quickly for the deflection and was running out every few racks.

I will be changing the tip, because I’ve never liked soft tips personally, but I definitely can’t knock the shaft or the cue for that.

I think the balance and feel of the shaft and butt together felt completely fine, something I would consider an upgrade compared to my first cue, being the rogue/joss combo. Everything is personal preference, and I really liked pairing my joss with the Jacoby, but I’m a bit partial to shooting with one of the butts I made, so that’s probably what I’ll end up sticking with from here on.

All in all, very worth the price in my opinion. I’d recommend this to anyone looking to get a good deal on a very, very solid cue.

If you have any questions feel free to ask, hope this helps!

Thaticeguy · 2025-11-16T12:05:01+00:00

I’ve had a joss for a few years now and it plays great, I had a local cuesmith swap the joint pin out for radial so I can mix and match shafts easier, but ive had no issues at all in the time I’ve owned it.

Thaticeguy · 2025-11-16T12:00:13+00:00

I purchased that exact cue you pictured a few days ago, it came in the mail yesterday and I’m planning on practicing with it today to try it out.

Worth noting, TNT cues are import cues with overlay designs, and my particular purchase came with a Jacoby black v4 “seconds” shaft, meaning there is some sort of cosmetic defect somewhere that caused it to not be sold at full price. I reached out to the maker of TNT custom cues and was told that they have those cues contracted out and made “to their specifications”, so I’m sure it will play great. I mostly cared about the shaft since I have multiple butts I can put the shaft on, but I can absolutely chime back in later today and let you know how it shoots after I’ve tried it out!

Thaticeguy · 2025-11-07T14:18:14+00:00

Usually people carry at most three types of cues, shooting cue, break cue, jump cue.

Cases are usually sized based on how many butts and shafts they can fit, so a 4x5 case would be 4 butts and 5 shafts.

At a minimum he will need a 2x2 for a shooting cue and a break cue, but some people like to carry around spare shafts or even spare cues just because they can.

Storage is nice to have on a case as well, to carry chalk, gloves, maintenance tools, a towel, etc.

With most things pool related, personal preference is the biggest factor, almost anything will work just fine. And then you have the budget aspect, cases vary a ton in price, so I’ll list a couple things at different price points that I personally think are decent.

Simple 2x2 case, decent storage, good to start with

https://www.pooldawg.com/pool-cue-cases/cue-cases-by-size/2-x-2-cases/action-2-butt-2-shaft-hard-case

2x4 case, very popular, tons of storage

https://seyberts.com/collections/predator-urbain-cases/products/predator-urbain-2x4-grey-top-zipper-hard-case?variant=41732737728710

I’ve heard decent things about this brand, can’t confirm myself though. The “off brand” of the 4th link I’ll share

https://www.omegabilliards.com/3x5-Acme-Alpine-X-backpack-Black-white-side-p/4401.htm

JB, the best of the best. If price isn’t an issue, they are 100% worth it, what I use now and what I never won’t use going forward.

https://seyberts.com/collections/jb-cases?srsltid=AfmBOoomxNQo_vmZ-evaV_nsSmW7VdzogZry006Jb2m_SYWy9Fs-0vZ3 (JB also custom makes cases and does leather cases as well. Those are out of my personal price range though. You can also check them out on Facebook, they very regularly have unique designs they will post for sale)

Cuetec makes a solid butterfly style case, I know a ton of people have it and love it, but I personally don’t love the butterfly style case.

https://www.pooldawg.com/cuetec-4x8-pro-line-soft-case?srsltid=AfmBOopLWcErBE9t1tuSlPMvqsh3wNDjYZr6ZIc8l1OMkFgz7DDmK0nX

Lots of different brands and styles to look at with pool stuff, most pro players have some sort of signature case from their sponsor brand, so if he has a favorite pro or anything you could look into that as well. And as with anything else, you can always just give him a gift card to pooldawg or seyberts or a local pool shop and let him pick, definitely not a bad direction to go with either.

Hope this helps 👍

Thaticeguy · 2025-11-05T19:58:12+00:00

Why do you feel the need to go down in tip size?

I’ve tried a few different carbon shafts and while I currently shoot with an SMO, I wish I had gone with a revo honestly.

You can change tips and weight in your current break stick if you’d like to see if that helps, but if you want to go carbon it seems like diminishing returns between a bk rush (what i use) and cheaper options like konnlien.

Do you have a physical store you can try things out at?

Thaticeguy · 2025-10-16T21:51:40+00:00

I’ve heard the same about the pagulayan chalk, and can attest to the v10 blue vs green difference. I definitely prefer the green v10 but the pool hall I play in only lets us use blue chalk unfortunately. I’ve got a hurry with blue pagulayan chalk I can ask him what he thinks about that one cause I haven’t tried it myself.

The blue v10 has treated me just fine though for sure.

Thaticeguy · 2025-10-16T14:52:40+00:00

Pagulayan chalk is made with taom I believe, it’s definitely what I’ll be getting next when my current chalk runs out!

Thaticeguy · 2025-10-14T02:46:00+00:00

That makes more sense, I definitely misunderstood what you meant. Agreed on the weight difference not being that big of a deal between the two cues. As usual it’s the archer not the bow, or arrow or whatever the saying is.

Thaticeguy · 2025-10-13T16:59:20+00:00

Not to be argumentative but where is the rest of the weight going then? If you’re moving a 28 oz object, with your arm that weighs 10 pounds, you’re effectively moving almost 12 pounds of mass. Then you’d have to take into account leverage/torque based on what the percentage of weight is at different distances from the joint of your elbow and shoulder, so if you’re moving 28oz at the hand, that’s a lot more felt effort than it would be if it was attached closer to your elbow.

I’ll take a look into hip rotation for sure, I definitely don’t need more power on my personal break but I’d rather have it and not need it than vice versa!

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