Viattorre Custom Cue( View reviewed item )  I decided to order a Viattorre cue in order to evaluate the quality of foreign made custom cues. I chose Viattorre based on their more affordable pricing in case my cue became damaged during testing or the rumors or low quality prove to be true. After several communications with Jackson regarding what I want in the cue, my price range, and my specifications, I sent my payment and began my wait. I plan to test the playability, construction, durability, and customer service of these cues and their company.
The first test I conduct involves checking the packaging of the cue. I start to shake the box vigorously noting the sounds. Allowing for a little bit of settling during shipping, my tests show minimal movement that leads me to believe Jackson did not skimp on packaging. I then inspect the taping of the box and notice both ends have at least 2 layers of shipping tape around the flaps. After opening my box, I find the cue to be wrapped in several layers of bubble wrap that ensures my cue doesn’t bang around loosely in the box. The box itself was of the corrugated type that provides extra stiffness and protection.
Taking my cue out of its packaging, I sniff it to enjoy the new cue smell and notice that they indeed use modern finishes on their product. I then begin making a visual and simple inspection of my cue for saw marks, blemishes, finish problems, flushness, etc. My inspection yields no problems whatsoever with my cue. Removing the joint protectors, I push on the joint pin for looseness only to find it properly seated and glued. All inlays, rings, and ferrules were also flush.
My next round of tests involves checks for straightness, point and inlay spacing, and weight. Spinning butt and both shafts on the lathe, my tests indicate all straight parts. I check the front, middle, and back of all 3 pieces. Inlays and points all line up perfectly with perfect spacing between inlays and points. The differences are all less than a thousandth of an inch. Since I specified 19.5 oz for my cue with 4 oz shafts, I wondered how close the cue would be to my specifications. Butt weight is 15.515 oz and shaft weights turns out to be 4.038 and 4.056 oz respectively.
I then begin tests on the integrity and construction of the cue. According to Jackson, he tests and sorts shafts by hooking them up to a tester he developed and dropping the shafts onto a granite block. He tells me that shafts with a certain result are sorted together and those that don’t meet these requirements are thrown out. He also tells me he does this to assembled butts as well. I also did my own resonance drop test and notice that Jackson wasn’t lying when he said he tries very hard to match shafts to ensure playing characteristics are as close as possible. My tests of the butt reveal the same soundness exhibited in the shafts. I did not hear any buzzes, rattles, or thunks. I also twist the joint holding the forearm and handle hoping to unscrew or loosen it but it didn’t move.
Now I start the important parts of testing the cue i.e. hitting balls with it. My testing entails hitting all hard shots, standing upright, holding my cue at the bottom of the wrap, letting it slide through my fingers, and hitting the floor. The purpose of this is to test hit and see if I can knock anything loose. I did this test for 5 hours every day for 8 days. The result yields no loose parts or problems.
Another form of drop test given to the Viattorre involves standing the joined cue upright and letting it fall to the floor. This test simulates a common accident involving people who lean their cues on a wall, side of the table, etc and it drops. The purpose of this test seeks to find out if anything will break especially the area around the joint. Time for this test amounts to 4 hours total over a span of 8 days. Results yield no damage to the cue other than a few finish scratches. Note the floor this test was performed on was cheap carpet over concrete.
My actual playing with the cue yields very satisfactory results. Since I specified an extremely stiff shaft, those are the types of shafts I receive. I find playability to be as good as my Zylr, Carmeli, Southwest, and Bender. I have maximum cueball control with almost no deflection. I find the balance of the cue to be very ideal for my style of play as well.
My conclusion after testing my Viattorre cue is that they do indeed produce cues on par with the better American cuemakers. Not only do they use top-notch woods, they employ methods known to produce a well built, solid hitting cue based on my tests. For the price, service you receive, and the fact my test cue didn’t fall apart during testing, I don’t think you can go wrong buying a custom cue from Viattorre. You definitely shouldn’t let the fact they are located in another country deter you.
Viattorre Specifications:
Curly maple forearm
Ebony points and buttsleeve
Phenolic joint
3-8-11 pin
2 shaft with Ivor-x ferrules
Moori hard tips
Linen wrap
Cues I used to compare my Viattorre to:
Zylr (note: this cue had a different joint material but was used for quality and stiffness comparisons.)
Southwest
Carmeli
Bender
KC
Action Southwest lookalike
Added: January 27th 2004
Reviewer:
Related Link: Viattorre Cues
Hits: 22452
Language: english
Score:  (10/10)
MORE REVIEWS OF THIS PRODUCT:
Cue_Makers: Viattorre Custom Cues by Noel Coronel (10/10) - November 13th 2003
Cue_Makers: Viattorre Custom Cues by Chris A (10/10) - November 9th 2003
MORE REVIEWS BY Poolplayer (poolplayer):
Shaft Slicker/Cue Slicker  (1/10) - June 10th 2004
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