Cue-Max

The Cue-Max is an innovative mid-cue extension. What makes it unique from other extensions on the market is that the Cue-Max also doubles as a mid-cue weight, shifting the weight from the butt of the cue to the middle of the cue. Not only that, but it can also serve as a thread converter, supporting conversion of various thread types to radial or uni-loc pin. According to the manufacturer, the objective of the mid-weight adapter is to improve the balance of your cue, the players stroke, extend your cue and aid in more accurate contact into the cue ball.

The Cue-Max comes in a variety of lengths, weights and thread types. For my review, I used the 1.65″ uni-loc Cue-Max on my regular playing cue. I used it for several months consistently for all my practice sessions, league play and tournament play.

Overall, I was impressed with the product and saw the advantages of it, although it does take getting used to. Read on for my comprehensive review.

What you get in the package:

The Cue-Max ships with an instruction card, fabric carrying case and the Cue-Max extension itself.

The Cue-Max At a Glance

The Cue-Max comes in polished aluminum or anodized black. I reviewed the polished aluminum. I found the product to be extremely high quality and very well made. The Cue-Max was perfectly machined, extremely clean & polished. It looks fantastic, there were absolutely no rough edges and the threads were perfect.

The Cue-Max fit my cue perfectly, as if it was made for the cue. It screwed into the joint perfectly with absolutely no gaps or overhang. The polished aluminum also looked great and retained the high quality look of the cue.

Keep in mind that the Cue-Max, in addition to being an extension, is also a weight. The idea is to shift the weight from the butt of the cue to the joint. So when you install Cue-Max, you should remove your weight bolt from the butt of the cue. The weight of the particular model in this review was 1.1 ounces. My weight bolt was 1 ounce. So it was pretty much a wash in terms of keeping my cue the same weight.

One really pleasant surprise is that it fit in my cue case without having to remove it. I had thought that I would have to carry it around in one of the pockets of my case, which would have just been one additional thing to dig out of my case. I really appreciated the convenience of being able to leave it on my cue during storage. In the image below, the cue to the left has the Cue-Max installed.

Using the Cue-Max

Using the Cue-Max is going to take some getting used to. There are important aspects of your cue changing including shifting the balance point forward and also extending the length of the cue. The balance point on my cue is about 19 inches measured from the butt end of the cue. After removing the weight bolt and installing the cue max, the balance point was 21 inches. The overall length of the cue was increased by over an inch & a half. As a result, I had to choke up on my grip and extend the length of my bridge from the cueball in order to compensate and keep my stroke fundamentals sound.

It didn’t take me long to get accustomed to the cue with the Cue-Max installed and overall, I really liked the feel of it. I appreciated the additional bit of reach it afforded me and I also liked the feel of the weight shifted from the back to the joint. Believe it or not, I felt the difference in reduced fatigue in my stroke arm during long practice sessions & tournaments.

In Summary

I really liked the Cue-Max and purchased the one I used in this review. I acknowledge it is going to change your grip position as well as the length of your bridge. Expect your game to dip a bit before it gets better as you make these adjustments. I encourage you to stick with it before abandoning it on first impressions. It really will not take you long to get accustomed to it.

Many traditionalists may not be interested in trying something different, but at less than $30, it comes at a very reasonable price point for traditionalists to give it a shot.

Beginners may find the balance point being shifted forward will help their stroke follow through down towards the felt as opposed to lifting up.

Overall, Cue-Max is a high quality product at an affordable price. I liked the feel of it and the extra reach. The company has a large variety of joint sizes, weights and lengths, so there are plenty of varieties to choose from. Beginners and experienced players can both benefit from the Cue-Max and I recommend it..