craftsman v mastercraft

[markmattie]

i know there are many types of both, but i would just like to know which other players would trust more, craftsman or mastercraft cues?

[Deepscrew]

I think you will get a good value cue from either. No much help i know but neither of them make bad cues.

[deant1982]

I think you will get a good value cue from either. No much help i know but neither of them make bad cues.

What he said ^^^^^

[Bigmeek]

Purely based on my own experience I would come down on the side of Craftsman. I bought a Mastercraft Eclipse and a Craftsman Century. Comparing the two the things that would make me choose Craftsman were:-
1) I didn't like the taper on the Mastercraft cue. Although the weight was what I asked for the shaft was a bit thicker than I would have liked. Balance was too far forward for me. (Mate of mine got his Mastercraft slimmed down a bit and its OK now).
2) The Mastercraft joint wasn't really very good. It was a bit "tinny" rather than a nice solid brass. They do other joints tho so you can get a better quality I think.
Don't be put off Mastercraft. If you know what you want and can be very specific then you'll get a good cue.
The Craftsman Century I bought was a lot closer to the balance and taper I'm used to. Good solid brass joint. They were flexible regarding choice of splice. I didn't fancy the wood pictured on their website so they did something different for me at no extra charge.
If you have any other questions please post them up.

[markmattie]

thanks,exactly the sort of feedback i was hoping for.

[jaffa.johnson]

From my own experience, i would go for craftsmans.

I have had an ash, maple and old cue (slimmed down) from craftsman and both their cues were great as was the old cue.

I have spoken to mastercraft on a few occasions but in my experience, their service level was not in the same league as craftman. They failed to come back to twice on the phone and email.

As bigmeek said, dont be put off mastercraft as they also have had good reviews on here. As a direct pick between those two, I would pick craftsman.

[Deepscrew]

I am due to pick up a mastercraft custom in the next 3 weeks. All my contact with Dave has been first class. Quick responses to all questions.

I will be posting a review of the cue shortly after i pick it up.

[Bigmeek]

I am due to pick up a mastercraft custom in the next 3 weeks. All my contact with Dave has been first class. Quick responses to all questions.I will be posting a review of the cue shortly after i pick it up.

Look forward to reading the review. (And maybe seeing a photo?) I'm sure you won't be disappointed. Will you be able to provide a comparison with Craftsman which was what the OP was wanting?
I agree that Dave and Chris of Mastercraft are good to deal with but they do have an annoying habit of not responding to e-mails. That means not replying AT ALL as opposed to just taking a long time. Customer service is better from Craftsman IMO. Always get a prompt response to e-mails.

[Deepscrew]

I cant cant compare to craftsman no.

Pictures will be included of course.

Ive never had problems but i know they go away on holiday a bit so emails get missed i suppose. Can always call then of course!

[drzdave]

I ordered a Mastercraft black prince a couple of weeks ago and found Dave to be very helpful and quick to respond to my emails. I am looking forward to recieving the cue and will post my opinions on the cue. So far its been a good experience dealing with Mastercraft.

[DWOT]

I ordered a Mastercraft black prince a couple of weeks ago and found Dave to be very helpful and quick to respond to my emails. I am looking forward to recieving the cue and will post my opinions on the cue. So far its been a good experience dealing with Mastercraft.

I've never once heard anybody say anything bad about Craftsman and although the 2 Craftsman Cues I've had have not been right for me am sure one day I'll pay a visit and try a few out before purchasing.

[rongreen]

Craftsman's well worth a visit.

[cueman]

Had a cue from both, well two from Mastercraft as the first they made wasn't good quality at all, the replacement wasn't bad but I never got on with it either. With Craftsman I actually visited the shop and tried out a number of cues and settled on one so in a way its wrong for me to compare both as Mastercraft didn't have that option to try out any cues.

However having said that, I think both are similar in terms of quality but I'd have to give the edge to Craftsman, simply because they've been doing it for longer and have had some top players using their cues which is as good an endorsement as you can get really.