The Collapsar CXL500 is a maple cue. Its 29-inch shaft is built for low deflection and cut from North American hard rock maple, and it ships in a 1x1 hard case.
That matters because this page used to say otherwise. Earlier versions of this review sold the CXL500 as a ~$120 carbon fiber cue and quoted reader sales numbers we couldn’t source. The carbon claim was wrong, and we’ve removed it along with the sales figures. What follows comes from Collapsar’s Amazon listing, checked on November 4, 2026.
Short version: the CXL500 makes sense if you want a low-deflection shaft and a hard case for the least money, and you can live with a 1-year guarantee. If the cue will live in a garage or a car trunk, spend a little more on the Viking Valhalla 100, whose lifetime warranty covers warping.
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The CXL500 spec sheet
The CXL500 is a 58-inch two-piece cue, 19 to 21 oz, with a 29-inch low-deflection maple shaft and a 13mm tip.
| Part | What the listing says |
|---|---|
| Shaft | 29”, low deflection, 100% North American grade AAA hard rock maple |
| Tip | 13mm Collapsar Black, 6-layer, medium, glued on |
| Ferrule | XTC, capped and threaded onto the shaft |
| Joint | 3/8x10, wood to wood |
| Butt | Dark gray stained curly maple, cream points, imitation cocobolo |
| Grip | Wrapless (stained curly maple under a high-gloss UV finish) |
| Bumper | Screw-on, weight adjustable |
| Length and weight | 58”, two pieces, 19 to 21 oz |
| In the box | Cue, joint protector, 1x1 hard case |
| Made in | China |
| Price | Shown only in the Amazon cart; about $120 when we checked in April |
Two things on that sheet are easy to miss. There’s no wrap, so your back hand sits on bare stained maple under a gloss finish, which some players with sweaty hands hate and others prefer to linen. The other is the screw-on bumper, which lets you change the weight.
Collapsar also sells other CXL designs, such as the CXL100 (ASIN B091YHJRDT), so make sure the cue you’ve selected reads CXL500, at the weight you want, before you buy.
What “low deflection” gets you on this cue
On the CXL500, low deflection should mean the cue ball drifts less off line when you hit left or right of center, so you correct less for english.
That drift is called squirt. Dr. Dave Alciatore, a retired Colorado State mechanical engineering professor who has spent years researching it, traces squirt almost entirely to a shaft’s end mass, the weight of the 5 to 8 inches closest to the tip. Lighten that end and squirt drops, while stiffness barely enters into it.
Carbon fiber is one way to lighten the end, and our carbon fiber shaft guide compares those. Maple low-deflection shafts do it by taking weight out near the tip, for example with a lighter ferrule or a hollowed-out tip end.
Collapsar gives no construction method and no end-mass or squirt figure, so there’s no way to put a number on how much lighter its shaft is than a standard maple one. You’re buying the claim on trust from a brand that publishes very little.
If you’ve only played standard maple, plan on relearning how much you adjust your aim for english.
The warranty is the real trade-off
The CXL500 gives up the most on warranty: a 1-year guarantee against lifetime warping coverage on the Viking Valhalla 100. Collapsar’s whole promise on the Amazon listing is those three words, “1 Year Guarantee,” tacked onto the bullet about the joint, with nothing about what it covers or whether warping counts.
Viking’s limited lifetime warranty on the Valhalla 100 names warpage, as long as you buy from an authorized dealer and register the cue within 60 days. Players and McDermott cover warping for life too, through authorized dealers.
Maple warps. A shaft left in a hot car or a damp basement can take a bend, and that is the exact failure a lifetime warranty exists for. With the CXL500, nothing in the listing says a bent shaft is covered, even in year one.
CXL500 vs the cues around it
Among the cues in our best pool cues for the money guide, the CXL500 is the cheapest route to a low-deflection shaft.
| Cue | Price (Nov 2026 unless noted) | Shaft | Warranty |
|---|---|---|---|
| Collapsar CXL500 | ~$120 (April; cart-only now) | Low-deflection maple, 13mm | “1 Year Guarantee” |
| Viking Valhalla 100 | ~$135-150 | Hard rock maple | Limited lifetime, warping included |
| Players G4121 | ~$147 (out of stock at Cool Pool Tables) | Maple | Lifetime, warping included |
| PureX HXTC14 | ~$270-300 | Low-deflection maple, 11.75mm | Lifetime, per Pooldawg’s listing |
| McDermott G209 | ~$405-475 | McDermott G-Core | Lifetime, warping included |
The Valhalla 100 is the closest call. Viking gives you a plain maple shaft with no low-deflection design and backs it for life, so if the price Amazon shows in your cart lands near the Valhalla’s ~$135-150, take the Viking. Just confirm the seller is an authorized Viking dealer, because the warranty depends on it.
The PureX HXTC14 costs more than twice as much. For that you get another low-deflection maple shaft and a lifetime warranty, but the shaft measures 11.75mm, more than a millimeter thinner than the CXL500’s 13mm, and that feels very different in a bridge hand.
The McDermott G209 sits far up the price ladder at about $405 to $475, and our McDermott cue guide explains its G-Core shaft and warping coverage.
Who should buy the CXL500
Buy the CXL500 for a first low-deflection shaft on a cue that stays indoors at a steady temperature.
Skip it if the cue rides to league night in a car trunk every week, or if you want a brand you can call when something breaks in year three. For a little more money, a Viking covers warping for life.
Whichever cue you buy, look at the factory tip first. A medium layered tip on a new cue usually needs a light scuff and some shaping before it holds chalk well. Our pool cue tips guide covers what to put on when it wears out.
If the CXL500 still fits, compare its cart price with the Viking’s before you order.
See the CXL500 on Amazon →Browse our full Cues hub for buying guides and head-to-head comparisons.