What Is the Longoni Bellissima Carom Cue?
The Longoni Bellissima is a Signature Luxury carom cue launched in 2023 and built for one purpose: serious 3-cushion play at the highest level. It is the second Longoni cue developed in direct collaboration with Belgian PBA champion Eddy Leppens, a partnership that only continues when both player and maker agree there is something genuinely new to offer.
The Bellissima sits at the intersection of elite performance and collectible craftsmanship. Longoni has been manufacturing professional cues 100% in Italy since 1945, operating from their headquarters in Mariano Comense near Milan. Over 80 years of family-owned production stand behind every detail of this cue. If you play 3-cushion carom and demand both precision and artistry, the Bellissima was made with you in mind.
The Eddy Leppens Story: Why This Cue Exists
Eddy Leppens, born December 3, 1969, in Lommel, Belgium, has built a career spanning all six disciplines of carom billiards. He earned the PBA championship title and won the Belgian Cup in three-cushion in 1993, establishing himself early as one of Belgium's most versatile carom competitors.
His numbers tell the story of a player who operates at the margins of what's possible. In 2002, Leppens posted a personal best single average of 5.000, scoring 50 points in just 10 innings. Two years later, he helped set a world record team average of 2.139 alongside Frédéric Caudron, Raymond Burgman, and Johan Loncelle. These are the statistics that separate professionals from legends.
Longoni does not build a second signature cue for a player lightly. The decision to create the Bellissima signaled that the collaboration with Leppens had produced something meaningfully different from his first model. The cue's design philosophy reflects Leppens' own playing identity: precision first, elegance always, and absolute reliability under tournament pressure.
For competitive players, a cue endorsed through genuine collaboration (not just a name printed on the butt) carries real weight. Leppens' fingerprints are on the Bellissima's balance, feel, and performance characteristics. This is a cue shaped by decades of championship-level play.
URAL Hornbeam and Luxury Inlays: The Aesthetics of the Bellissima
The Bellissima's body is crafted from URAL wood, a proprietary material Longoni introduced in 2019. URAL starts as European hornbeam (Carpinus betulus), treated through a deep-staining process that produces an ebony-like black appearance. The result is visually striking, but the choice is not purely cosmetic.
Hornbeam is denser and more dimensionally stable than many tropical hardwoods. Compared to traditional ebony alternatives, URAL offers a more sustainable sourcing path without sacrificing the visual depth or structural integrity that high-end cues require. The staining process penetrates deep into the wood grain, so the color is not a surface finish that wears away over time.
Decorating the URAL body is an intricate combination of Juma, genuine abalone, and rengas wood inlays. Juma provides a smooth, resin-based surface with consistent patterning. Abalone contributes its characteristic iridescent shimmer, catching light differently at every angle. Rengas wood adds warm, reddish-brown tones that contrast beautifully against the black hornbeam.
Each Bellissima cue carries a hand-signed individual number, placing it firmly in Longoni's Signature Luxury tier. This mirrors a broader trend in premium sporting equipment, visible in high-end golf clubs and custom cycling frames, where aesthetics and performance carry equal importance. The Bellissima is not decorated to sit in a display case. It is decorated because the player holding it deserves something exceptional.
VP2 Grade 5 Titanium Joint: Engineering You Can Feel
Longoni first introduced the VP2 joint system in 2004 as an evolution of their earlier Viper steel joint. The Bellissima uses the Grade 5 Titanium version, the ultra-light variant of the VP2 platform. Grade 5 titanium (Ti-6Al-4V) is the same alloy used in aerospace and medical applications, chosen here for its exceptional strength-to-weight ratio.
The threads on the Bellissima's VP2 joint are electro-polished, a finishing process that removes micro-burrs from the metal surface at a microscopic level. The practical benefit is immediate: the cue screws together with a noticeably smoother action, and the joint threads resist wear over thousands of assembly cycles. It is a detail you feel every time you put the cue together.
Each joint pin is individually laser-engraved for production traceability, a quality-control measure that lets Longoni track every component back to its manufacturing batch. This level of documentation is rare among cue makers and reflects the seriousness of Longoni's production standards.
The titanium joint also plays a critical role in the cue's overall weight distribution. With a butt weight minimum of 390 grams and a total assembled length of 142.5 cm, the lighter titanium joint helps shift balance toward the player's grip hand, giving the cue a controlled, forward-weighted feel that carom players rely on for accurate rail-to-rail play.
Choosing Your Shaft: S20, S30, or Luna Nera?
The Bellissima is available with three shaft options, all sharing an 11.8 mm tip diameter, the standard specification for 3-cushion carom play. Your choice here shapes how the cue performs in your hands.
S20 (Laminated Maple): This is the traditional option. The S20 delivers a classic wood response with consistent flex across the shaft's length. If you are transitioning from a standard carom cue or prefer the warm, familiar feedback of maple, the S20 is a natural fit. It rewards players who rely on touch and feel over raw deflection numbers.
S30 (Laminated Maple with Imago Ring): The S30 adds Longoni's exclusive Imago ring at the shaft-to-butt transition. This ring is made from epoxy and cotton fiber with a wood-look finish, providing enhanced dimensional stability. The Imago ring creates a cleaner energy transfer between shaft and butt while maintaining an elegant visual line. It suits players who want the warmth of wood with improved consistency.
Luna Nera (Pure Graphite/Carbon Fiber): Built from unidirectional carbon fiber with a polyurethane core for vibration absorption, the Luna Nera delivers extreme low deflection and high shooting accuracy. For competitive players who prioritize precision and want the most predictable cue ball behavior possible, this is the shaft to choose.
The carbon fiber versus wood debate is real, and it is driving growth in the 3-cushion market, which is expanding at roughly 3.8% annually, largely fueled by demand for high-tech materials. The Luna Nera positions the Bellissima at the leading edge of this shift. Shaft choice should still reflect your playing style, not just the latest trend. A recreational player may genuinely prefer the S20's warmth, while a tournament competitor may need the Luna Nera's consistency under pressure. Both are valid choices.
Specs at a Glance and What They Mean for Your Game
- Butt length: 72 cm
- Shaft length: 70.5 cm
- Total assembled length: 142.5 cm (approximately 56 inches)
- Butt weight: minimum 390 grams
- Tip diameter: 11.8 mm
- Joint: VP2 Grade 5 Titanium
- Extension: 20 cm 3-Lobite system included
Carom cues are shorter than pool cues by design. The 142.5 cm total length is standard for 3-cushion play, where the shorter cue gives players better control during the compact, precise strokes the game demands. The 11.8 mm tip is optimized for the accuracy required when sending a cue ball on multi-rail paths; a smaller contact patch means more precise spin application.
The included 20 cm 3-Lobite extension system is a practical addition. Extensions are commonly used in carom play when reaching across the table for shots that would otherwise require an awkward bridge. The 3-Lobite design locks securely into the butt end and adds length without compromising balance.
As an authorized Longoni dealer, Billiard City ensures that every Bellissima we sell is a genuine product backed by the full factory warranty. This matters in the premium carom segment, where cues range from $600 to well over $2,500. Knowing your investment is protected by both the manufacturer and your dealer gives you confidence from the moment you place your order.
Is the Longoni Bellissima Right for You?
The Bellissima is built for serious 3-cushion carom players, competitive league and tournament participants, and collectors who appreciate a hand-signed Signature Luxury piece from one of the world's most respected cue makers. Nearly 45% of billiard cue buyers now prefer premium designs with advanced materials, and the Bellissima answers that demand directly.
Beyond performance, this cue holds long-term value. The hand-signed individual numbering, limited Signature Luxury positioning, and Longoni's global reputation make it more than a playing tool. It is an investment in your game and your collection.
If you have questions about the Bellissima, shaft selection, or anything else in our Longoni lineup, we are here to help. Billiard City is an authorized Longoni dealer shipping from our own warehouse in Boca Raton, Florida. US orders over $99 ship free. Reach out to us anytime; we would love to help you find the right cue.