What quality issue didn't you like about them?
I bought one. There's a flaw. For $100, it might be the best cue for the money that I own. Did you play with it???
for the record, I did own one too. The only thing I did NOT like about it, was the shaft was too thick for my liking and I sold it rather than buy a new shaft.
For the price, it's a decent cue. It's not a top of the line custom, we all know that. But, he builds them as equipment, not as collector items. You can spend $150 and the cue is going to last you 10 years, maybe more?
I just think things get over blown about cue makers. I just know too many folks that have a DP, and they like it just fine. Yes, if you put it up next to a Hercek, or other leading name brand makers, you're gonna see a different quality just in the finish, the smoothness of the inlays, etc. etc. etc.
Same thing if you put a Timex next to a Rolex, but nobody says Timex are complete crap. A decent watch for the money that will tell the correct time, and with no gold, diamonds or intricate mechanisms, hence the cost if a fraction of a Rolex.
It's all relative I guess.
But, the fact is DP does build then FAST, so he must know a few things about efficiency. So, if OB adds that efficiency, with a fully functioning and capable staff, surely, that can't be a bad thing. Sometimes, in business, the things you don't know, are the things that kill you.
Anyone watch the show The Profit ? Most of the stuff he fixes is NOT so much the product, but how it's made, to speed up production, cut out inefficiency. That saves a TON in labor costs. And he does not do that to DECREASE head count, but to increase margins as each product not only costs X to make instead of Y, and thus, they make more money without a single change to head count.
I have no skills in wood working, I've never even installed a tip on a cue. But, after visiting the Schuler shop on more than a few occasions back in the day, I can tell you, without any cue making skills at all, ZERO, I could have helped him a lot just in organizing his shop. It was a mess imho. Of course, had I suggested that to Ray, he would have slapped me as soon as the words came out of my mouth