Have any of you guys owned or played with one of Wayne's Northwest cues?
I found this very interesting story and analysis on Google AI.
Thomas Wayne's "Northwest" cues are exceptionally close to South West cues in both appearance and structural physics, as they were explicitly engineered by Wayne to mimic and rival them. The line was born from a legendary 1990s American Cuemakers Association (ACA) gathering where South West founder Jerry Franklin allegedly boasted, "Nobody can make a cue like I can," to which Alaska-based master cuemaker Thomas Wayne famously responded, "I can." To prove his point, Wayne created the "Northwest" series.Thomas Wayne cloned the visual signature of South West cues with extreme precision: The "Bottle Nose" Taper: Northwest cues feature the highly distinct, thick forward flare (bottle-nose taper) on the forearm that is synonymous with South West. Points and Veneers: They feature the traditional South West style 6-point layout (often 3 high, 3 low) with razor-sharp colored veneer miters. Ring Work: They replicate the Southwestern theme decorative ring blocks and accent bands. The Aesthetic Difference: While a South West cue focuses heavily on a raw, satin-finished "player" vibe, Thomas Wayne is an American Cuemakers Hall of Fame master known for flawless, glass-like high-gloss finishes and microscopically tight tolerances. Side-by-side, the Northwest cue often looks slightly more "refined" or cleanly finished than a standard South West.
