How long would you wait until you got mad?

snipershot

snipershot

Go ahead.....run for it.
Silver Member
Lets say you order a custom cue. The cumaker says it will take 3 months to make it. So you pay the full amount, and wait patiently. 3 months go by and he says he is behind and it will be another 3 months. Ok, so its disapointing, but tolerable. 3 months go by, and its still not done. Hmmmm....now its been 9 months and still no cue. I know im not getting ripped off here, I will get the cue. What pisses me off isnt waiting 3 times the original time quoted, its the fact that he quoted the time, without knowing it would be on time. I would have just assumed he didnt give me a date, or tell me 2 years so I wouldnt be expecting to play with my new cue three different freakin times! Sorry for the rant, and Im not gonna say who it is, because like I said, he is honset, just used poor judgement. I need another freakin beer.......



Joe
 
Well that's no fun, you not getting your cue and not outing them, lol.

Hope everything works out and it is worth the wait. Just stop thinking about it and one when it shows up you be like a kid in toys-r-us!
 
gwjackal said:
Well that's no fun, you not getting your cue and not outing them, lol.

Hope everything works out and it is worth the wait. Just stop thinking about it and one when it shows up you be like a kid in toys-r-us!
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Its hard to not think about it! I get home for a week here and there, and every time Im looking for that tube on the front porch! lol!


Joe
 
Don't get angry with him. That would be like pissing off your heart surgeon just before the operation. Gee , you guys who can afford custom cues keep running into this scenario. You have over a thousands posts and you never saw this problem occur before?

I think cue makers all plant the tree that will supply the wood for custom cues just about the time they get first payment. Of course it takes awhile before it can be harvested. And then there is curing time etc,etc,.... :shrug:
 
DelaWho has it right

snipershot said:
Lets say you order a custom cue. The cumaker says it will take 3 months to make it. So you pay the full amount, and wait patiently. 3 months go by and he says he is behind and it will be another 3 months. Ok, so its disapointing, but tolerable. 3 months go by, and its still not done. Hmmmm....now its been 9 months and still no cue. I know im not getting ripped off here, I will get the cue. What pisses me off isnt waiting 3 times the original time quoted, its the fact that he quoted the time, without knowing it would be on time. I would have just assumed he didnt give me a date, or tell me 2 years so I wouldnt be expecting to play with my new cue three different freakin times! Sorry for the rant, and Im not gonna say who it is, because like I said, he is honset, just used poor judgement. I need another freakin beer.......



Joe
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Do note that I'm not saying this is right or the way to do business but when the payments get too lopsided a man needing cash no longer has incentive to do the work, just the opposite in fact. When you pay in full upfront not only is there no more money coming to the person you paid when they finish your job, finishing your job takes away time from jobs that they will get paid to finish so there is actually counter-incentive to finishing your job.

I have lost friends that I have been doing business with for years when I paid them upfront. Since they were among the best in the world at what they do I also lost a great connection. I have also received shoddy work from people known for top quality work when they rushed out something I had paid for long ago to get to jobs that would make them money.

I had a great uncle that had a pack of hunting dogs. He was a kind and generous man but come hunting season he only fed his hunting dogs every other day and not as much as he normally fed them then. I asked him why and he told me that a hungry dog hunts a lot harder. It's true of people too. No incentive to finish other than honor and it is easy to dog a project one way or another mostly through procrastination. "It won't hurt to spend a couple days on something else first to make a few dollars I need." The days turn to weeks and months. I came very close to making a side trip 1500 miles out of my way to see a custom rifle builder I had paid too much up front. Not a bad guy but a bad businessman. Some of the most talented people around can be poor businessmen, in fact I'd say that is more common than not.

Sometimes we have to choose a large deposit upfront or not dealing with a person but whenever possible keep deposits and partial payments small so there is a reward for finishing the job even if you have dealt with the person 14 times before. One man I recommended highly jerked over a handful of people that I recommended him to, friends or people that respected my judgment. I'm still angry about that, will be for the rest of my life.

Hu
 
snipershot said:
Lets say you order a custom cue. The cumaker says it will take 3 months to make it. So you pay the full amount, and wait patiently. 3 months go by and he says he is behind and it will be another 3 months. Ok, so its disapointing, but tolerable. 3 months go by, and its still not done. Hmmmm....now its been 9 months and still no cue. I know im not getting ripped off here, I will get the cue. What pisses me off isnt waiting 3 times the original time quoted, its the fact that he quoted the time, without knowing it would be on time. I would have just assumed he didnt give me a date, or tell me 2 years so I wouldnt be expecting to play with my new cue three different freakin times! Sorry for the rant, and Im not gonna say who it is, because like I said, he is honset, just used poor judgement. I need another freakin beer.......



Joe
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Well first rule is never pay in full for a cue until its delivered. Certain exceptions can be made, but the list is pretty small. Can count the cuemakers I'd send payment for a cue up front on one hand. They all have a history of delivering on time or a litttle ahead of what they tell you though.
 
"How long would you wait until you got mad?"

I would start getting mad 3 months after the expected delivery date, or double the anticipated wait time. After the next 3 months I'd be livid!

A few years back I gave a Dufferin to one of the league players who "said" he could do a few minor changes. I haven't seen him or the cue in 3 years! Good thing is wasn't a Scruggs!

I rationalized the cost of the lost cue as payment for not having to ever see the ahole again!
 
snipershot said:
Lets say you order a custom cue. The cumaker says it will take 3 months to make it. So you pay the full amount, and wait patiently. 3 months go by and he says he is behind and it will be another 3 months. Ok, so its disapointing, but tolerable. 3 months go by, and its still not done. Hmmmm....now its been 9 months and still no cue.
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Did anyone else scratch their heads over this math?

---

but anyway, whether it's 6 months or 9 months, I'd be worried and irate. The actual time spent on a custom cue isn't 3 months worth of 40-hours-per-week work. I know there's some waiting involved for curing and drying, but I'd be surprised if it's more than 2 weeks of actual work at the bench.

So what is happening during the other 30 weeks? His day job? Fishing? Or maybe you're on the back burner to some other cues? And if you're on the back burner, why?

I would simply ask for my money back. Watch how he offers to get it to you ASAP. Then you make sure to mention you don't want it halfassed and you do want it by a specific date, and make him commit to that date, or the money must come back.

You definitely shouldn't have paid more than half up front.
 
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Sorry to hear about the problem that you are having.

+1 for everything ShootingArts said.

I would be pissed by now and just ask, rather demand my money back and go else where. After all this time you could of had someone else make the same cue with normal build times of a year.

James
 
Unfortunately, this horseshit seems to be coming up quite a bit - and it's nothing less than holding your money hostage. Equally bad is continued flimsy "excuses" as to why a cue isn't shipped when you have been provided a firm date when it will be.
After a lengthy period, let's don't fool ourselves into thinking that getting a refund makes a customer "whole" either. When you've fruitlessly consumed a year or more of a customer's time - time that this person had invested in an expected productive end & that could have been invested with someone who WOULD have provided the expected benefit in a reasonably accurate timeframe, thus allowing the consumer to enjoy their investment - then giving that person a refund of their money doesn't come close to re-paying them all that they have invested.
I'll bet that if the customer sought a solution that involved providing the agreed product, at the expected level of quality, at an agreed time, but for half price - the cue maker would begin singing the blues loud & hard about the lack of return on HIS time.
It's real funny how that works.
Fortunately, I've been pretty lucky...
 
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old dry cleaner joke from an old dry cleaner

Customer goes onto a cleaner offering 1 hour service.
Customer: Can you clean this in 1 hour?
Cleaner: Ah, yes!
Customer: When may I pick it up?
Cleaner: Next Thursday.
Customer: What? I thought you said one hour?
Cleaner: Yes, Of course. Your hour will be next Thursday!

Poolshooter goes to cuemaker:
Poolshooter: Can you make this stick in 3 months ?
Cuemaker: Ah,yes! et cetera, et cetera etc, etc,
 
Just thank god for the small blessing that he is at least communicating with you. It would be even worse if he had your money and was ignoring you at the same time. At least you have some idea about whats going on. I do understand why you would be pissed though. Good luck bud, I hope that you get what you paid for soon.

FC
 
Buying custom cues from cue makers in general takes a bit of skil , or experience, its not Domino's Pizza. :)

Here's how it goes, if you have $$$ down on a cue-which isnt the best idea anyways, but if you do you should ignore what the cue maker says or triple the time he promises. Unless you know the cue maker and you put down your deposit no sooner than a couple months before he starts the cue-or batch of cues yours is in. When a cue maker wants it all up front-run dont walk, it aint worth the aggrivation.

If you put down $$ with a cue maker who says he is backed up for a year or longer but your $$$ will get you a spot in line, then 5%-10% is all I send. He obviously has more work than he can handle and dosent need the 5%-10% for anything as the cues he is selling should be covering his bills. If he has to sell spots in line to pay his bills-Dont buy a cue from him. He is a spot seller not a cue maker. Stay away IMO, there are exceptions to this as well-you got to know your cue maker.

If you made a phone call and ordered a cue with nothing down, which IMO is how it should be for most established cue makers. Throw away your calander's and just wait it out.

I have ordered cues that never showed up-for what ever reason, I wasnt upset at the cue maker. As long as you dont have any $$$ in it, it dosent matter. Before you put your $$$ in to a promised cue-ya gotta do your homework on who just got your $$$, preferably ahead of time-unless its a very well established cue maker. Buying cues in the dark is bad biz.

I wish you the best,:smile::smile:

respectfully,

Eric:smile:
 
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I usually commission (2) cues each year to be build for me. It is rare if the cuemaker makes the delivery date.

That being said, if you are dealing with cuemakers, get used to it.

The options are to live with it or call and cancel.

Ken
 
Fatboy said:
Buying custom cues from cue makers in general takes a bit of skil , or experience, its not Domino's Pizza. :)

Here's how it goes, if you have $$$ down on a cue-which isnt the best idea anyways, but if you do you should ignore what the cue maker says or triple the time he promises. Unless you know the cue maker and you put down your deposit no sooner than a couple months before he starts the cue-or batch of cues yours is in. When a cue maker wants it all up front-run dont walk, it aint worth the aggrivation.

If you put down $$ with a cue maker who says he is backed up for a year or longer but your $$$ will get you a spot in line, then 5%-10% is all I send. He obviously has more work than he can handle and dosent need the 5%-10% for anything as the cues he is selling should be covering his bills. If he has to sell spots in line to pay his bills-Dont buy a cue from him. He is a spot seller not a cue maker. Stay away IMO, there are exceptions to this as well-you got to know your cue maker.

If you made a phone call and ordered a cue with nothing down, which IMO is how it should be for most established cue makers. Throw away your calander's and just wait it out.

I have ordered cues that never showed up-for what ever reason, I wasnt upset at the cue maker. As long as you dont have any $$$ in it, it dosent matter. Before you put your $$$ in to a promised cue-ya gotta do your homework on who just got your $$$, preferably ahead of time-unless its a very well established cue maker. Buying cues in the dark is bad biz.

I wish you the best,:smile::smile:

respectfully,

Eric:smile:
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I disagree with my friend Eric.

Several top cuemakers require 25% down. I have no problem with it, and actually think it helps some. My thought was if I put 25% down, then I am not only locking my place but locking in the price. I had a top cuemaker tell me that after putting 25% down about 4 years ago that the prices have increased and I will have to pay more. I think this is bull$hit.

Southwest as I understand it now, by putting you name on the list and putting nothing down, locks a place in line but does not lock in the prices. So when your cue is being built you will pay the current price, not the price when you were put on the list. Im okay with this.

Ken
 
I learned the hard way myself. Never, ever pay it all up front. Like someone said earlier, it give the cuemaker absolutely incentive to finish the job.

Maybe 20%-30% down.

I hope you get the cue soon...................:smile:

JimmyK
 
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