Black Boar Cues-Does wrap change alter cue's value

R

RAMIII

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
All, I've been presented with a trade option to move into a Black Boar, an AS-5. I never thought I would get a chance to own a BB so this is an exciting possibility for me. The owner of the cue explained that he had a well-known cue-maker replace the linen wrap with a very nice lizard wrap. I called BB to ask about their AS-5 series and asked about the wrap being replaced by another cue maker. I was told that the wrap change would hurt the value of the cue. I explained who performed the wrap change and was told they would likely never work on the cue because they have seen another wrap change on their cues by the same cue maker and he irreparably damaged the cue (he allegedly sanded down the wrap area rather than the wrap and, thereby changed the "hit").
There are a couple of issues for me here:
1. Will the changed wrap really change the value of a BB AS-5?
2. I'm hesitant to own a BB now because I have not encountered a cue maker who would not want to help players who owns one of his cues or who would not work on a cue that another cue maker touched. Is this unusual? Have other people experienced a similar situation?
I guess I've been lucky to work with cue makers whose customer service is top-notch and this has me worried.

Any guidance would be appreciated.
-Ryan
 
I do not care who did the wrap.

If they cut into it and they almost always do, the Cue has lost value. And also most interested buyers. There is a reason Tony used to charge $500 for a nice wrap. Probably more now.
Tony would have to inspect the Cue with no wrap. Then he might refuse to rewrap it if it is altered in any way.
He might refuse to look at it at all. I remember Tim and Mike refuse to work on one of their Cues if they were altered. I have herd Tony is the same way.
But can't say positively either way.
Nick
 
I would have tony at black boar cues do work & keep all original. He is the master!
 
Cue makers don't ever want to be responsible for other people's worh. Even if the guy who did the work had a good reputation. Ever try to get a cue repair guy to put on a tip of your's? Many will refuse. Why?? Because if it plays bad or delaminates ect...they will be held responsible by the person and their reputation can suffer.

Yes the cue was devalued some certainly. I dont think irreparably...maybe 30 percent The handle was cut down to allow leather for certain. Also leather was put on a cue that everyone knows had linen originally. It's not that Black Boar didn't do the work that's the issue. If you need to sell it ever you only gotta sell it once. I think some of these kinds of worry aren't needed.

You just need to like the cue and know the trade makes sense. I'd go for it if you like how it plays and like the leather wrap. Personally I hate leather but it's beside the point.

Lastly, I don't know if you could go back to linen. I've never heard it done and can't imagine it could be. Maybe fatten up the handle with epoxy, turn it down and rewrap. There are plenty of guys talented enough to restore sawdust.
 
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I bought a Ed Prewitt cue this past December. I traded a very special Mottey cue plus cash to score this cue. Understandably I am interested in protecting the cue's value.
As far as the upside, I don't really care if that happens or not. However, I don't want to lose value on my EP cue, or any of my others, and never have on any cue I've sold.
The wrap on my EP cue is a very handsome wrap.......it's the only leather wrap cue I own......I really dislike the wrap ........big time........it's elephant ear and looks amazing
but I'd much rather have a Cortland Linen wrap on my cue like my other cues have.

So here I have this expensive cue that looks gorgeous but I don't care for the wrap....Jeez, just change it and enjoy my cue right? Not so fast.....when I remove that elephant
ear wrap and replace it with another wrap......leather or Cortland Linen......my cue's value gets dinged since it's not all original any longer and the likely selling price of my
EP cue becomes adversely affected. I've been told that by several big time cue collectors and some cue dealers whom I highly regard.

So to protect my EP cue's value, the elephant ear wrap stays. Anyway, the cue plays so well that I've learned to tolerate the wrap but it's always in the back of my mind after
I have played with my other cues that have Cortland Linen. Listen to the horse's mouth.......Black Boar.......it's just not worth the risk and potential loss of money if and when
you went to sell that cue. Sellers of expensive custom cues that have had the wrap changed hate to hear this but it's just the facts that the resale market tends to corroborate.

Matt B.
 
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I think Tony would refuse to rewrap this cue only because of his prior experience with the cue maker's other rewrapped cue. I'm not sure I'd be interested in a $500+ wrap job anyways, but that may be why I never owned a BB in the first place.....
 
Ernie at Ginacue used to do some work on cues for me a few years back. The man is a master of his craft. He would refinish cues for me and rewrap with leather or linen depending on the cue. Ernie won't do work on cues anymore cause he is getting ready to retire and is working on the 50th anniversary cues.

This dude at BB sounds like a prima donna. 500 bucks for a rewrap sounds very steep. The fact does remain that " collectors " can be very picky. I used to play Fatboy down in Santa Monica now and again and he played with a $25,000 BB. His cue was one piece of work. In fact he had two of them the very high end ones.
 
The other issue may be that an AS-5 is not exactly a collector's cue. It's not a unique design. I was told that less than a dozen were made with this design. BB purists would probably not be interested.
 
overlord said:
Ernie at Ginacue used to do some work on cues for me a few years back. The man is a master of his craft. He would refinish cues for me and rewrap with leather or linen depending on the cue. Ernie won't do work on cues anymore cause he is getting ready to retire and is working on the 50th anniversary cues.

This dude at BB sounds like a prima donna. 500 bucks for a rewrap sounds very steep. The fact does remain that " collectors " can be very picky. I used to play Fatboy down in Santa Monica now and again and he played with a $25,000 BB. His cue was one piece of work. In fact he had two of them the very high end ones.
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Diva... That's one word for it.
 

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The cue is already worth much more than it original price
and I'm relatively sure it's going to go up more
that would constitute a collector to me but what do I know

1
 
Increase in price is one element....

I think that's one element. Perhaps the model is just less highly sought after since it's not unique. When you think BB you don't tend to think traditional 4 pointer.


one stroke said:
The cue is already worth much more than it original price
and I'm relatively sure it's going to go up more
that would constitute a collector to me but what do I know

1
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RAMIII said:
The other issue may be that an AS-5 is not exactly a collector's cue. It's not a unique design. I was told that less than a dozen were made with this design. BB purists would probably not be interested.
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Purists would not be interested?

I believe AS-5 and its other lines were made before Black Board decided to make the more feminine cues that target the collector's wives.
 
dom_poppa said:
His cues are marketed towards divas and females.

It is an untapped market.

I still want one of those plain Jane BB cues. I like the multiple points minus all the fluff. BB is a genius but I think the design is overboard.
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Where do come up with this stuff ,, I happen to know the guy who has more BBs by far than anyone else ,, his wife doesn't even know he has them

1
 
one stroke said:
Where do come up with this stuff ,, I happen to know the guy who has more BBs by far than anyone else ,, his wife doesn't even know he has them

1
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If we didn't know what a Black Boar cue was, like the first time someone posted one of those flowery cues, I was very close to congratulating his wife for such good taste.

I just thought it could be a woman that was posting her BB cue -or- some collector buying it for his wife.

Those are very elaborate and intricate designs but I believe most would choose a monster Searing or Szam over BB.

I am fascinated with BB because I want to see how they hit. I've heard great things about their hit and design and when I mean design, I mean how the cue was constructed and engineered. Not the flowery stuff.

If I ever had the money I would buy one for the wife so she can let me continue buying cues.:cool:
 
RAMIII said:
I think that's one element. Perhaps the model is just less highly sought after since it's not unique. When you think BB you don't tend to think traditional 4 pointer.
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Pleny of people collect lesser valued cues , schon Mucci to name a couple

One of the bigger sellers of cues had or has a A5 on his site for I think 4500 or 4700
He said my 6 is worth mid 2s in fair condition I wouldnt take less than 3k
Yes that's not any where near the more sought after cues but it is a BB with a lot of ivory
That plenty of people would jump at buying if the price is right

1
 
RAMIII said:
The other issue may be that an AS-5 is not exactly a collector's cue. It's not a unique design. I was told that less than a dozen were made with this design. BB purists would probably not be interested.
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RAM:

BB cues are some of the best cues out there; that's for sure.

The new logo BB's, and especially the fancier ones command a lot of $$$. Altering those would be foolish, imo, unless you're wealthy and don't care.

The old logo cues might be better candidates for rewrapping from linen to leather in terms of any poss decrease in value.

Let's take your AS-5, for instance. I'll just throw a number out there; say you are paying $2200 for the cue.

If you rewrap it with leather because that's what you like to play with, then by altering the originality of this cue you may have decreased the value somewhat but there is always going to be willing buyers for an as-5, even rewrapped ones (done right). When was the last time you saw one going for $1600? :wink:

If I wanted an as-5 and preferred leather, I would def get it done and most likely, by a talented person who doesn't charge $500 to do it.

If you ever decide to sell it, you're likely to still be in the $2k range.

Enjoy it.

best,
brian kc
 
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one stroke said:
Pleny of people collect lesser valued cues , schon Mucci to name a couple

One of the bigger sellers of cues had or has a A5 on his site for I think 4500 or 4700
He said my 6 is worth mid 2s in fair condition I wouldnt take less than 3k
Yes that's not any where near the more sought after cues but it is a BB with a lot of ivory
That plenty of people would jump at buying if the price is right

1
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I think these numbers are a bit on the high side for today's market.

best,
brian kc
 
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