Is Southwest the best?

[deanoc]

i am willing to bet that no one here can tell the difference between a cue made before and after jerry
no looking at the pin number

a blind test i will get 20 cues
look at them hit them $10000 says you can not pick the 10 before

no one is barred

greg antinokas is not barred and he is the expert


all of these before and after people are talkers

i have owned maybe 1oo of them, jerry was a close friend of mine

toward the end he was wrapping and finishing the cues
the same people making the cues then ,are making the cues now

in my opinion they are the best
if you own a different cue ,buy a south west shaft and i bet you love it

my friend Dennis Glenn used to get south west to make the shafts for efren to play with
he bought some shafts for a Balasushka or two and praised them highly

other people make great cues,but no one has a 13 year waiting list
no one who makes 20 cues a year anyway

when dealers say over and over
no trades but south west what does that tell you?

Blly Incardona, (no rookie or foreigner to all aspect of pool )told me he liked his South West more than any cue and asked if i thought he could get another one

i said sure,they respected billy and he had been a friend,i get 2 a year and i would give him a spot

some people prefer this,some that.
but survey after survey proclaims south west the best,or favorite

the nice thing is,go ahead and buy one,i will give you a $500 profit the day you get it

some will offer $1000

who else but Barry Szamboti could do that?

truth be told there are some good copies out there,they use the same looking woods,same colors,same length ,weight,wrap but they are still not the same

not the same choice and selection,or processing
hence not the same quality

 

[CJH]

They are handsome cues for sure but they all look so similar to me. They have a great reputation for service and integrity. The fact that they make 20 or so per year and don't require a deposit is a brilliant business model. But to say they are "the best" hitting cue is ridiculous. Thats like saying there is a best tip, best wrap, best ferrule...

I used to own a southwest and now have at least 6 cues that hit better (to me).

 

[Worminator]

Well - I have an old JF Southwest and I have got a couple new ones that I flipped immediately.

I will say that I have never heard of Southwest NOT delivering on their promise of a cue. THAT alone makes them one of the best. While the delivery seems, and is a long time, they don't take a deposit. Because they don't take a deposit is my opinion of why so many are flipped and the wait is so long.

All too often, cue makers do not.

Best of rolls to all,

Ken

I believe they do require a 50% deposit when they begin the build.

 

[Chopdoc]

when i spoke with lauri couple months ago....said 8 years

Well, I walked away from my spot years ago. :wink:

I think it was about six years ago actually.....






.

 

[overlord]

Deanoc, put together a great post about the reality of SW Cues. I used to play for years with a basic Pau ferro SW from the early 80s, it came with one shaft when I brought the cue and had a Westinghouse Micarta ferrule.

It was a cue that Parica played with for awhile like so many. The shaft was a thin taper that I got used to 12.25.

I had some shafts made for it while I was out in Vegas and ordered another cue. That was in 1999, I received my new SW in 2008.

It has a Gaboon ebony nose with Tulipwood points, A and B rings and joint protectors. I love the cue and have played with it for the most part ever since. Sometimes I'll try other cues and I own many and always come back.

I have a Tiger shaft at 30 inches that I had sent to SW to match the rings with a 11.75 tip. I played for years with the SW shafts.

The Pau ferro cue had a " note " in the hit. It was very distinct. The Ebony nose is more neutral. In a moment of weakness that I regret, I traded my old SW for an Ebony Prewitt with the fancy rings and an ivory joint.

SWs are like Ginas you can always sell them fast and you make money at the same time. There are not many cues like that.

Its the Indian not the arrow and that is a fact but that being said having a fantastic custom cue made out of exotic woods is a real treat.

It may be a moot point we are losing all our pool halls in Los Angeles.

 

[skins]

Well, I walked away from my spot years ago. :wink:

I think it was about six years ago actually.....






.

How did you do that? Did you call Laurie and ask her to take you off the list? I mean from what I gather SW doesn't allow the transfer of "spots". If Laurie knows it was transfered she wont change the order so you would have had to take delivery of the cue and THEN sell it to whomever you sold the spot to... Did you take delivery yet?

 

[Kim Bye]

I`m not even gonna go into what is the "best" cue, but Southwest seems to be a brand for people who invest in cues as they seem to hold their value very well.
Seing that you`r kind of limited in the design of the cue, I wouldn`t call them a true custom cue.

 

[skins]

I`m not even gonna go into what is the "best" cue, but Southwest seems to be a brand for people who invest in cues as they seem to hold their value very well.
Seing that you`r kind of limited in the design of the cue, I wouldn`t call them a true custom cue.

MOST SW ordered are played with. So the fact that they have a 12+ year wait list and for comparable design from pretty much any other maker are the most expensive, tells you something about how well they are built AND play. THAT is why they hold thier value.

I think, as in the past and still to this day, they are a benchmark for many makers as far as workmanship and playability. If not well then THOSE makers must have secret "sauce" of their own. :smile:

 

[harris cue comp]

sw

Here is another retarded moment of people years for a cue that plays like Shit. Like all south west cues do. Get it and s it's to esell it. The new d.esign is fat. You can build those cues 100.00 dollars and Laurie is ****ing you . Won't even use ebony as its expensive. She just recently cancelled her order with exotic hardwoods. Bought that. That's the same place Tony buy 40 year black wood that's the last he has.

 

[skins]

Here is another retarded moment of people years for a cue that plays like Shit. Like all south west cues do. Get it and s it's to esell it. The new d.esign is fat. You can build those cues 100.00 dollars and Laurie is ****ing you . Won't even use ebony as its expensive. She just recently cancelled her order with exotic hardwoods. Bought that. That's the same place Tony buy 40 year black wood that's the last he has.

So you dont think very highly of SW cues. Fair enough, you're entitled to an opinion, but I think as you decided to "come out of the woodwork" maybe you would've served youself better by posting in the thread at the link below first. Not "hating", just "saying".

http://forums.azbilliards.com/showthread.php?t=443100

 

[dnixon]

.........................................no...............................................................

 

[johnnysd]

I have no issues with SW cues. I think they are the best of their type of cue which in many ways were revolutionary (and opposite) compared to the steel jointed cues that were popular back when Jerry was building his customer base.

That said they are one of my least favorite cues I have hit with. I find them overly stiff, and terrible backward balanced and just completely awkward, which are all things that make them the "best" for other players.

There is no best cue. Some people like predators and I think they are just unplayable. Some people hate Judds and I think they were among the very best cues ever made.

What really matters is what feels right to you, in your hands, and what you feel proud in owning.

 

[Scott Lee]

Cardone plays with a Cognoscenti...has for decades.

Scott Lee
http://poolknowledge.com

Blly Incardona, (no rookie or foreigner to all aspect of pool )told me he liked his South West more than any cue and asked if i thought he could get another one

 

[overlord]

Here is another retarded moment of people years for a cue that plays like Shit. Like all south west cues do. Get it and s it's to esell it. The new d.esign is fat. You can build those cues 100.00 dollars and Laurie is ****ing you . Won't even use ebony as its expensive. She just recently cancelled her order with exotic hardwoods. Bought that. That's the same place Tony buy 40 year black wood that's the last he has.

I can see that you are very envious of folk that built up a great business and make a well regarded product. I think you may have issues. Have you considered a remedial English class for starters?

One must remember that SW came out with their own design and it was and is imitated by many cue makers. SW reminds me of Randall Knives. There is a long waiting list for them and there a ton of knives in the world that will cut up stuff and yet Randall has built up a great brand.

That is was its all about. I know the Asian Champions that could play with anything are being taken advantage of according to you.

There is only one country that you can get legal Gaboon Ebony from. My understanding is they had a cracking issue with some of the GE they had and could not get a quality replacement.

Please don't be hating.

 

[Cornerman]

How did you do that? Did you call Laurie and ask her to take you off the list? I mean from what I gather SW doesn't allow the transfer of "spots". If Laurie knows it was transfered she wont change the order so you would have had to take delivery of the cue and THEN sell it to whomever you sold the spot to... Did you take delivery yet?

I walked away from my second spot after 8 or 9 years. I own every decision I make, so when Laurie told me I was up again, I declined after some thought and that was that.

Freddie <~~~ no regrets

 

[skins]

I walked away from my second spot after 8 or 9 years. I own every decision I make, so when Laurie told me I was up again, I declined after some thought and that was that.

Freddie <~~~ no regrets

Well sure. But you had to be "up" to decline. I guess you could have called Laurie and asked to be taken out of the list too but I think that would be kinda weird. Better the way you did it.... My point was that she doesn't allow the transfer of spots. Frankly I wish I would have had the opportunity to get the cues from your spots... Maybe I'll get another chance someday.

 

[CJH]

Here is another retarded moment of people years for a cue that plays like Shit. Like all south west cues do. Get it and s it's to esell it. The new d.esign is fat. You can build those cues 100.00 dollars and Laurie is ****ing you . Won't even use ebony as its expensive. She just recently cancelled her order with exotic hardwoods. Bought that. That's the same place Tony buy 40 year black wood that's the last he has.

oh boy...

 

[Johnny Rosato]

I have not had the chance to try one and don't know anyone personally that owns one other than members here. Some members here who I have a lot of respect for say they are the best playing cue ever built. I have to imagine they do not all play the same just because wood is wood. For those that have or do play with one, please provide your opinion on playability and if you prefer another builder who it may be, only if you have experience with Southwest Cues. I love Runde cues, but also wonder if I'm missing out by not having a chance to play a Southwest?

I tried one that a friend had. I played maybe 50 games with it one weekend. It was pretty nice but it ain't no Rick Howard !!!

 

[Bank it]

If you like them, great for you. For me, they're the most overrated cue ever, I'll stick with my Scruggs.

 

[Johnny Rosato]

Here is another retarded moment of people years for a cue that plays like Shit. Like all south west cues do. Get it and s it's to esell it. The new d.esign is fat. You can build those cues 100.00 dollars and Laurie is ****ing you . Won't even use ebony as its expensive. She just recently cancelled her order with exotic hardwoods. Bought that. That's the same place Tony buy 40 year black wood that's the last he has.

Were you drunk when you typed this ???