Most underrated traditional style custom maker
- Thread starter Nyquil
- Start date
Not so sure Keith Josey is underrated these days...but he does make a damned fine cue.
Chris Nitti may not be underrated but makes great cues (pwd72s you said it well about josey applies to nitti too )
www.nitticues.com
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www.nitticues.com
I am probably way out of the loop then, because I always got the feeling that very few people actually know of his work.
Only makes 1.24 inch butts. Seems strange for a custom cue maker. Maybe he doesn't have the tooling?
That seems odd. Are you certain? He is a really talented cue maker. Maybe that’s what he uses
when the customer doesn’t specify something else. Sort of like it’s his standard but he’ll build what
you want. If there’s any Cohen customers that know much about this, please post your comments.
Lucky John
Registered
Jerry Rauenzahn and Jensen fit the bill.
JR is long time retiered
Bob Frey.
Jerry retired two years ago……
Bob might be able to make a simple player’s design but the way inflation is driving up the cost of everything,
the cue could be more like a couple hundred higher than his stated budget. The other thing is Bob is very
busy. Remember he still sells Shurtz cues and also Owen custom cues too. His waiting list is getting longer.
Bob Frey makes a solid hitting cue (I have three), but I don't think he's making cues anymore. Gene Huie is Bob's sales rep, but he hasn't posted any new cues for a while. If he is still making cues, they will be sneaky petes.
That's what he told me when I inquired about ordering a couple cues from him last year. I wanted a butt diameter of 1.28-1.29 inches. I was sorely disappointed because he was my favorite cue maker.
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Because I play with a Chris Nitti cue that is 1.285 inches in diameter, and a 1.25 inch cue feels like a toothpick to me. I'm 6' 3". I've seen some cues that are 1.30" in diameter (a dzcue made from a John Davis blank with a 1.30" butt sold a few days ago), and I would like to try one. I'm aware that the trend is thinner, for instance Becue butts are 1.21 inches in diameter. I assume that is because the trend is to make lighter cues. I don't think I need a lighter cue (do I?), 20 oz is fine with me. My toughest shots are power shots, not touch shots. I would like a cue that provides easy power. Do lighter cues with thinner butts provide easier power?
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phreaticus
Well-known member
Yeah, I’m with you. I have a Tascarella that is 1.29”, a Joss that is 1.28”, and a mini collection of vintage BW cues that are all 1.3+”. Over time, I’ve realized I like cue butts in the 1.3” diameter zone. I’m only 5’10”, but have large hands & long arms, maybe thats why. To me, grip hand is where all the feel of the game is, and I’m surprised more folks aren’t sensitive to grip diameter & balance point on custom cues. I also ran into problems with several cue makers not wanting to do anything larger than 1.25” or so. One told me his jigs & tooling were all set for 1.25” and its too time time consuming to change his setup. Thankfully Bob D is flexible & had no problem building that 1.3 DZ cue for me that you mentioned. Next project will be 1.3” also…
Plus, its fun to say “I like fat butts”…
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