New Titlist Re-Conversion by Brad Hamel (Nuts4Tascarellas)

heresy

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Can't say enough about Brad. He re-converted me a hell of a player. He makes a very good cue at a very fair price. He was very accommodating, sent TONS of photos throughout the process, and honored all of my requests. His communication is top notch. An absolute pleasure to do business with and a true gentleman.

I've always loved the basic old school Balabushka and Rambow titlist conversions. Straightforward, no nonsense players. I've owned customs(my main player until I got this one is a Jim Ingram Oak Titlist Conversion), but I've never had a cue made for me. I sent Brad this lower quality conversion:

IMG_2379.jpg

And requested he make it close to this Balabushka:

IMG_2348.JPG

At 1:11am on Thursday, May 25, 2017, this cue was born:

IMG_4191.jpg
IMG_4200.jpg
IMG_4208.jpg

I knew exactly what I wanted and Brad got it exactly right. I really like the proportions of the old cues and requested that he not taper the butt down any narrower than it was. Brad matched the original shaft from the old conversion, which has an ivory ferrule, to the butt and made one of his own low deflection shafts to go with the cue.

I love that the cue has a hit which feels and sounds a lot like my 40s Hoppe Professional. The fit and finish are very good. We couldn't decide if Brad should sign the forearm, so he surprised me with a weight bold engraved with "Hamel Customs". I couldn't be more pleased. This one is a lifer.

Butt weight-15.15oz
Original shaft- 3.90oz @ a little over 12.5mm
Hamel LD shaft- 4.90oz @ a little under 12mm. LD shaft cored with bamboo plug to 5" from tip
 
Last edited:

Nuts4Tascarellas

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Thank you for the kind words. I'm glad to know that I made you happy. You have given me the ultimate compliment that any cuemaker can hope for - you play with it!
 

Chopdoc

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Brad is a great guy. He did some work for me. I called it "polishing a turd" because he was working on some shafts for an Asian import for me.

http://forums.azbilliards.com/showthread.php?t=428379&highlight=polishing*a*turd

So not only is he a nice guy to work with, but he's a great turd polisher. :grin:

He's great about progress pics as well, which I know most of us really dig.

As for the cue in this thread, I really dig it. Very nice work resurrecting an old cue and it really looks great with that Hoppe ring. The weight bolt is a nice touch for sure.

Thanks for showing off! :thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:
 

Nuts4Tascarellas

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Info

I have had a few people trying to find me due to this thread. You can text 207 - 266 - 0637 to get info. On Facebook you can find me on any of the cue sales sites such as Open Billiards Market, etc. My name is Brad Hamel. Looking forward to working with you.
 
Top