Are they not totally obsolete, having been away for some 30 plus years I did not keep up with what has gone to China in a hand basket, or is there something close in manufacturing that resembles what was once a great in my opinion cue to make sneakies out of. Having gone back to bring myself up to speed I have been doing a bunch of reading. I couldn't remember why or what made them such a good hitting cue until I read what a full spice is in making a cue, it has been that long. I sort of went into husband ,father, college mode, back to sort of like the beginning doing nothing, but not really enjoying it. So anyway what is the closest facsimile of the Dufferin outside of having to be made, if there is such a thing would Y'all please let me know I would be truly thankful for the info.
old school dufferin one piece cues
- Thread starter Ron Padilla
- Start date
They used quality wood and were kinda fat.
Canada is the land of maple.
China is not.
House cues today are mostly junk.
Even Valley made for good sneaky conversions.
Canada is the land of maple.
China is not.
House cues today are mostly junk.
Even Valley made for good sneaky conversions.
yes they were very fat but would be turned down for the correct weight, that worked for me a few times anyway, but I take it that they are no longer around unless found in an estate sale or garage somewhere!
Find them in old honky tonks, speakeasys and bowling alleys
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I have a stash of old house cues, over the years I have made quite a few nice cues from them. I re-taper the shaft to my taper and even out the points. It also helps when they have a little figure in the handle. I will also grain match the shaft to the butt. I add a butt cap and some joint rings and put a nice finish on them. Most of my stock is either Duffs or Falcon house cues. I did an old McDermott house cue conversion not long ago, customer provided the cue.
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The duffs worked so well back then, even made a few very nice jump cues with them but it did take a little effort to pick out the nicest dark oak duffs from the bunch. Its to bad they aren't made any more, but just like everything or almost everything that is production made comes out of China
I play at a franchise poolhall and all of the house cues are Dufferins with the maple leaf inlayed logo. I don't think they are hard to find at all. Question is how much they might take for you to go home with a few. I have a buddy who became furious one time when we were playing, right when a barmaid was coming around to take a drink order. He said, "How much do I have to pay if I break a stick?". She said $20 so he gave her a $20 and proceeded to break the cue! I think they are all over the place. I think the ones that are hardest to find are the dufferins with the butterfly spliced bottoms, and picking the better blanks relative to straightness and handle wood. I have never see an ebony one.
its unfortunate but I don't have many places around here to select from so the pikens are slim at best, but I am going to reach out to a few people to try and come up with at least one.
Dufferin made cues in Canada from 1967 to about 2005 when a Chinese firm bought their cue production. You can buy new Dufferin brand cues today, they are made in China. It is likely that the ones you are familiar with are the newer Dufferins.
Today :
http://www.dufferincues.com/index.php?m=content&c=index&a=lists&catid=53
A little history:
http://www.billiardsforum.com/biz/dufferin-games-ltd-manufacturing-mississauga
Dave <-- also has a stash of Dufferin 1-piece cues, removed from bar service circa 2010, but not certain of their origin
the ones that I was familiar with go back over 30 years ago when I was at much younger age, I did not keep up with changes to pool industry for a long time! And just returned to this arena back in December, although I would watch tournaments I didn't keep up with cue making during that time. But it only makes sense that they either sold out that line or moved it to China like most other American and Canadian companies did during that time frame.