Around 1991, I was playing pool with a few friends at the local pool hall. While racking, I leaned my cue against the end rail of the table. It fell over and hit the floor splitting in half right below the joint collar. Mind you, this was carpet on the floor.
The cue was not a huge loss monetarily, it was a McDermott D6 stained gray. The worst part of the deal is that the cue was on loan to me from my wife while mine was getting a new tip. The cue had been given to her a few years earlier as a Christmas present from her parents. There you have it, a fast way to get the ENTIRE family mad at you at the same time! That was a long trip back home from the pool hall.
Side note: It took me years to find another D6 that fit the bill as a replacement for the old cue. I tried a few times with a few different cues. One cue was too heavy, D19, one cue she didn't like the color, D6 stained purple.
I had a similar event, cue fell on the floor, as I went to pick it up, only half came with
it. I was so surprised. I had never seen that happen, nor have I since. It was due to a
knot in the birds eye maple, so I was told. As I laid it to rest in the trash can, a friend
told me about this local cue maker who could 'fix' it. I doubted it, but out of the trash
it came. Low and behold a few weeks later it was back together, stained a tye-dye
hodgepodge of colors to hide the scar. It was a Joss that I had bought new as a fill in
for my Schon that was half way across America...it did its job until I was able to get
my Schon back. I think I got rid of it for the price of the repair...$100.