Who needs a custom made cue?

livemusic

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Sorry, don't know much, just a casual player all my life. I might start playing more. I keep coming up with questions, lol!

I was surfing around and found some cues for sale by a custom maker and geez, those suckers are expensive! Thousands of dollars, even tens of thousands. I had no idea! Those must have collector's value.

A couple of questions. First, what is your take on 'improvement' provided by a custom made cue? Or do you think it's just about pride of ownership? Can you just go somewhere and try out a bunch of well-made cues and find one you like or should you get one made?

Second, about how much would a good one cost? I'm talking about something that looks nice but nothing terribly fancy. I know if it's like guitars, you can pay a ridiculous price, thousands, just for bling, inlays, exotic woods and such. A decent cue... $200? $500? $1000? More?

The only 2-piece cues I own I bought for less than $100 at Academy, lol.
 

gogg

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Good cues are mostly whatever feels good to you....
I have always thought it better to put any money spent into a decent shaft, more than “bling”.
But if one really really suits you, treat yourself to a attractive one. ��

Try some of your friends sticks, see what really truly feels best, then buy a shaft like it. They use different threads, but if you have a butt end, have the shaft come with that same thread...
Like 3/8 x 10 or one of the different 5/16 inch versions.

The shaft is really the heart of how it plays
(In my opinion anyway)
 

Chopdoc

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
This has been hammered away at numerous times. In fact I think there is a thread with the exact same title. ;)

Everybody has their thoughts, their reasons.

It will be an interesting discussion.....:D
 

Ken_4fun

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I will try to help.

For playability, you don't have to spend a bunch and if you are okay with a used cue, there are some great cues for less than $500.

For playability, IMO, any Rick Howard or Gilbert is hard to beat. The Gilbert jump/break cue has incredible playability for a playing cue.

Don't overlook "well used" cues. The main issues with used cues is size of the shaft and straightness. I have made enough flipping cues to buy all the cues I have now. Most of that was buying used cues, getting a shaft made (around 100-200) and getting it refinished ($100-200).

The cues you are mentioning with $1K - $10K + are more of collectable cues verses someone who just wants a great playing cue. Most serious players, are in the $1K-$3K range.

Ken
 

Texas Carom Club

9ball did to billiards what hiphop did to america
Silver Member
I just bought a production longoni carom cue for 150 shipping included that plays as good as any custom ive ever used


So im sticking with the cheap, but incredibly high quality production cue
And im done with customs
 

Michael Andros

tiny balls, GIANT pockets
Silver Member
Sorry, don't know much, just a casual player all my life. I might start playing more. I keep coming up with questions, lol!

I was surfing around and found some cues for sale by a custom maker and geez, those suckers are expensive! Thousands of dollars, even tens of thousands. I had no idea! Those must have collector's value.

A couple of questions. First, what is your take on 'improvement' provided by a custom made cue? Or do you think it's just about pride of ownership? Can you just go somewhere and try out a bunch of well-made cues and find one you like or should you get one made?

Second, about how much would a good one cost? I'm talking about something that looks nice but nothing terribly fancy. I know if it's like guitars, you can pay a ridiculous price, thousands, just for bling, inlays, exotic woods and such. A decent cue... $200? $500? $1000? More?

The only 2-piece cues I own I bought for less than $100 at Academy, lol.

Extremely subjective question/s but here's my .02. A "decent" production ( not "hand made" which is, usually, considered to be "custom", therefore way more $$$ ) cue from a reputable cue-maker, ( Joss, MacDermott, Meucci, etc ) will be anywhere from 300 to 400. Can you find any cheaper? Sure. But with cues, usually, you get what you pay for. If you do pay 3 to 4 hundred, you be getting a cue that, given it's well-taken-care-of, will stay straight and not fall apart on you and will almost certainly, hit the ball solidly. It won't be fancy but it will more than serve its purpose.
 

CocoboloCowboy

Cowboys are my hero's
Silver Member
People seem to play a trad better if their confident in their equiptment. Cost is what your confident with.

JMHO
 
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dr9ball

"Lock Doctor"
Silver Member
With slight modification for humor this is also good advice for finding a wife.


Good xxxxx are mostly whatever feels good to you....

But if one really really suits you, treat yourself to an attractive one. ��

Try some of your friends' xxxxx, see what really truly feels best, then get one like it. They may use different shafts, but if you have the right butt, your shaft will fit it nicely

If your shaft is happy, then you're happy.
 

hang-the-9

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Sorry, don't know much, just a casual player all my life. I might start playing more. I keep coming up with questions, lol!

I was surfing around and found some cues for sale by a custom maker and geez, those suckers are expensive! Thousands of dollars, even tens of thousands. I had no idea! Those must have collector's value.

A couple of questions. First, what is your take on 'improvement' provided by a custom made cue? Or do you think it's just about pride of ownership? Can you just go somewhere and try out a bunch of well-made cues and find one you like or should you get one made?

Second, about how much would a good one cost? I'm talking about something that looks nice but nothing terribly fancy. I know if it's like guitars, you can pay a ridiculous price, thousands, just for bling, inlays, exotic woods and such. A decent cue... $200? $500? $1000? More?

The only 2-piece cues I own I bought for less than $100 at Academy, lol.

When you are ready to spend money on a custom maker's cues, you will be past the need to ask this question. You'd want to play for a while, try out several cues your friends at the pool hall play with, you'll find something you like. For prices, you can get all the cue you need for about $200-500, anything over that you are paying for the name and design. The most improvement in your game will come from finding a shaft and tip that you can play well with and finding someone to teach you how to play. Far too many people spend their money on the wrong thing, buying cues when they should be buying lessons or tournament entries.
 
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Bavafongoul

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Who Needs a Custom Made Cue?


Actually speaking........absolutely no one needs one.
On this website and life generally, folks get confused.

The vast majority of people mistakenly use the terms wants
and needs almost interchangeably when in fact they're not.

What you need you may indeed want or could even require this
but what you want you do not necessarily or truly need to get by.

Buy what you can afford and enjoy. Looks alone does not make
a quality cue and price isn't any final yardstick for determining quality.

I've spent a lot of money on pool cues and know what? None of these
cues made me a better player or just imbued me with greater pool skills.

The only thing I derive from owning a custom cue is it was built the way
I wanted the cue to made using my specs and it's a one of a kind design.

That's it, not much more to it, however, if & when you play with a pool cue
that is mismatched to what you prefer re: playing specs, you'll quickly gain
appreciation for why you enjoy playing with your custom made pool cue.


Matt B.
 

ChrisinNC

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Sorry, don't know much, just a casual player all my life. I might start playing more. I keep coming up with questions, lol!

I was surfing around and found some cues for sale by a custom maker and geez, those suckers are expensive! Thousands of dollars, even tens of thousands. I had no idea! Those must have collector's value.

A couple of questions. First, what is your take on 'improvement' provided by a custom made cue? Or do you think it's just about pride of ownership? Can you just go somewhere and try out a bunch of well-made cues and find one you like or should you get one made?

Second, about how much would a good one cost? I'm talking about something that looks nice but nothing terribly fancy. I know if it's like guitars, you can pay a ridiculous price, thousands, just for bling, inlays, exotic woods and such. A decent cue... $200? $500? $1000? More?

The only 2-piece cues I own I bought for less than $100 at Academy, lol.
Yes, pride of ownership is a big part of it, knowing you have a cue that no one else in your poolroom likely has, and hopefully the confidence in knowing that you have a top performance cue that will allow you to reach your full potential out of your game. Personally, I wouldn't want to have one unless I could comfortably afford it, and unless I considered myself as one of the better players in my home poolroom. I'm not assuming that needs to be the case for anyone else that owns a high priced custom cue.
 

pwd72s

recreational banger
Silver Member
I NEED...Food, clothing, shelter.

I WANT...many things. I've accumulated some of those things, including a cue made by a respected cue maker.

The opening post attempts to make me feel some sort of guilt over that.

It didn't work. No guilt.
 

CocoboloCowboy

Cowboys are my hero's
Silver Member
Well a quality Cue does not have to cost and arm & leg. But I also understand people like nice things, my weakness is Cigars, and Cars. Those are the thing that seem to get my extra money.

Honeslty as far as Cues goes if a particular Cuemaker become into vogue, their waiting list get longer, and their price for to most part go up.

I have been waiting for my Southwest call over 12 years, been on the list that time, 18 more months to go. Then I might not swing the order if the price is out of reach for a Southwest Merry Widow.
 

tableroll

Rolling Thunder
Silver Member
Good cues are mostly whatever feels good to you....
I have always thought it better to put any money spent into a decent shaft, more than “bling”.
But if one really really suits you, treat yourself to a attractive one. ��

Try some of your friends sticks, see what really truly feels best, then buy a shaft like it. They use different threads, but if you have a butt end, have the shaft come with that same thread...
Like 3/8 x 10 or one of the different 5/16 inch versions.

The shaft is really the heart of how it plays
(In my opinion anyway)

Ever heard of the phrase "It's not the car, it's the driver"? Pool cue is the same principle. The butt is not as important as the shaft and the shaft is not as important as you going through painstaking practice on pool fundamentals. Aquire a straight stroke and you will be able to pocket balls with a broom stick. I feel an OB or Predator low deflection are good choices for shafts. I like Triangle tips. Enjoy the greatest game on earth!
 

book collector

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Sorry, don't know much, just a casual player all my life. I might start playing more. I keep coming up with questions, lol!

I was surfing around and found some cues for sale by a custom maker and geez, those suckers are expensive! Thousands of dollars, even tens of thousands. I had no idea! Those must have collector's value.

A couple of questions. First, what is your take on 'improvement' provided by a custom made cue? Or do you think it's just about pride of ownership? Can you just go somewhere and try out a bunch of well-made cues and find one you like or should you get one made?

Second, about how much would a good one cost? I'm talking about something that looks nice but nothing terribly fancy. I know if it's like guitars, you can pay a ridiculous price, thousands, just for bling, inlays, exotic woods and such. A decent cue... $200? $500? $1000? More?

The only 2-piece cues I own I bought for less than $100 at Academy, lol.

Mc Dermott cues are hard to beat, they look good ,and play great for the average player
A plain one can be 100 or so and a really nice one about 3 or 400.
I think custom cues are usually way overpriced .
 

Pushout

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Need one? Well, no. But WANT one is another story. My first cue was a cheap Adam with a ramin wood shaft. The second was a four point, brass jointed Palmer with 3 veneers on each point and a veneer ring in the butt sleeve. My third was a Joss from what was then known as Joss East, now known as Joss Cues, LTD. The third was the best of the three, by far. The workmanship, the materials, the look and feel of the Joss was superior. That was in the early '70s and I've had many custom cues since and very, very few production cues since. I've said before and I'll say it again, if I find a production cue that plays like my current custom, I'll buy it and play with it. My current playing cue is a 1993 Dan Dishaw. I've had other cues since the mid or late '90s when I acquired it, occasionally a production cue. The rest are gone, I still have the Dishaw. I like it. I like very, very few production cues, at all. At least, not enough to spend money on them. I've had other customs, too, but the Dishaw still plays like the better of the two Southwest cues I owned years ago and that's why I still have it. It's whatever you like, whatever feels good to you, however much money you want to spend,and if you are always open to finding something you may like better.
 
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