What "plain janes" of today are destined to be the "vault queens" of tomorrow?

txcuemaster

txcuemaster

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What "plain janes" of today are destined to be the "vault queens" of tomorrow?

In a thread in the "Ask a Cue Maker" section about "player cues" and "collecter cues", Dave Sutton posted this:
dave sutton said:
if you went back in time to some of the owners of gus' cues and said "that cue will be 20k$ in 20 years" do you think they would play with them. bet most wouldnt :thumbup:
Click to expand...

So I thought that would be a good topic for another thread:

What cues are we playing with NOW, that we consider "players cues", or "plain janes", that we would not be playing with "if we only knew..."???
 
Pushout

Pushout

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Just my opinion, everybody has one;) Cues are made to be played with. I doubt I'll ever own a cue that I would just put away and not play with it. That is one reason Southwest cues are and will be, out of the financial reach of many, if not most, people.
I have one the first twelve cues that Dan Dishaw made in 1993 and play with it almost daily. I would do the same with a Southwest {I had two}, Searing, Barry Szamboti, Hercek, etc.
 
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PegLeg

PegLeg

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My Dale Perry eBay cue. It is one of a kind and will be worth a ton of money in the future. :rotflmao1:
 
J$Cincy

J$Cincy

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Searings...

any Dennis Searing cue... but they play so good it is hard to put them down. mine looks like it has been through a war.
 
txcuemaster

txcuemaster

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J$Cincy said:
any Dennis Searing cue... but they play so good it is hard to put them down. mine looks like it has been through a war.
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OK, maybe we should add "Explain WHY you think this or that particular maker's cues will be so honored in the future?"

What are the mystical and/or mythical qualities that make Balabushkas and Szambotis so sought after today? And what current cues might inherit these or similar qualities in 10, 20, 30 years?

Folks talk about the "great hit" of the Southwests, the great craftsmanship of Tads and Ginas, but what, for instance, will make one of today's Dennis Searing "player" cues into tomorrow's "collector classic" worth 10 or 20 or 30 times its price today?

Or is there even anything being built today that will ever approach the level of fame and collectability of these other cues?
 
Ken_4fun

Ken_4fun

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My opinion, and for most means nothing but I will share.

The time of buying "Gus or George" cue that for $100 and getting $25K is gone. Similiar to buying a 69 Camaro or Superbird. That window is closed and never coming back.... THERE ISNT ANOTHER WINDOW LIKE THAT AND WILL NEVER BE ONE.... There wasnt alot of cuemakers at that time like there is now. There are tons of cuemakers, tons, hell almost every town in America has a freaking cuemaker of some sort. Get over it.

Now, IMO, there are a few that are going to hold their values, or possibly increase slightly.

Hailey and Showman are two that come to mind and I have heard Mobly might be another.

Searing I wouldnt even put in that group, along with Tony at BB, their cues are so premium priced I cant imagine buying one and even doubling its value. I didnt include Barry as he isnt even accepting orders.

As far as Southwest, I really think that it is perfect example of people wanting what they cannot have. 10 year wait? There are tons of just as good or better playing cues out there for less money. But face it, Southwest is a freaking factory making tons of cues basically of one design. They are good at it, but everyone gets better by making the same cue over and over. IMO, look for a cuemaker making less than 20 per year and maybe closer to 10.

IMO, again just mine, the best thing to look at is quality.

Ken
 
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pwd72s

pwd72s

recreational banger
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This is an impossible call...but a good discussion point. There are many cuemakers out there today whose work would qualify. But the collectables market is a fickle one, and really impossible to predict. My advice is to have an eye for quality, then pick the top of the line model. Sure seems to work that way with cars. For example, a 1957 Corvette is desirable. Oh, but an all original fuel injected '57 Corvette is VERY special.
 
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PhilosopherKing

PhilosopherKing

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txcuemaster said:
In a thread in the "Ask a Cue Maker" section about "player cues" and "collecter cues", Dave Sutton posted this:


So I thought that would be a good topic for another thread:

What cues are we playing with NOW, that we consider "players cues", or "plain janes", that we would not be playing with "if we only knew..."???
Click to expand...

Gracio. Zinzola.
 
PhilosopherKing

PhilosopherKing

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Ken_4fun said:
My opinion, and for most means nothing but I will share.

The time of buying "Gus or George" cue that for $100 and getting $25K is gone. Similiar to buying a 69 Camaro or Superbird. That window is closed and never coming back.... THERE ISNT ANOTHER WINDOW LIKE THAT AND WILL NEVER BE ONE.... There wasnt alot of cuemakers at that time like there is now. There are tons of cuemakers, tons, hell almost every town in America has a freaking cuemaker of some sort. Get over it.

Now, IMO, there are a few that are going to hold their values, or possibly increase slightly.

Hailey and Showman are two that come to mind and I have heard Mobly might be another.

Searing I wouldnt even put in that group, along with Tony at BB, their cues are so premium priced I cant imagine buying one and even doubling its value. I didnt include Barry as he isnt even accepting orders.

As far as Southwest, I really think that it is perfect example of people wanting what they cannot have. 10 year wait? There are tons of just as good or better playing cues out there for less money. But face it, Southwest is a freaking factory making tons of cues basically of one design. They are good at it, but everyone gets better by making the same cue over and over. IMO, look for a cuemaker making less than 20 per year and maybe closer to 10.

IMO, again just mine, the best thing to look at is quality.

Ken
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Anybody who directly learns from or apprentices with one of the makers mentioned above.
 
G

Gerald

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Silver Member
I don't think that I saw one post that referred to a "Plain Jane". One guy who makes a gorgeous "Plain Jane" is Ed Prewitt. No points-only rings made of Pau. He gets around 2 grand for his "Plain Janes". Zylr cues also command around a grand without points or inlays. Two cuemakers with totally different construction methods. JoeyInCali apprenticed under Kerry and makes a great hitting cue with stunning woods. I think that I saw "Plain Janes" made by Edwin Reyes that featured exotic woods. As I recall they would stop you in your tracks. To me a "Plain Jane" is a players cue with rings only and no points or inlays. I acknowledge that I have read here of different interpretations and everyone is entitled to their opinion. I'm sure that all of the cuemakers mention in this thread have made great "Plain Janes." Let's see some pics.
 
M

memikey

Never Has Been
Silver Member
Any cue which has been delivered by Eddie Wheat on time, in budget and within 1 inch of being the ordered length will be a major collectible with considerable novelty value. If accompanied by original signed and dated wheatbucks in compensation for length discrepancy the value will multiply and it should be insured by the owner right now :)
 
dave sutton

dave sutton

Banned
hey....... lol. glad to see someone actually liked on of my posts.

ken said it right. those days are gone. if your any good if a few years your cues will be inthe 4 figure range.

i dont think any cues will hit that again. unless steve tikkler owns them. in other words they will have to be among the makers top work ivory handles silver gold gems ect...

i like scott g. and steve klein but its hard to say bc none of us have the shop that the top guys like erine do. maybe in 10 15 20 years of aquiring equiptment

i for one am very "hampered" by a limited bankroll. you kn ow what tho. i work with what i got. mainly i do things right and take my time. every $$$ i make for cues goes right back into the shop. i keep my bill/work money and my cue money sep
 
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BlowFish

BlowFish

Pinoy D-Player
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I buy a cue that I like with a cuemaker that is approachable and easy to deal with. I never dreamt or think the those cues will be Vault Queens in the future. I buy what my budget allows.
 
Pushout

Pushout

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Silver Member
Ken_4fun said:
As far as Southwest, I really think that it is perfect example of people wanting what they cannot have. 10 year wait? There are tons of just as good or better playing cues out there for less money. But face it, Southwest is a freaking factory making tons of cues basically of one design. They are good at it, but everyone gets better by making the same cue over and over.
Ken
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Everything in your post I agree with except for this. From my conversations with Laurie Franklin I wouldn't call them a "factory", you make it sound like they are making production cues. And they don't make "tons of cues", which is one reason for the wait time. I would guess they make less than a lot of other cue makers, though the numbers escape me at the moment. That's how everybody gets better, by making their basic design over and over.
Again, I liked your post, with this exception.
 
Ken_4fun

Ken_4fun

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Pushout said:
Everything in your post I agree with except for this. From my conversations with Laurie Franklin I wouldn't call them a "factory", you make it sound like they are making production cues. And they don't make "tons of cues", which is one reason for the wait time. I would guess they make less than a lot of other cue makers, though the numbers escape me at the moment. That's how everybody gets better, by making their basic design over and over.
Again, I liked your post, with this exception.
Click to expand...



Southwest makes 250-300 (according to the internet and I suspect more if you include pacifiers etc.) a year. That my friend is ALOT of cues, that is over 1 per day. Compare that to cuemakers who make 10 per YEAR......

To me that is a production cue. If you think it is a custom, have her add a few inlays for you.

I think the wait is on purpose. Remember Studio 54 in New York? Their gimmick was that sometimes celebriaties that the didnt allow in, or others, the big deal was getting in. If the demand is 10 years, are you telling me that they couldnt bring in a couple more cuemakers or apprencies the expidite the timing?

IMO Laurie is better than almost all cuemakers of keeping demand high and production at a level where the demand is always higher than the supply.

Ken
 
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A

AtLarge

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Ken_4fun said:
Southwest makes 250-300 (according to the internet and I suspect more if you include pacifiers etc.) a year. That my friend is ALOT of cues
Ken
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Ken, I think you are wrong about the quantity of South West cues made in recent years. I think it is considerably fewer than 250-300. What evidence of that do I have?

1. I took delivery of a new SW in late August of 2006, which was about two-thirds of the way through the year. The serial number was below 350. (They start at 300 or 301 each year.) I acknowledge that SW may have made an unusually low number of cues in 2006.

2. IndyQ buys and sells a lot of SW cues. His web site shows a lot of the cues he has sold in the past. The highest numbered cue he shows for any year this decade is numbered 445-03, which means that it was the 146th cue made that year (if they start at 300). For many other years, none of the serial numbers are even as high as 400.

3. I have never seen a SW cue numbered in the 500's or higher this decade.

One way to answer this question, of course, is to ask Laurie. I have not done that for this post.

But I openly ask -- has anyone reading this post seen a SW cue made this decade that is numbered 500 or higher?
 
A

Ant812

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
i would agree that there arent as many sw's made per year as what everyone believes. i also believe the 2nd market prices on them will never decrease, only increase. i am pretty confident there cues being made today that will increase in value. i doubt it will be increases like ones in the past, but an increase nontheless. unfortunatley we dont know what they will be. just like we didnt know all of those old cars would be worth a ton. i own a salvage yard that is a family bussiness. my pop crushed hundreds if not thousands of those priceless cars. :eek::eek::eek:
 
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