Biloxi Boy
Man With A Golden Arm
During the 70's which custom pool cue makers were selling cues, built to order, through pool halls?
In the Philly area there was a a pharmacist named Doc Frye.During the 70's which custom pool cue makers were selling cues, built to order, through pool halls?
I don't know of any such arrangement and I bought some cues at that time. I think such a custom cue would be arranged between the maker and the buyer without a pool hall in the middle. There were also some standard brands with standard models, just like today.I am asking about a mail order type business where the pool hall took orders, mailed or phoned in orders, and cues delivered by mail, etc., to pool hall which handled money. Players could specify wood, joint, shaft diameter, wrap, veneers, inlays, rings, and so on.
If I remember right you could custom order cues from Palmer. And toward the end of the seventies when McDermott was starting out I ordered a lot of cues from McDermott for customers.I am asking about a mail order type business where the pool hall took orders, mailed or phoned in orders, and cues delivered by mail, etc., to pool hall which handled money. Players could specify wood, joint, shaft diameter, wrap, veneers, inlays, rings, and so on.
Never heard of that. Back then you just called the guy.I am asking about a mail order type business where the pool hall took orders, mailed or phoned in orders, and cues delivered by mail, etc., to pool hall which handled money. Players could specify wood, joint, shaft diameter, wrap, veneers, inlays, rings, and so on.
When i first started you could buy Meucci-McD-JossWest at a local spot. Richard Black was always a custom and you called him. Stroud made a line of about 10-12 cues or you could call for a custom. Billy lived here in Tulsa for 4yrs and he had a big following so you saw a lot of JW's here.I think there were instances of cuemakers making a line of cues that were meant to be sold by poolrooms. IIRC, Stroud and Black did this. But they weren't custom ordered.
That’s kind of what I remember.Never heard of that. Back then you just called the guy.
Richard black for brief time did have a line of production cues I used to sell them.When i first started you could buy Meucci-McD-JossWest at a local spot. Richard Black was always a custom and you called him. Stroud made a line of about 10-12 cues or you could call for a custom. Billy lived here in Tulsa for 4yrs and he had a big following so you saw a lot of JW's here.
I grew up in NY just outside NYC- lots of guys in the NY area in the 60s and 70s ordered directly from Palmer in Elizabeth NJ and went there to pick up their cues in person. In fact, that was the norm for most serious NY area players who decided on a Palmer cue. The one Palmer that I now own- third catalog Model 12 Limited with the Palmer Deluxe case and two shafts, was ordered and picked up at Palmer directly by the guy I purchased the cue from last year here in Fl- he was originally from Queens, NY.If I remember right you could custom order cues from Palmer. And toward the end of the seventies when McDermott was starting out I ordered a lot of cues from McDermott for customers.
pretty much custom-made. you could look at the catalog and they would mix and match features from different cues to make a new original cue.
McDermott when they started in 1975 they were real hustlers. They would cold call to sell you cues even sending you cues on speculation.
It's no accident they became as big as they did as quick as they did. Not to mention they were one of the best hitting cues around with that big screw flat face joint.
Balabushka also sold through a pool hall in Rochester NY for sure, probably othersA number of cue makers would sometimes hand deliver cues to the buyer at pool halls. Balabushka did that at times in the greater NY area- I knew someone who had his Balabushka hand delivered by George in New Rochelle NY- George would take the trains- he would have the cue wrapped in a paper bag! GB also delivered cues in Chinatown in the early 60s. Karl Meyer worked South Jersey and Pa. pool halls.
Many cue makers liked to play pool or sometimes be around the pool hall scene, but I don't know any that actually had a cue shop or ran their business primarily out of a pool hall - maybe Sailor Stellman. Most pool halls that sprung up during the pool craze of the 60s had to find available space in existing buildings- and there was also the stigma among general society against pool halls- so basement and upper floor empty spaces were most common pool hall locations - away from the eye view of the general public to avoid scrutiny and also to occupy the cheaper rent spaces.
Tom Harris made cues in the Stamford, CT. area and frequented pool halls- he is in the blue book. I think it is safe to say that almost every cue maker during that era spent some of their time in pool halls and were probably taking orders at the same time as their reputation grew.
How cool was it years later when he REALLY became a legend, that some guys still had their Balabushka cue that was custom made for them by George and then hand delivered at the pool hall. I remember the guy telling me the story about his cue being delivered by George and he ran 50 balls in 14.1 with the cue right out of the bag George had carried the cue on the train! He had the cue with him the day he told me the story- it was gambler design with the suit of cards inlayed.Balabushka also sold through a pool hall in Rochester NY for sure, probably others
It was a little different. Sam at the counter was a friend of George's. If you wanted a cue, you asked Sam for a cue.How cool was it years later when he REALLY became a legend, that some guys still had their Balabushka cue that was custom made for them by George and then hand delivered at the pool hall. I remember the guy telling me the story about his cue being delivered by George and he ran 50 balls in 14.1 with the cue right out of the bag George had carried the cue on the train! He had the cue with him the day he told me the story- it was gambler design with the suit of cards inlayed.
Novel idea. Send a video to a cuemaker aka 'The Cue Nazi'. "You don't play good enough. NO cue for you!!"It was a little different. Sam at the counter was a friend of George's. If you wanted a cue, you asked Sam for a cue.
If George felt you were a competent enough player, you got a cue.
They weren't custom orders, but you had to hit a high watermark of competency to receive one. A real badge of honor.