Advice needed regarding old Joss West cue

[TLDamian]

I have a Joss West cue from the early 70's when Bill Stroud started making cues in Colorado. It's been beat up pretty badly as it was used in bars and such for many years before the owner knew what it was worth. I only discovered the value of the cue after borrowing it back in the late 90's. Someone offered me $1200 for it after seeing it being used by someone who barely knew what end to hit the balls with. Luckily I didn't sell it (though the owner said I should have) and recently I became the new owner.

I once contacted Bill to have the cue refinished (as a gift to the owner) to see what it would cost, but the wait list was years long and to a younger me that felt like an eternity to wait. Sadly I never pulled the trigger. So here I sit, with a cue that needs refinished but the knowledge that it may lessen the value of the cue if I ever want to sell it. I figured what better place to get advice than from the people who love pool? So, what are your thoughts?

Here's the damage. This is pretty much the worst of it. Finish is chipping, there's a ding in a panel, & the steel rings have some rust spots.



Here you can see the fine details of the points splicing.


It also came with the Fellini case that Bill was selling them with at the time. You can see the age for sure. Great case though.


The Irish linen wrap is still in good shape.


Full cue photo.


And I'm posting the photos below for the information I've found from searching online. This cue is #19, the first on the left that you can see the wrap on. $310 for the cue and two shafts at that time, though I have another ad showing $400. At $310 in 1974, an online inflation calculator shows it would be $1907.56 in 2023. Not sure what the case cost was back then.


I hope you all enjoyed the photos. Let me know what you think, and if any of you think it should be refinished I'd love to hear suggestions on who would be the best to do it. Thanks!

 

[Jimmy_Betmore]

You can't really go wrong with Proficient Billiards. They can and will make it look brand new again.

 

[fjk]

Yes, I'd refinish the cue. JW cues are not the type of collectible cue which would decrease in value after being refinished (IMHO anyway). And I 100% agree with the previous poster that recommended Proficient Billiards.

If you want to sell that case, please let me know.

 

[Ken_4fun]

Proficient Billiards. I also use Rick Howard on my JW cues for refinishing and having him make new shafts.

Ken

 

[JusticeNJ]

Proficient is the gold standard for most refinish work (absent like a Gus or a Bushka, but even then, they refinish those too). Plus, you can be confident that you'll get the cue back when they say you'll get it back and it won't be months. Class act all the way. If I had a JW that needed refinishing, I'd send it to Proficient without hesitation.

 

[rjb1168]

If The wrap doesn't have any tears or unraveling, I would just have them clean it
and refinish the rest of the cue. Hell the case is worth $400 - $500. Good luck

 

[Stickman9]

If The wrap doesn't have any tears or unraveling, I would just have them clean it
and refinish the rest of the cue. Hell the case is worth $400 - $500. Good luck

I agree about the wrap, It looks to be in good condition and it is most likely Cortland linen, which is hard to find these days.

 

[WildWing]

The wrap is not Cortland. It seems to me that only the buttplate is in bad shape. I'm not sure the whole cue needs a refinish.

 

[PhilosopherKing]

Try finding another one with the metal rings instead of white plastic ones.

That’s a very nice cue.

 

[maha]

leave it as is or sell it as is. forget what those that want pretty looking new cues tell you.
once you lose the patina of the old cue all you got is a newer looking old cue.

 

[Kickin' Chicken]

Imo Definitely refinish the cue back to its original beauty. If it didn’t have holes in the finish I might have considered leaving the original finish but not in this case.

I enthusiastically agree that Proficient would be the best choice to do the job and they are very reasonable (a few hundred) and usually get cues in and out in a couple weeks looking like brand new. As for whether to do the whole cue i would vote yes so there is no difference at all with both the butt and forearm ends.

The Fellini case in that condition could still fetch in the $450 range and the cue, once refinished should be in the $1800 range give or take a few hundred, assuming all is straight and the shafts are 12.7mm or larger. The sideways W Josswest cues enjoy a very loyal following.

Cool cue. Please keep us in the loop on what you do and maybe some update pictures if refinishing.