Are Custom Cues a waste of money?

dom_poppa

dom_poppa

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I am starting to think and realize that expensive custom cues are a waste of money. I know this may sound controversial but give any good pool player a house cue and have him practice with it, this player will do amazing things with it. Heck, you can give him a broom stick.

The question remains....are these expensive cues overrated? They have nice jewels in them and the fancy BS, but the really good players in today's world can easily shoot with their sponsor cue.

Mezz or Predator are fine examples of playing cues that the pros use. They do their job and they play great.

I have yet to see a pro play with anyting over 2K....

thoughts?


P.S. A majority of the players in my pool hall who have these fancky cues can't play worth a lick, if their life depended on it...........
 
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dom_poppa said:
I am starting to think and realize that expensive custom cues are a waste of money. I know this may sound controversial but give any good pool player a house cue and have him practice with it, this player will do amazing things with it. Heck, you can give him a broom stick.

The question remains....are these expensive cues overrated? They have nice jewels in them and the fancy BS, but the really good players in today's world can easily shoot with their sponsor cue.

Mezz or Predator are fine examples of playing cues that the pros use. They do their job and they play great.

I have yet to see a pro play with anyting over 2K....

thoughts?


P.S. A majority of the players in my pool hall who have these fancky cues can't play worth a lick, if their life depended on it...........
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I agree. A $2,000 cue isn't going to do much for your game, so why bother? My experience is you have to get into the $10,000 league to see any noticible improvement. Personally, I didn't get a "pop" until I was up to about $25,000. But you really haven't pocketed balls until you get out of the low end and up over $200,000.

Try out the Golden Buska, or the Gina Silver Cue, or a Szamboti box cue - come back and give us a report. If you can't find one of those, then I guess an Ivory Tad would be worth a try, but keep in mind you can only expect so much from a $50,000 cue.

Chris
 
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Dom

dom_poppa said:
I am starting to think and realize that expensive custom cues are a waste of money. I know this may sound controversial but give any good pool player a house cue and have him practice with it, this player will do amazing things with it. Heck, you can give him a broom stick.

The question remains....are these expensive cues overrated? They have nice jewels in them and the fancy BS, but the really good players in today's world can easily shoot with their sponsor cue.

Mezz or Predator are fine examples of playing cues that the pros use. They do their job and they play great.

I have yet to see a pro play with anyting over 2K....

thoughts?


P.S. A majority of the players in my pool hall who have these fancky cues can't play worth a lick, if their life depended on it...........
Click to expand...

Dom Poppa, cues have become just like any other form of art...COLLECTABLE! Get your big boy pants on and accept the fact that you will never own a fancy expensive cue for whatever reason, but for God's sake, stop busting their balls over spending their money on inlayed pieces of wood. I,too, will not own one but not cause' I don't want one...I'd LOVE to play with something over 2k!! There would be such a sense of pride playing then! I assume you, personally, don't play very well by this post but maybe you're a 'world beater' who likes to make waves? Either way, they are a form of ART, simple as that. Enjoy the forum or this stuff will drive you nuts!
 
dukeboy1977 said:
Dom Poppa, cues have become just like any other form of art...COLLECTABLE! Get your big boy pants on and accept the fact that you will never own a fancy expensive cue for whatever reason, but for God's sake, stop busting their balls over spending their money on inlayed pieces of wood. I,too, will not own one but not cause' I don't want one...I'd LOVE to play with something over 2k!! There would be such a sense of pride playing then! I assume you, personally, don't play very well by this post but maybe you're a 'world beater' who likes to make waves? Either way, they are a form of ART, simple as that. Enjoy the forum or this stuff will drive you nuts!
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Well spoken, you could say the same for many things. There is a point where pool cues go from a tool to becoming an art piece. The only reason people make these threads is that they are butt hurt that they will never own anything more than a quality piece of Walmart wood.
 
You don't have to be a race driver to own either a Ferarri or Lamborghini.
Some folks like to buy nice clothes, jewelery etc. It makes one feel good much the same as owning an expensive cue. I had my butt handed to me one league night by a girl who loved her walking cane cue. Fugliest thing I ever saw but she knew how to use it.

Myself, I own a couple of lower level customs but just the same, I reserve those for the pool hall and they will most likely never see
the inside of a bar on league night. They make me feel good to use them and thats all that counts for me. That and they also play pretty well too.
 
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Well I will agree that after a certain point a cue is more Collectible or a work of art than " made for playing". But to group all custom cues into a " waste of money" is a bit narrow minded. For the same money you will spend on a descent production cue ($300-$400) a custom cue built to your likes and needs can be constructed. It certainly wont have jewels or gold and silver inlays or ivory of any kind in it, but it will perform as a playing cue should.

Don't knock those that can afford a 10k cue, if they can afford to collect a cue like that or even play with one, then thats there prerogative. If you cant, and yes Im a cue maker and I could very well make myself a cue inlayed out the wazzoo with everything but the kitchen sink, but thats not my style. The moral of the story is to each his own ! Let every one shoot with the cue that makes them happy and leave the rest alone :smile:
 
Its all up to what your looking for,looks or playability because you rarely get both.Most big players I know here in Canada that have custom cues have a Predator matched to it with the cat logo taken off so it looked totally 100% custom.Years ago alot of cuemakers would never want to match any type of after market LD shafts to there butts,but when the demand got so high and you want to make money ,well that was that.Most people like custom so they can get the look they love and hopefully the hit.For me I play with a custom butt with a predator shaft.I love the butt do to being thinner and no production cue was that thin or I would of went that route instead but the shaft it came with was firewood for my style of play,and for me those old Predator shafts are the best playing shafts on earth,( Imho.)If you can find a production cue that has all the attributes your looking for including the hit,then for me thats the way to go.If not find a cuemaker who is not only skilled but reasonable in the price department and get your dream cue made!Goodluck:smile:
 
dom_poppa said:
I am starting to think and realize that expensive custom cues are a waste of money. I know this may sound controversial but give any good pool player a house cue and have him practice with it, this player will do amazing things with it. Heck, you can give him a broom stick.

The question remains....are these expensive cues overrated? They have nice jewels in them and the fancy BS, but the really good players in today's world can easily shoot with their sponsor cue.

Mezz or Predator are fine examples of playing cues that the pros use. They do their job and they play great.

I have yet to see a pro play with anyting over 2K....

thoughts?


P.S. A majority of the players in my pool hall who have these fancky cues can't play worth a lick, if their life depended on it...........
Click to expand...

OF COURSE it's a waste of money. You are paying for the "beauty" of the cue. A few years ago here in the PI I had a "custom" made cue commissioned. Simple, solid piece of beautifully figured Tiger Maple from the joint down. Dead nuts straight, 11.5 modified Pro Taper Tip, just as I asked for. Understated, but where ever I played, folks would ask me about it. Cost me 65 bucks, hard case included. I was so happy, I gave him a 500 peso ($11) tip.
 
While it is true a great player can play with almost anything, do not underestimate that said great player would be even more qualified to judge the feel of a cue, and one won't get a cue which provides great feel for a couple of dollars. But a few hundred bucks at most is enough to buy a non-fancy cue that'll provide all the feel one needs, that is, new and not used, straight and built to remain straight and not fall to pieces on one's first massé etc. Everything beyond that is fancy, rare, collectible, whatnot… Mind you, collecting fancy cues is a respectable hobby like any other, and I have no problem with it as such, but to think the playing quality can be much improved beyond a certain point, well, perhaps in minuscule gradations, such as using old growth shaft wood, a taper that truly fits one's personal needs, closer tolerances overall etc. Having said all this, life's too short to play with a cue one hates, so why not leave it to each to choose what they feel is best for them?

Greetings from Switzerland, David.
_________________

„J'ai gâché vingt ans de mes plus belles années au billard. Si c'était à refaire, je recommencerais.“ – Roger Conti
 
I can see the point of liking nice things like highend cars, jewelry, and cloths as long as you know they don't make you a better person. They can make you feel good/better about yourself...but that's about it. IMO it's the same with a cue. Anything over a good production cue that feels good to you is not going to help you shoot better. Johnnyt
 
dukeboy1977 said:
Dom Poppa, cues have become just like any other form of art...COLLECTABLE! Get your big boy pants on and accept the fact that you will never own a fancy expensive cue for whatever reason, but for God's sake, stop busting their balls over spending their money on inlayed pieces of wood. I,too, will not own one but not cause' I don't want one...I'd LOVE to play with something over 2k!! There would be such a sense of pride playing then! I assume you, personally, don't play very well by this post but maybe you're a 'world beater' who likes to make waves? Either way, they are a form of ART, simple as that. Enjoy the forum or this stuff will drive you nuts!
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I'm not to sure how you can tell the guy can't play well from his post.I found his question and thoughts pretty true.Most guys with the big cues in my hall, I have sold them and alot of them are lower tier players.Soon enough on this site people are going to be terrified to voice an opinion or ask a viable question without the fear of being torn apart.He asked a question and to me doesn't reflect on his pool playing abilitys just about his pool cue purchasing.
 
I think if you want someting, and can afford it, go for it. Would be going to say the Derby City Classic, and doing not but watch the matches be a waist of money if you had the fund and desire.
 
There is certainly a benefit to playing with the same cue day to day. You are never going to get that perfect touch a pro has without having your own cue. Period. Now did I say you needed to spend $2000 on it? No, you don't.

Secondly, buying a production cue can actually be a worse purchase. Every production cue is going to lose near half it's value the moment you buy it. If you make an educated purchase of a custom cue, you can actually get 100% or more of your investment back when you decide to sell it. That will never happen with a production cue.
 
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my epignosis disagrees with you completely..

I feel like this perfectly balanced, perfectly hitting cue brings me up a ball and a half sometimes.
 
I don't think they're a waste of money if they look good, play well, and give you pleasure of ownership. The real question is do they significantly improve your game. I own a James White and a Paul Mottey. I play with a Mezz and a 314 shaft. I'm thinking about purchasing another Predator SP.

Production cues from the right manufacturer are great cues. Companies like Predator, Mezz, Schon, and others have the resources to purchase state of the art equipment and spend R&D monies to improve their products.

I would like to have a Richard Black, maybe a Southwest, and a Scruggs though... ;)
 
matta said:
There is certainly a benefit to playing with the same cue day to day. You are never going to get that perfect touch a pro has without having your own cue. Period. Now did I say you needed to spend $2000 on it? No, you don't.

Secondly, buying a cheap cue can actually be a worse purchase. Every production cue is going to lose near half it's value the moment you buy it. If you make an educated purchase of a custom cue, you can actually get 100% or more of your investment back when you decide to sell it. That will never happen with a production cue.

Can a pro pick up anything and run out with it? Sure, but it turns out you are no pro and comparing yourself to one is idiotic.
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I agree totally with the last statement,but there are many production Schons and older Predators that are sought after and worth much more now than 15 years ago.
 
Every cue I have ever owned could make balls all day long....provided my aim and stroke were up to par.

You can ask "Why buy an expensive custom cue?"

You can also ask "Why NOT buy and expensive custom cue?"

Everybody has their own taste. I don't question what people use. I may ask why they decided on it, but there is no right or wrong to it.
 
most professional players that i know do play with cues worth more than $2000

Gabe,Jeremy and Ochiro S all play nice Bob Owen cues
Willie Mosconi played with a Balabushka that recently sold for $80,000.if you object that was because it was Willies and he died,Willie offered the cue to me in 1986 for $3000, and I thought it might be a waste of money...How smart was I?

Johnny Archer won the U S Open with a $10,000 Schon and Dennis Hatch plays beautiful expensive cues as do most of the others that can afford them

Does this mean that they might beat me with a broom therefore I would be just as well off playing a broom?No one argues that an expensive cue necessarily would improve your game ,any more than a Rolex keeps better time than a Timex

Your idea is not original as it has been stated on here hundreds of times before,but it lacks force or meaning.About all it has to offer is the fact that good players can beat bad players with any cue,and if I buy a better cue I won't be a champion

Expensive cues ,like expensive anything else,are not right for everyone.If your baby needs new shoes,and you prefer a $2000 cue,something is wrong,

Personally,I have done well with the cues I have bought,especially the top end ones,I usually lose money when I buy less expensive cues or unknown cuemakers.
 
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