I want to inform the billiards community of my horrific experience dealing with John Showman since November 2014. I do so for two reasons: (1) I hope that Showman reads this thread, which I have threatened to write for six weeks now unless he returned the cue that I delivered to him on 10/24/14, and returns my cue, and (2) so that anyone who reads this thread and decides to do business with Showman does so knowing full well that he is a pathological liar and never does what he promises he will do.
Here are the facts. In 2014, I reacquired a loaded up 2 maple window Showman (photos below) from my friend Ron Seymour (rigmaster here on AZ). The elephant wrap was a little worn and stained and I wanted it replaced. I also thought about having Showman build a third shaft and joint protector for the cue. In October 2014, I called Showman and asked him how long it would take to rewrap the cue and make a new shaft and joint protector. He told me a couple of weeks. We agreed that I would ship him the cue and I would pick it up at his home/shop in Safety Harbor, Florida the day before Thanksgiving 2014 (11/26/14) as I was going to be in Orlando on vacation the week of Thanksgiving. Based on his promise that the cue would be ready when I got to his shop on 11/26/14, I shipped him the cue on 10/23/14. On 10/24/14, Showman emailed me and confirmed that he received the cue in good order.
When my two kids and I got to Showman's shop on 11/26/14, I was surprised to see that he had not even removed the elephant wrap on the butt, and had only started making the shaft and joint protector. We spent some time chatting in his shop. At that time, we discussed him refinishing the butt before wrapping it with elephant because there were a couple of very minor imperfections in the finish. He said that would be $300 more, for a total of $900, and that he would finish the project in a couple of weeks, and I would have the back before Christmas. Based on this promise, I gave him $700 in cash (7 crisp $100 bills) and told him I would mail him a check for the balance plus the return shipping when I received the cue in December.
I did not get my cue back before Christmas, as promised. On 1/1/15, I emailed Showman to find out when I was going to receive my cue. This was among the first of dozens of emails in this regard. On 1/6/15, Showman emailed me and represented: "Probably a couple of weeks.
My wife and daughter are home and I"m spending time with them." The typographical error in the foregoing sentence was Showman's; all of his emails are full of them.
I sent emails to Showman on 1/26/15 and 2/7/15 inquiring about the status of my cue. On 2/24/15, Showman sent me an email and represented: "I hope to finnish you cue this week. I had to redo it cause I wasnt happy with it. Sorry for the delay I was trying to do an extra good job cause you said you wanted to keep it for your player." That email was received by me more than 9 months ago.
On 4/7/15, I mailed Showman a certified letter by USPS, return receipt requested. I also mailed him the letter by first class U.S. Mail and emailed him a copy of the same. Like a deadbeat, he refused sign for the certified letter. In the letter, I demanded that Showman finish the work on my cue by 4/17/15 and ship me back the cue in whatever condition it was in, or I would sue him (I'm a civil litigation attorney) and report him to the authorities. I told him that if the projected was not finished, that I would have my good friend Eric Crisp (Sugartree Cues) finish it for me. On 4/10/15, Showman emailed me the following message:
"Thank you for your letter.
I can appreciate your frustration, im dealing with personal problems. I've been trying very hard to get a lot of work finished,not just yours. Theres no excuse for not being done yet. As far as letting someone else finnish the work, I cant let that happen. I've been doing this over 20 yrs and put my heart and soul in each and every piece...... and I believe thats what seperates me from most others. I hope to finnish soon. Sorry for the delay.
Billiardly yours John."
To this day, I do not have my cue back. On 4/24/15 and 4/29/15, I emailed Showman again about the status of my cue and his failure to ship it back as demanded in my letter of 4/7/15. On 4/30/15, Showman emailed me and presented: "I'm almost finished.... sorry for the delay. I'll try to make it up to you." More lies by Showman.
I emailed Showman on 5/13/15, 5/18/15 and 6/11/15, demanding the return of my cue. On 6/12/15, Showman sent me an email and represented: "I could e-mail you everyday but I would prefer to do it when its ready to ship. I appreciate your prayers in these trying times. Soon I hope." More lies by Showman.
On 8/31/15, I emailed Showman and told him that if I did not have my cue back by 9/14/15, I was going to post a thread here on AZ about my horrific experience dealing with him. That got his attention more than my threat to sue him. On 9/12/15, Showman sent me an email and claimed: "I'm in the er with a gallbladder attack so you won't get your cue I know I don't deserve it but I would appreciate a couple more days." More lies I'm sure, but I told Showman that he could take a few more days and if he delivered my cue back with all the work completed in satisfactory condition all would be forgiven.
On 9/19 and 9/20, I emailed Showman again about the status of my cue and asked him if he was going to be shipping my cue that week. By an email sent on 9/22/15, Showman said "yes." More lies by Big John because I still do not have my cue.
On 9/27/15, I emailed Showman and told him that if I did not receive my cue on Saturday, 10/3/15 (my 56th birthday), that I was going post this thread on AZ in the Main Forum section on Sunday, 10/4/15 (today). Well, 10/3 came and went and I still do not have my cue and have not heard from Showman since his email of 9/22. I have made numerous calls to his house and left voice mail messages for him. He does not answer his home phone and has not returned any of my calls.
So, this is my experience dealing with Showman. It has been nothing short of a nightmare. He makes great looking and playing cues, but he cannot be trusted, is a pathological liar, never is true to his word, and is a thief (he converted my cue by failing to return it after I demanded the return of my cue by my certified letter of 4/7/15 and numerous emails thereafter). If anybody deals with Showman in any capacity after reading this thread and gets ripped off, they will have nobody to blame but themselves. I will be suing Showman in a Florida court in the very near future, and post a copy of the Complaint. I will also be contacting law enforcement officials and request that a criminal complaint be filed against him for theft by deception etc. Maybe then he will see fit to finish my cue and return it to me. I will update this thread or start another one when I get my cue back.
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Here are the facts. In 2014, I reacquired a loaded up 2 maple window Showman (photos below) from my friend Ron Seymour (rigmaster here on AZ). The elephant wrap was a little worn and stained and I wanted it replaced. I also thought about having Showman build a third shaft and joint protector for the cue. In October 2014, I called Showman and asked him how long it would take to rewrap the cue and make a new shaft and joint protector. He told me a couple of weeks. We agreed that I would ship him the cue and I would pick it up at his home/shop in Safety Harbor, Florida the day before Thanksgiving 2014 (11/26/14) as I was going to be in Orlando on vacation the week of Thanksgiving. Based on his promise that the cue would be ready when I got to his shop on 11/26/14, I shipped him the cue on 10/23/14. On 10/24/14, Showman emailed me and confirmed that he received the cue in good order.
When my two kids and I got to Showman's shop on 11/26/14, I was surprised to see that he had not even removed the elephant wrap on the butt, and had only started making the shaft and joint protector. We spent some time chatting in his shop. At that time, we discussed him refinishing the butt before wrapping it with elephant because there were a couple of very minor imperfections in the finish. He said that would be $300 more, for a total of $900, and that he would finish the project in a couple of weeks, and I would have the back before Christmas. Based on this promise, I gave him $700 in cash (7 crisp $100 bills) and told him I would mail him a check for the balance plus the return shipping when I received the cue in December.
I did not get my cue back before Christmas, as promised. On 1/1/15, I emailed Showman to find out when I was going to receive my cue. This was among the first of dozens of emails in this regard. On 1/6/15, Showman emailed me and represented: "Probably a couple of weeks.
My wife and daughter are home and I"m spending time with them." The typographical error in the foregoing sentence was Showman's; all of his emails are full of them.
I sent emails to Showman on 1/26/15 and 2/7/15 inquiring about the status of my cue. On 2/24/15, Showman sent me an email and represented: "I hope to finnish you cue this week. I had to redo it cause I wasnt happy with it. Sorry for the delay I was trying to do an extra good job cause you said you wanted to keep it for your player." That email was received by me more than 9 months ago.
On 4/7/15, I mailed Showman a certified letter by USPS, return receipt requested. I also mailed him the letter by first class U.S. Mail and emailed him a copy of the same. Like a deadbeat, he refused sign for the certified letter. In the letter, I demanded that Showman finish the work on my cue by 4/17/15 and ship me back the cue in whatever condition it was in, or I would sue him (I'm a civil litigation attorney) and report him to the authorities. I told him that if the projected was not finished, that I would have my good friend Eric Crisp (Sugartree Cues) finish it for me. On 4/10/15, Showman emailed me the following message:
"Thank you for your letter.
I can appreciate your frustration, im dealing with personal problems. I've been trying very hard to get a lot of work finished,not just yours. Theres no excuse for not being done yet. As far as letting someone else finnish the work, I cant let that happen. I've been doing this over 20 yrs and put my heart and soul in each and every piece...... and I believe thats what seperates me from most others. I hope to finnish soon. Sorry for the delay.
Billiardly yours John."
To this day, I do not have my cue back. On 4/24/15 and 4/29/15, I emailed Showman again about the status of my cue and his failure to ship it back as demanded in my letter of 4/7/15. On 4/30/15, Showman emailed me and presented: "I'm almost finished.... sorry for the delay. I'll try to make it up to you." More lies by Showman.
I emailed Showman on 5/13/15, 5/18/15 and 6/11/15, demanding the return of my cue. On 6/12/15, Showman sent me an email and represented: "I could e-mail you everyday but I would prefer to do it when its ready to ship. I appreciate your prayers in these trying times. Soon I hope." More lies by Showman.
On 8/31/15, I emailed Showman and told him that if I did not have my cue back by 9/14/15, I was going to post a thread here on AZ about my horrific experience dealing with him. That got his attention more than my threat to sue him. On 9/12/15, Showman sent me an email and claimed: "I'm in the er with a gallbladder attack so you won't get your cue I know I don't deserve it but I would appreciate a couple more days." More lies I'm sure, but I told Showman that he could take a few more days and if he delivered my cue back with all the work completed in satisfactory condition all would be forgiven.
On 9/19 and 9/20, I emailed Showman again about the status of my cue and asked him if he was going to be shipping my cue that week. By an email sent on 9/22/15, Showman said "yes." More lies by Big John because I still do not have my cue.
On 9/27/15, I emailed Showman and told him that if I did not receive my cue on Saturday, 10/3/15 (my 56th birthday), that I was going post this thread on AZ in the Main Forum section on Sunday, 10/4/15 (today). Well, 10/3 came and went and I still do not have my cue and have not heard from Showman since his email of 9/22. I have made numerous calls to his house and left voice mail messages for him. He does not answer his home phone and has not returned any of my calls.
So, this is my experience dealing with Showman. It has been nothing short of a nightmare. He makes great looking and playing cues, but he cannot be trusted, is a pathological liar, never is true to his word, and is a thief (he converted my cue by failing to return it after I demanded the return of my cue by my certified letter of 4/7/15 and numerous emails thereafter). If anybody deals with Showman in any capacity after reading this thread and gets ripped off, they will have nobody to blame but themselves. I will be suing Showman in a Florida court in the very near future, and post a copy of the Complaint. I will also be contacting law enforcement officials and request that a criminal complaint be filed against him for theft by deception etc. Maybe then he will see fit to finish my cue and return it to me. I will update this thread or start another one when I get my cue back.
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