Blast from the Past #2, 1993 Revisited

I really like the work on that Schick and Szamboti.
If I only was interested in cues back then.
Thanks for the post.
 
cueaddicts said:
Funny to see the various cues that we've had at times over tyhe years.....

Sean
Click to expand...

Are the Libra cues still priced like that? I wonder what happened to them?

Chris
 
From what I know Libra was two makers out of Texas I believe. They made cues for only a handful of years before calling it quits. I had a nice one that I picked up from the fellas over at Cueaddicts. I think they still have a fancy one similar to the one in this picture and I think Dick Abbott over at Billiard Cue also has a similar one as one, both with some variations in the inlay work.
 
TATE said:
Are the Libra cues still priced like that? I wonder what happened to them?

Chris
Click to expand...


Chris,

There are very few of them around. We've handled about 10 and still have 4. It's very hard to price something so rare and 'market value' is questionable. Put it this way, wouldn't part with any of mine cheap.

Barry Szamboti has told me before that he thought Libras were some of the finest cues ever made. To me, that's a pretty powerful statement.

It's a real shame that the information I compiled and sent in twice for this Blue Book 3rd edition didn't make its way to print. Not to mention the example cues that were photographed in Chicago. Bummer.

Sean
 
cueaddicts said:
Chris,

There are very few of them around. We've handled about 10 and still have 4. It's very hard to price something so rare and 'market value' is questionable. Put it this way, wouldn't part with any of mine cheap.

Barry Szamboti has told me before that he thought Libras were some of the finest cues ever made. To me, that's a pretty powerful statement.

It's a real shame that the information I compiled and sent in twice for this Blue Book 3rd edition didn't make its way to print. Not to mention the example cues that were photographed in Chicago. Bummer.

Sean
Click to expand...


theres an article on them in one of the early american cueist.
 
cueaddicts said:
Chris,

There are very few of them around. We've handled about 10 and still have 4. It's very hard to price something so rare and 'market value' is questionable. Put it this way, wouldn't part with any of mine cheap.


Sean
Click to expand...

It's interesting you should mention that point.

What if Gus had only made cues for two years, every bit as good as the cues he made, then folded up shop? His cues would have been perhaps too obscure to get the recognition they deserved, and his rep probably wouldn't have had time to blossom as it did.

Chris
 
alpine9430 said:
What ever happened to that publication - "American Cueist"?
Click to expand...

I have maybe 15 - 20 from the mid 1990's time period I believe, then I think they closed down. It was a good mag but I am sure it is a rag compared to what we have now. At least they focused on custom makers.

Chris
 
merylane said:
theres an article on them in one of the early american cueist.
Click to expand...

If anyone has a copy of that early American Cueist that features Libra, please let me know. I would love to get a copy of the info or the magagine itself if someone is wanting to part ways with it. Thanks.

Sean
 
TATE said:
It's interesting you should mention that point.

What if Gus had only made cues for two years, every bit as good as the cues he made, then folded up shop? His cues would have been perhaps too obscure to get the recognition they deserved, and his rep probably wouldn't have had time to blossom as it did.

Chris
Click to expand...

my curiosity is more that what if gus hadnt died at such a young age and was still making cues. would he have gone cnc like ernie?
would barry have taken a different career path?
how much would gus values have been affected?
 
Last edited:
> One thing I've always heard about Libra's was they all hit well,and were coveted for that fact,which reflected in the price. There was one in Memphis that was pretty much a sneaky pete with a wrap the owner wanted 1400 for. There was a story when they were still open that said they would make you anything you wanted playability or style wise,and that might have wiped out their "niche" so to speak. It was aid if you wanted a cue that looked like a Szam but hit like a SW,you got exactly that. I imagine it took quite a bit of skill to do things like that. Tommy D.
 
ironchef. said:
From what I know Libra was two makers out of Texas I believe. They made cues for only a handful of years before calling it quits. I had a nice one that I picked up from the fellas over at Cueaddicts. I think they still have a fancy one similar to the one in this picture and I think Dick Abbott over at Billiard Cue also has a similar one as one, both with some variations in the inlay work.
Click to expand...
LIBRA cues were made by JACK POTTER and JOHN SANCHEZ in a garage in DALLAS,TX. starting apprx. 90 thru apprx 92 maybe 93. SANCHEZ was the maker and POTTER was the mouth. It was painfull watching POTTER try to turn a lathe on. It was funny that POTTER, a very good player, couldn't put up his MEUCCI and play with his cue:confused: I sold JW most of the early cues until health issues forced me out of the loop at which time J dealt with them direct. The timing of LIBRA's intro was very good---at the start of the custom cue "boom". They played stiff and predictable but they were not in the same league as the top makers in terms of fit and finish. In those days any embellished cues pimped by the RIGHT people would sell in the 5to 7 hun range. Keep in mind that the vast majority of consumers didn't know the difference between spliced and inlayed points,etc. The few cue-pimps that had access to them touted them as the poor mans KB or SW. The reason LIBRA shut down is unclear after a very short career in which they probably shipped a total of 150 cues. SW301-93
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top