cahnging out a butt on a cue

S

sluggerknuckles

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Since there was too much sarcasm and mean things said by cuemakers with my last post, I thought maybe I should change the story so I can get a straight answer.

Hypothetically, I have a custom cue, and I wanted to change it up a bit by changing the wood in the handle and adding ivory designs.

Is this a difficult task to accomplish?

Should I just order another custom cue or is this feasible. I was inspired by a Tony Zinzola cue that he redid for a customer and I think my cue would look a lot better as well as increase the value by changing the design.

Please do not make sarcastic remarks about how I should have known what I wanted before I ordered the cue. This is only my second custom cue and I am a novice at this.
 
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as nice as i can be

to answer your question, yes it can be done. now you should understand that making changes in a cue that is in the process of construction is not always easy, i do not know what you are having made and what exact changes you want. but contact your builder explain how you want the cue finished. THEN listen to what he says and remember this is going to take more time, woods to cut and glues to dry. more time means more money.
you should be willing to pay the money and give the builder more time. good luck with your cue
 
Order another cue

I read the other post and the cuemakers gave you alot of good advice.

You are better off having another cue made since now you want new handle also. The only thing left of the old cue is the forearm.

I do not know what you do for a living but how would you like it if you were almost through with a six week job and had to go back almost to the begining and start again. Not only that but you had the next job lined up to start tomorrow and could not put it off.

Take this cue the way you ordered it and then order another the way you want. Everyone will be happy.
 
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Change orders

In any construction business change orders done after finished work is delivered costs much more than if originally contracted. Yes your changes can be implemented but please be sitting down when you begin to talk about how much time and money you will be expected to bear.

Changing out handle wood demands taking the cue butt apart. Very time consuming to do properly. It may/will change the balance and feel/hit of the cue, also.

Adding ivory inlays again takes time to layout and perform and extra expense of the ivory used.

After both, a total refinish of the butt is necessary for top quality. This is not cheap either.

What you might consider may be the following ideas:
1) Will the changes made increase the value of the cue enough to offset the change order? Or will you be left with an overly expensive unsellable cue? Also, it may not look all that great afterwards since you are a beginning designer. Once inlays are done, they aren't removable.
2) Will taking a chance on the changes in feel/hit be worth trying or will the cue be a dud? You may have to build another cue!
3) Is the time waiting for completion worth the dollars expended to you? Maybe if the money was put into table time your skill level would be improved.
4) Are you sure, before starting the changes, that you don't want any other changes? Maybe playing with the cue for a while will help you firm up ideas for the design of a better cue in the future.

Any cuemaker that takes on your work now will likely be apprehensive about you and worried about you wanting more effort, after he completes your changes. He is also worried that you may badmouth his efforts if you are not happy with "his" designs this time. Remember the cuemakers name is the one blamed or praised for the appearance of a product. These are not personal attacks, just my opinion based on the previous posts.

I hope this helps in your decision process. Good luck.
Tom Gedris, Triple Cross Cues :cool:
 
Change orders

In any construction business change orders done after finished work is delivered costs much more than if originally contracted. Yes your changes can be implemented but please be sitting down when you begin to talk about how much time and money you will be expected to bear.

Changing out handle wood demands taking the cue butt apart. Very time consuming to do properly. It may/will change the balance and feel/hit of the cue, also.

Adding ivory inlays again takes time to layout and perform and extra expense of the ivory used.

After both, a total refinish of the butt is necessary for top quality. This is not cheap either.

What you might consider may be the following ideas:
1) Will the changes made increase the value of the cue enough to offset the change order? Or will you be left with an overly expensive unsellable cue? Also, it may not look all that great afterwards since you are a beginning designer. Once inlays are done, they aren't removable.
2) Will taking a chance on the changes in feel/hit be worth trying or will the cue be a dud? You may have to build another cue!
3) Is the time waiting for completion worth the dollars expended to you? Maybe if the money was put into table time your skill level would be improved.
4) Are you sure, before starting the changes, that you don't want any other changes? Maybe playing with the cue for a while will help you firm up ideas for the design of a better cue in the future.

Any cuemaker that takes on your work now will likely be apprehensive about you and worried about you wanting more effort, after he completes your changes. He is also worried that you may badmouth his efforts if you are not happy with "his" designs this time. Remember the cuemakers name is the one blamed or praised for the appearance of a product. These are not personal attacks, just my opinion based on the previous posts.

I hope this helps in your decision process. Good luck.
Tom Gedris, Triple Cross Cues :cool:
 
Just would like to mention that no one was being mean to you in your first thread.

As far as sarcasm is concerned, you have to learn by being in this forum for a while that Kim, myself and quite a few others tease a lot.

There is a huge difference between teasing and out right rude sarcasm.

I think you made the right decision to sell the cue and move on to another.
Its all part of the learning curve when ordering custom cues. Sometimes both the buyer and builder can make mistakes.

No biggy. Sometimes these mistakes can be a little more on the costly side.

You just have to realize that the cue maker puts in tons of hours on a cue.
He is usually passionate about building. There is more than just man hours put into your cue. Its passion, sweat and sometimes tears. When a cue is nearing completion and he hears that major changes are wanted, it can be heart breaking. He can feel like he just wasted all those hours for nothing.

Maybe it feels like he just got slapped in the face.

Just realize that the frustration you feel about wanting changes can be 10 fold on the maker.
 
Blue Hog ridr said:
Just would like to mention that no one was being mean to you in your first thread.

As far as sarcasm is concerned, you have to learn by being in this forum for a while that Kim, myself and quite a few others tease a lot.

There is a huge difference between teasing and out right rude sarcasm.

I think you made the right decision to sell the cue and move on to another.
Its all part of the learning curve when ordering custom cues. Sometimes both the buyer and builder can make mistakes.

No biggy. Sometimes these mistakes can be a little more on the costly side.

You just have to realize that the cue maker puts in tons of hours on a cue.
He is usually passionate about building. There is more than just man hours put into your cue. Its passion, sweat and sometimes tears. When a cue is nearing completion and he hears that major changes are wanted, it can be heart breaking. He can feel like he just wasted all those hours for nothing.

Maybe it feels like he just got slapped in the face.

Just realize that the frustration you feel about wanting changes can be 10 fold on the maker.
Click to expand...


I just try to state the obvious.......... LOL

Hey... people are funny.... I don't outright dislike anyone. Some people make it very ease to poke them........

I make a cue for someone with a few suggestions from them. Then I make what I think they would like. It works 98% of the time. I tell them that if they don't love it..... please don't buy it. No hard feelings.... I will sell it to someone else. I don't take deposits so it doesn't matter.

Having said that........ After I am about 1/2 way through building a cue. The last thing I want to do is make changes. Personally, I would rather build another cue like the person wants.



Kim
 
sluggerknuckles said:
Since there was too much sarcasm and mean things said by cuemakers with my last post, I thought maybe I should change the story so I can get a straight answer.

Hypothetically, I have a custom cue, and I wanted to change it up a bit by changing the wood in the handle and adding ivory designs.

Is this a difficult task to accomplish?

Should I just order another custom cue or is this feasible. I was inspired by a Tony Zinzola cue that he redid for a customer and I think my cue would look a lot better as well as increase the value by changing the design.

Please do not make sarcastic remarks about how I should have known what I wanted before I ordered the cue. This is only my second custom cue and I am a novice at this.
Click to expand...

My suggestion is worry about what you want and not how much you can turn it over for in the future..
 
in response to comments

thank you for the comments.

I do own my own business and many times when we are half way done with a job and the customer is not satisfies, or has changed their minds, we always accomodate the customer. Not everyone knows what they want when they order it or present us with a situation.

Personally, I always try to make the customer happy. I am paid for my time, not the end product. Although the end product is a direct reflection of my time, I deal with many customers who I have to help with the process of deciding what they want. I would never take a job, make one call and then deliver a finished product that the customer was unhappy with.

I just wanted to know how much work was involved in changing out a butt. I have read good stories on here and bad stories.

Thank you eric for your input. It was the only advice that was worthy on here.
 
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