Case styles?

Lazerrus

Lazerrus

I LUV CURLY MAPLE!!!!!
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Just curious. I have noticed lately all the "COWBOY" syle cases, ala instroke, justis, etc. I am just curious as to why these are so popular? I myself am a fan of the george style pvc & leather style. All that paisley and whoppdy whoo leatherwork is a little to western for me. Makes me want to grab my six gun and go hunt down some apache. slip on on into the bar and wet myself with some whiskey pardner! I like more of the slick and sleek neat form case such as whitten etc. Is all that tooling really gonna say something other than "GAWDY!"? It's the skill and how they use that cue that makes the player, not the case. Any comments to try and sell me on these things of tackiness?:yikes:
 
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Its been said before but not by me an I quote "Beauty is in the eyes of the beer holder". I have one of those gaudy style western cases but I also have cases by other American makers in other styles. Simply put I love em all..............................
Pinocchio
 
I love all the different styles you can find in billiards gear. I personally like very simple cues and very simple cases for myself. But I love looking at the fine artwork that is done others cues and cases. While it's not my style, I spent quite a lot of time "admiring" a friends Justis case. The work on it is exquisite and you can really tell the care that went into it. While it's not something I would purchase, I'm glad it's there for people who want to purchase it. If I ever get to the point to start collecting cues I'll be buying ones that are very intricate, but my daily player will always be pretty plain...

Brian
 
Eh because some people like em. I have a Sterling Deluxe Pro 3x5 which is all leather and nicely designed with nice rivet work. It's definitely the fanciest case I can deal with owning and actually borders on being too fancy for me. I like things being plain.
 
'To each his own', as they say.

Although I like those 'gawdy' cases there are a bit too fancy for me. Even though I have owned them I prefer a less intricate case.

Lately, I have been considering an envelope style case from this maker:

http://www.nittanyleather.com/

I really like the look of these cases and if I get any design it will be be of just my name.


Gary<<<<<<<<------------not a cowboy but look like one with a 'gawdy' case!! Whiskey, no glass, just the bottle!!!
 
Ky Boy, I love those simple envelope style cases!!! I'll have to keep them in mind when I decide to spring for a higher end case.

Brian
 
Lazerrus said:
Just curious. I have noticed lately all the "COWBOY" syle cases, ala instroke, justis, etc. I am just curious as to why these are so popular? I myself am a fan of the george style pvc & leather style. All that paisley and whoppdy whoo leatherwork is a little to western for me. Makes me want to grab my six gun and go hunt down some apache. slip on on into the bar and wet myself with some whiskey pardner! I like more of the slick and sleek neat form case such as whitten etc. Is all that tooling really gonna say something other than "GAWDY!"? It's the skill and how they use that cue that makes the player, not the case. Any comments to try and sell me on these things of tackiness?:yikes:
Click to expand...

As granddaddy used to say, "son, there's an ass for every seat".

I prefer the sleeker style myself but the majority of people who buy high end cases prefer something more decorated.

When I had Instroke I had two styles - the Cowboy (by the way that is MY INVENTION - both the name and the style for all you copycats) and the Nature style.

The Nature line was more like the first gen Predator cases. When I designed the Predaor case I used the Nature style as the basis.

We eventually discontinued the Nature style due to slow sales. The Cowboy style outsold it ten to one easily. The Nature Line was priced at about the same level as the Cowboy style. While the Cowboy style had more decorative elements the Nature style had a single piece of top grain nappa cowhide. In cue case making it is expensive to do cases with large pieces of nappa because you need pretty much perfect pieces. So there is a lot of the skin that is not usable. Thus the cost per case for just leather is much higher.

So people couldn't understand why a "plain" case cost as much as the one with all the bling. People like more bling and they see more "value" in a case with more bling. That's why decorated cases sell more than plain ones.
 
Very interesting, John. Simpler looks more pleasing to me. The rows and rows of rivets in the typical "Cowboy" style case is a big minus in my book. Is there anything in your gallery of cases that resembles the Instroke Nature series? BTW how's the progress on the Sterling Wave cases for your contest winners? I'm really looking forward to a cue test drive in the new soft tube interiors.

Bill
 
I really like my cowboy case. It matches my cowboys boots and I know I look like a real player when I walk in a poolroom.
The only problem is that is a bit heavy and my horse gets tired carrying it around.:deadhorse:
 
I like the "simple" look better as well but I do appreciate the fine and amazing artwork that go into some really nice cases.
I love the Whitten look but I prefer the Instroke protection, The Predator first generation is all that.... I'm really happy with it.
 
I have a nice simple 2x2 that Matcase did for me. Very plain, but perfect and a 3x6 soft case that JimMurnak made me. Plain leather with a nine ball rack painted on it. Plain and simple.
 
PS - This is simply an opinion thread. No disrespect is intended nor recommended in here. I was simply asking where this style came from and how it became so popular in the pool sport considering it's "heritage" saddles, belts etc? Rock on all those that like them. I still prefer the simple sllek style of the Whitten's and gerorge styles.
 
Lazerrus said:
PS - This is simply an opinion thread. No disrespect is intended nor recommended in here. I was simply asking where this style came from and how it became so popular in the pool sport considering it's "heritage" saddles, belts etc? Rock on all those that like them. I still prefer the simple sllek style of the Whitten's and gerorge styles.
Click to expand...

Absolutely. But when you use words like gaudy and imply that the person who uses such a case is implying that they are a great player by carrying one you kind of offend the folks who buy that style.

One thing I have come to know in my life is that NO ONE fits a stereotype. Everyone has many layers to them and they make their choices in life based on a lot of things, how they grew up, what they were taught, and their own inner sense of what is pleasing to them.

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder and one man's junk is another man's treasure come to mind.

Recently my friend bought a truly remarkable piece of burl wood. The wood seller had it lying in the corner covered with dust. He said that it had been there for years and no one wanted it. He gave it away to my friends for next to nothing. I know many cue makers who would pay quite a bit for burl of this quality.

People just like what they like. Some people prefer traditional styles that remind them of times gone by and seem sturdier. Others prefer a more modern look.

Also people tend to buy what it available. Pool cases don't offer the same breadth of choice as shoes and clothes. We as makers can't afford to offer such a wide variety because we don't have millions of customers. We have to be real careful what we bet on in terms of design because we can't really afford to keep a huge variety in stock all the time.

One upon a time I made a line called the Instroke Colors line. I had color combinations like pink and blue, purple and tourquoise, pink and tourquoise and so on for a total of 25 color combinations. In 3 sizes. So that was 75 unique items that we carried 20 deep. 1500 cases that no one wanted.

Sure some people wanted them but most were afraid of the ridicule that they thought they would get for carrying a purple case. So this bet didn't pay off although I did have the satisfaction of seeing two of my competitors copy some of the outrageous colors and fall flat on their faces with it as well.

Anyway, that's why the western style cases outsell the modern style. If you consider the lower end of the market however you will find that the plainer styles sell more. Probably because they are less expensive.
 
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IMO, the popularity of such design is greatly influenced by the demographics of the major pool consumers.

I think the popularity of the sport came from the west as majority of the pool players/consumers has always been there, hence they have influenced the sport greatly (thanks to espn & the net). The age of these major consumers also come into play (most are quite in their, uhm, "MATURE" age :grin:). I believe that these two are the major factors that has influenced popularity of the cases' design.

I can put myself as an example: I'm in my late 20's and live in Asia. I was forced to choose the "cowboy" look since it was the design mostly available ever since I got into the sport and the online stores began to mushroom more than 5 yrs ago. I've bought & resold several of these "cowboy" cases since I want a classy yet sporty case. Although there have been several "sportier" cases that became available, none of which caught my taste. Not until recently when the Sterling Wave and Predator Sport have satisfied the "sporty" side of me. I'm still looking for that case with sleek, modern, sporty yet classy design with great protective properties (synergy of the Instroke black/brown, Sterling Wave, and the Predator Sport cases) that will truly reflect my personality and since this is not yet available, I'm having it custom made.

The mere fact that more sporty cases are coming out and that we are becoming more global each day, I believe that there's an increasing market for newer styles and they might even dominate the market one day as more younger players come into the scene. One day, we might find the "cowboy" cases as part of the "collection" and not as your everyday case :)
 
I like these......

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