CNC machines or all by hand. Which is best? What is the cues value?

Bobkitty

I said: "Here kitty, kitty". Got this frown.
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I'm very curious here and do not want to discount the cue makers that use CNC machines to do the cue work. Ned Morris is all by himself, no workers around and everything he does is by himself with his hands. Amazing cue builder in my opinion. I've got six of his cues from 20 years ago and they are the best I've ever seen! I would like other's opinions.
 

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str8eight

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I'm very curious here and do not want to discount the cue makers that use CNC machines to do the cue work. Ned Morris is all by himself, no workers around and everything he does is by himself with his hands. Amazing cue builder in my opinion. I've got six of his cues from 20 years ago and they are the best I've ever seen! I would like other's opinions.

Does Morris use a pantograph at all? If so then he does not do everything "by hand".


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Bobkitty

I said: "Here kitty, kitty". Got this frown.
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Silver Member
Does Predator use a pantograph or CNC for their $3K cues? Just curious here.
 

Bobkitty

I said: "Here kitty, kitty". Got this frown.
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Silver Member
I guess my question is: who would buy a factory made by CNC machine cue stick when they could get the "almost" hand made cue by JC or others? Did Balabuska use pantograph or CNC? How about SW? Why is their cues worth soooo much?
 

JoeyInCali

Maker of Joey Bautista Cues
Silver Member
I guess my question is: who would buy a factory made by CNC machine cue stick when they could get the "almost" hand made cue by JC or others? Did Balabuska use pantograph or CNC? How about SW? Why is their cues worth soooo much?
Balabushka had the first modern CNC in the 60's. It had ball screws, NSK spindle , Clearpath motors and a PC running Mach 4 and Mastercam 2020.
 

JoeyInCali

Maker of Joey Bautista Cues
Silver Member
CNC. I don't know of any high end cue makers/production companies that use a pantograph.


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I can only think of Nitti and Showman now.
But, this argument has no merit .
If Ned converted to CNC inlaying, his cues wouldn't be worth less than the panto'd ones.
 

str8eight

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I can only think of Nitti and Showman now.
But, this argument has no merit .
If Ned converted to CNC inlaying, his cues wouldn't be worth less than the panto'd ones.

Yea I agree, this topic has been beaten to death. Pantograph or CNC I don't care. For me what really sets cue makers a part is there imagination/creativity/originality. After a while diamonds and peacocks get old.


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measureman

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Yea I agree, this topic has been beaten to death. Pantograph or CNC I don't care. For me what really sets cue makers a part is there imagination/creativity/originality. After a while diamonds and peacocks get old.


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And if they hit a "Ton".
 

ShootingArts

Smorg is giving St Peter the 7!
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A pantograph is basically a tracing machine using a high speed router to cut with, the same routers a NC machine usually uses for a cutting head. Ten or fifteen years ago the arguments flew fast and furious on here discussing the merits of pantograph vs NC. Most were by cue owners who were clueless about the difference. What is more genuine, a computer cut pocket and inlay or one cut by a pantograph tracing patterns cut by a CNC machine? You wouldn't believe how warm the arguments got among those that didn't really understand either process! Panto work can add hundreds of hours to building a cue. Tracing a pattern for twelve or fourteen hours a day is about as much fun as an ice water enema, or so I have heard!! I haven't put either one to the test but I have done tedious work for hours on end!

Edwin Reyes could and did hand cut pockets, he also had a NC machine. The cues play just the same. Some trickery can be used if somebody cares to in order to get smaller than .030" ends on NC pockets, you can even create points. You can use white and black filler to fill in around ebony and ivory inlays too. The old masters did these things sometimes too and weren't above a little work with a sharpie sometimes, something else creating an uproar on here. The old masters rarely had to put up with somebody using more than 6X magnification to check their work. It doesn't always look too good examined at 60X or more on the computer screen!

Hu
 

middleofnowhere

Registered
I'm very curious here and do not want to discount the cue makers that use CNC machines to do the cue work. Ned Morris is all by himself, no workers around and everything he does is by himself with his hands. Amazing cue builder in my opinion. I've got six of his cues from 20 years ago and they are the best I've ever seen! I would like other's opinions.
I was on his facebook page. You can see just from the cues he has in his gallery he uses a pantograph be it manual or CNC controlled.
You can clearly see the cutter radiuses on the inlays. I am not sure what you are getting at. He also at least at one time, had a partner when they started building cues.
 

Bobkitty

I said: "Here kitty, kitty". Got this frown.
Gold Member
Silver Member
I was on his facebook page. You can see just from the cues he has in his gallery he uses a pantograph be it manual or CNC controlled.
You can clearly see the cutter radiuses on the inlays. I am not sure what you are getting at. He also at least at one time, had a partner when they started building cues.
No partner now and the two cues I have pictured took him over 3 months to produce. Guess cue makers will never get wealthy.
 

benny-the-blade

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Yea I agree, this topic has been beaten to death. Pantograph or CNC I don't care. For me what really sets cue makers a part is there imagination/creativity/originality. After a while diamonds and peacocks get old.


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Shelby, you would know. You’re making some of the coolest cues on the planet right now. Keep up the amazing work!
 
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