Cue-Buying Apprehension

BWTadpole

BWTadpole

The Nitcracker
Silver Member
I've caught myself in these situations a few times lately. I'll find a cue on here that I'm really interested in, and I'll think about it for a week. But somewhere along the line, I'll ask myself "Can I really replace the cue that I'm playing with now?" and I won't buy it. I can admit that my current player is pretty good, but I know there are better cues out there that I would like to try. I'm also afraid of being indecisive after I've bought it about having two cues and maybe not being able to pick one to play with.

Here are the two cues that I've done this with recently:

http://forums.azbilliards.com/showthread.php?t=147620

http://forums.azbilliards.com/showthread.php?t=146129

Has anyone else dealt with this feeling? And how do you overcome it, if you do at all?
 
John, I'm not sure that your question is clear. Could you re-phrase it ? Are you worried that the new one will not play as well as the one that you have now ? With the unbelievable quality of most custom cues these days, I wouldn't worry about playability. I worry about weight balance, size of the butt (circumference), wrap style and most of all, the shaft. Determining whether a cue plays well or not is like a haircut. Give it two weeks and you'll know.
tim
 
Opinion

Oh so you are the guy responsible for the downturn in the cue market:smile:

I have bought tried and sold many cues. We all do it as it is fun to experiement and the search for the one and only cue goes on and on.

Good luck in your search. Now get out there and buy some cues.

Kevin
 
BWTadpole said:
I've caught myself in these situations a few times lately. I'll find a cue on here that I'm really interested in, and I'll think about it for a week. But somewhere along the line, I'll ask myself "Can I really replace the cue that I'm playing with now?" and I won't buy it. I can admit that my current player is pretty good, but I know there are better cues out there that I would like to try. I'm also afraid of being indecisive after I've bought it about having two cues and maybe not being able to pick one to play with.

Here are the two cues that I've done this with recently:

http://forums.azbilliards.com/showthread.php?t=147620

http://forums.azbilliards.com/showthread.php?t=146129

Has anyone else dealt with this feeling? And how do you overcome it, if you do at all?
Click to expand...

I don't know if this helps but here's what I've done and continue to do.

I have purchased a group of cues...one at a time. Playing with each over a period of time. Tried different joints and ferrules trying to stick with a similar tip so the hit isn't based on tip.

I looked for what I liked about certain cues and what I didn't about others.
After I had a few I started to trade on AZB. Because I always bought mostly decent cues they were easy to get good trades for them.
Eventually I came across my current player...oddly enough...on a trade I didn't even want to do.

Currently I'm doing a bit of trading just to try some new things to see if there is anything I like better.
Truthfully, most people I talk to who do this aren't really looking for the magic hit but enjoy the trading for stuff they don't have to try something new.

The problem that I personally see with what you got is that it may have questionable trade value. Someone told me recently that it's only wood and while that may be true...certain makers are held in higher regard than others.

My opinion...if you can afford to buy a few and try different things then do that. Then trade for stuff you haven't tried.
 
Buying to try a new cue is always a toss up. I'm am a left handed golfer, so I end up buying clubs to try, and end up selling them at a loss. I will tell you, it gets expensive. Cues are more expensive and they take up about as much room in your closet as golf clubs! Maybe make some friends and try their cues to narrow done what you like. Good luck.
 
IMO it's ok to have several cues in your bag. To find the cue thats right for you sometime you have to keep trying different things.

To good thing with custom cues is that if you don't like it you can always relist it and get most if not all of your money back. Of course this theory goes out the window if you buy a Meucci. Lol.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top