cue makers logo's/names

thefonz

thefonz

It's not me...it's my ADD
Silver Member
this was brought up by a buddy of mine, but i do agree. why is it that a cuemaker whom has pride in his work, create a beautiful piece of art through decades of experience (theirs combined with those whom they learned from), only to finish it off by penning their name or logo with a sharpie with handwriting which resembles that of a 2nd grader? yes i know it's hard to write on something round........

why not go through a little more work to create a logo or at least of all an engraved signature?
 
Rambo signed, Balabushka didn't, if you bought an expensive Richard Black cue, you want it signed, it helps prove its authentic, and makes it more valuable. If you don't want it that way, ask the maker to not sign it.
You might be more happy staying with the Player cue line, none of them are signed, and they play great. :grin:
 
I think of custom cues like artwork. I don't think I have ever seen any artist sign their painting or other art with a logo, but with their signature. I wouldn't want it any other way.

I would ask this question. Would you rather have Tiger Woods sign an autograph with his signature, or with his TW logo? Either could work and be valuable, but I think I rather have the actual signature and date.
 
That Tiger Woods analogy is spot on. Well done.

CK6Speed said:
I think of custom cues like artwork. I don't think I have ever seen any artist sign their painting or other art with a logo, but with their signature. I wouldn't want it any other way.

I would ask this question. Would you rather have Tiger Woods sign an autograph with his signature, or with his TW logo? Either could work and be valuable, but I think I rather have the actual signature and date.
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thefonz said:
this was brought up by a buddy of mine, but i do agree. why is it that a cuemaker whom has pride in his work, create a beautiful piece of art through decades of experience (theirs combined with those whom they learned from), only to finish it off by penning their name or logo with a sharpie with handwriting which resembles that of a 2nd grader? yes i know it's hard to write on something round........

why not go through a little more work to create a logo or at least of all an engraved signature?
Click to expand...

This post reminds me of a certain contest on AZB a while back, in which a certain cuemaker (and very good one I think), offered to build a cue for whomever came up with the best idea for his company logo; all fine and good I guess, but to me the entire fiasco shouted a lack of creativity.

Well, probably wrongly on my part I posted something pointing towards lack of originality on the cuemakers part, which I guess pissed him off, (again an error in judgement on my part), but the point I was making was that I felt it detracted from his brand. I reckon he didn't take it that way, but I honestly felt his work was better than that.

I would rather see a legible signature on a cue than a logo, unless it is something that cries originality and craftsmanship in the brand. You never know I guess.

Look at all the Dale Perry cues on ebay, all signed and numbered 1/1, and none will ever have any collector value due to him selling out and cheaponing the brand.

Hell look at Ferrari cars, a guy I used to work for had one, beautiful car, but what a piece of junk it was. Broken down all the time, but worth a hell of a lot of money, cause they know how to market their brand.
 
Wish I had a camera good enough to show the Keith Josey signature on my cue...his signature is as artistic as his work!
 
Renegade_56 said:
beauty there pardner, I love those traditional shooters with veneered points. Is it an actual signature or is it a stamp. I'd like it just fine with only the Jacoby logo on the butt.
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thanks, it's a sig. - David L. Jacoby 9-06. All the folks at Jacoby are GREAT....stop by their booth at the SBE or the Derby or any other tourney they happen to be at. They always have a good selection of cues with just about any joint set-up you want (I tried them all :p ), and Dave can make you anything from a player for a couple hundred bones - up to a MEGA-MONSTER (like the one's he's won cue of the year with) that can break the bank. http://jacobycustomcues.com/
 
DoubleD said:
Seemed to work alright for Picasso, Monet, VanGogh, Rembrandt,....
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half the time signatures were done on the backs of works, in art, a signature is not so much an a means of identification as it is an artists recognition that something they made is to their standard and is fit to bear their name.

for all those comparing signatures on cues to art, it should be noted that artists never signed their signature right in the middle of the piece, and the signatures were artistically done in their own rite. ie. like someone mentioned eric crisps signature, visible, small, tastefully done, and i think it looks like a little tree or flower. not basted right on the forearm in block lettering.

i wonder how many ICCS winning cues had a signature printed with a sharpie on the forearm....
 
thefonz said:
this was brought up by a buddy of mine, but i do agree. why is it that a cuemaker whom has pride in his work, create a beautiful piece of art through decades of experience (theirs combined with those whom they learned from), only to finish it off by penning their name or logo with a sharpie with handwriting which resembles that of a 2nd grader? yes i know it's hard to write on something round........

why not go through a little more work to create a logo or at least of all an engraved signature?
Click to expand...

i've always been partial to bobby hunter's "H" logo. but Rick Howard's signature looks pretty cool too. i think it just depends on how it's done
 
thefonz said:
this was brought up by a buddy of mine, but i do agree. why is it that a cuemaker whom has pride in his work, create a beautiful piece of art through decades of experience (theirs combined with those whom they learned from), only to finish it off by penning their name or logo with a sharpie with handwriting which resembles that of a 2nd grader? yes i know it's hard to write on something round........

why not go through a little more work to create a logo or at least of all an engraved signature?
Click to expand...


I completely agree. There are some guys making really beautiful cues and then they have a terrible signature. I think a signature looks great IF its neat. The one that comes to mind is Eric Crisp, very nice looks signature.
 
rorywayne said:
Rambo signed, Balabushka didn't, if you bought an expensive Richard Black cue, you want it signed, it helps prove its authentic, and makes it more valuable. If you don't want it that way, ask the maker to not sign it.
You might be more happy staying with the Player cue line, none of them are signed, and they play great. :grin:
Click to expand...

Rambo had a classy way of "signing" his cues, but if memory serves, he really hated doing it, and only an estimated 10% are signed. Also, in many cases, he wasn't the person who actually signed the forearm. There were two people other than HR who signed Rambo cues over the years.

I like EG's signature on Ginacues. See this post for an example.

One thing I think is funny, is that Darrin Hill autographs almost every jig and bracket that he makes . . . for use in his own shop! :rotflmao1: That guy has ego to spare.
 
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I totally agree with the OP. A small, well-placed logo looks far better to me than any signature. If they have to sign it, sign under the wrap or some place far less visible than between the points or grossly displayed out on the forearm.

I understand pride in one's work well enough to know I wouldn't want to deface a thing of beauty I had helped fashion by adding a distracting signature.
 
I'd rather have a nice logo of the cuemaker in the buttcap
Like Vollmer's stylish V inlaid in an ivory shield or the Q of Arthur Cues/Markus Dienst.
Simple and yet very recognizable.

Another awesome piece of work is the Arthur "Q" as an ebony inlay in the shaft (instead of a stamp on logo like Predator)
 
I'm contemplating which route to take. 13 letters takes a lot of space, particularly when the pen is in MY hand.
 
I agree to a certain extent. I definitely fall into the category of having a signature that looks like a second grader when I try signing a cue. As you mentioned, it's difficult signing

a round object especially on the lathe when you have to do it right after cleaning it up getting it ready to spray. I've tried putting it down on a pool table or desk but then you (or

at least I) always seemed to pick up some dust or dirt and if you try to wipe it down after signing it, the solvent you use will smear the signature. I've sometimes signed a cue 6

or 8 times, cleaning it off because I wanted it to look better. Then I started engraving "Sherm" on the tips of my pins. The first few I did that way I got the same response from

the purchasers "Where's your signature" I actually had to refinish a couple of then to add the signature and keep the customer happy. Then I started asking customers if they

wanted the signature or was the engraved pin sufficient? Almost everyone I asked wanted both! I've only had 2 customers that didn't want a signature and one of them was a

Titlist conversion "Balabushka Tribute" cue and I refused to make it without my signature so there would be no doubt who the maker was and the guy I made it for or any

subsequent owners could not try to sell it as something it wasn't. I've also looked into having small decals of my signature made up, even bought a kit to make my own on an

ink jet printer, but have never followed through with it.
 
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I think the ideal signature is a carefully inlaid logo, just a set of initials will do. Nothing looks classier than an inlay, and if you do it in... I dunno, mother of pearl on black... that's gonna stand out.

Cuesmith's idea isn't bad though, and would be less of a pain in the ass for the cuemaker. If you could have a cut vinyl decal, those can last a decade if some clear finish is put over it to protect it.

Not a fan of putting anything on the buttcap, nobody sees it and the buttcap gets a lot of abuse and dirt.
 
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