I know there have been threads on this before but I have to ask. Does the price of the cue necessary determine the quality of it. Will the more expensive cue play better that the lesser one. The reason I ask is because I have been speaking to a few cuemakers about a a new cue. I told them all the same materials and specs and everything but I got completely different price ranges. Both are well known cuemakers, I would consider them about the same. They had about the same wait for the cue but one was more than twice the amount of the other. The price was pretty good for both but it troubled me because it almost seemed like the one that was less wouldnt be as good of a cue but I was really considering the lesser priced cuemaker before I knew the price. Im worried that if I go with the lesser cue I might regret not going with the other. I dont know. Does anyone have any insight on this? Thanks
Cue Price = Quality?
- Thread starter NOSAJ03
- Start date
To the best of my knowledge, there is no standard pricing structure for cue makers to use. They all make up their own prices and some may vary from cueNOSAJ03 said:
to cue.
Which ever maker you pick, you will be cursed with the thought that you should have picked the other one.
It is the nature of buying cues.
As long as they are known cue makers, who have been around a while, I'm sure they are both good. Pick the cue you like to play with the best.
If custom cuemaker has a lot of demand, the prices will go up (or the cuemaker isn't interested in making profit). Take a few a well known top cuemakers with decades of experience, ask a price for a plain jane or a basic cue with 4 points & veneers. The differences in prices are because of the demand and how much for those cues are changing owners if sold second-hand, meaning how well they hold value. All the decorative materials will add price, but you should get the same quality in a $1k cue and a $5k cue.
If you want to buy a basic Southwest for instance, it'll cost you around $2k. Same design from another very good experienced cuemaker with the same hit characteristics can sell for $1500 or $1000. But, it might be that the $2k Southwest is worth the same $2k after 10 years and the other cuemaker will have decrease in value over time. Buying a high-end cue from a well known cuemaker is always some sort of investment.
I doubt there are many cuemakers who will take shortcuts to make cues faster in larger quantities aiming for a fast buck. Or if there are, those cuemakers will grow a bad reputation and will go out of business soon. If you buy a cue from a well-known cuemaker, the wood should be properly aged and the finishing done well no matter if the cue is very expensive or a little cheaper. How the cue hits, is subjective and usually doesn't make any difference on the price.
Production cues can be anything...
If you want to buy a basic Southwest for instance, it'll cost you around $2k. Same design from another very good experienced cuemaker with the same hit characteristics can sell for $1500 or $1000. But, it might be that the $2k Southwest is worth the same $2k after 10 years and the other cuemaker will have decrease in value over time. Buying a high-end cue from a well known cuemaker is always some sort of investment.
I doubt there are many cuemakers who will take shortcuts to make cues faster in larger quantities aiming for a fast buck. Or if there are, those cuemakers will grow a bad reputation and will go out of business soon. If you buy a cue from a well-known cuemaker, the wood should be properly aged and the finishing done well no matter if the cue is very expensive or a little cheaper. How the cue hits, is subjective and usually doesn't make any difference on the price.
Production cues can be anything...
mjantti said:
I understand about the investment part but Im talking about the quality and playability of the cue. Will a 2k high end cue play better than a 1K high end cue. I understand playibililty and hit can and often is subjective but a good cue is a good cue. Now essentially the question is that is it the price that makes it good?
NOSAJ03 said:
Ok. Umm, if you take a 2k cue and a 1k cue from the same cuemaker, I think they should be almost identical in playability, if the basic parts are the same. If you have an ivory joint in other and a stainless stell joint in the other, the hit shouldn't be the same anymore. Then, the price tag doesn't make the cue for you, it's your preferance over one construction method over another.
If you take 1k and 2k cues from different cuemakers, then the price doesn't correlate with hit and playability anymore, because different cuemakers make different cues with different characteristics.
To your original question a simplified answer: no, higher price tag doesn't make a better hitting cue, IMHO.
Just my two cents... Don't have over $1k cues passing through my hands all the time
mjantti said:Ok. Umm, if you take a 2k cue and a 1k cue from the same cuemaker, I think they should be almost identical in playability, if the basic parts are the same. If you have an ivory joint in other and a stainless stell joint in the other, the hit shouldn't be the same anymore. Then, the price tag doesn't make the cue for you, it's your preferance over one construction method over another.
If you take 1k and 2k cues from different cuemakers, then the price doesn't correlate with hit and playability anymore, because different cuemakers make different cues with different characteristics.
To your original question a simplified answer: no, higher price tag doesn't make a better hitting cue, IMHO.
Just my two cents... Don't have over $1k cues passing through my hands all the time
The price does not make the cue.The cm makes the cue and if they are reputable then it wont matter which one you choose.Playability is subjective.I have played with $35.00 cues that I felt were better then 1k cues.
But thats my opion an Im sticking to it.
While it is fairly true that a $1k cue from the same cue maker will play the same as a 3k cue. Save some exceptions. Different woods offer different hits. the density of woods changes a lot of things. For example if I want an 18.5 oz cue balanced the way I want it, some woods are out of the question. Also things like veneers (and I am going to get some argument on this) change the hit of a cue and sometimes not for better.
The best cue I owned was a mottey that was worth 3500.00. But I think if it was just a 1200.00 mottey i would feel the same. He makes great cues. Next down the line is a 250.00 Raven (mike wagner) cue. If I had a choice I would save myself 3200 bucks and go with the raven. A certain price point gets you into the door with a cue maker, then it goes up from there. I would first choose the maker then build a cue based on what I could afford. Unless you are a collector or invester looks should be secondary and so should price. Strickland would spank me hard with his 200.00 cuetec even if I played with a 10k dollar cue.
Here is a list in my opinion that you can get in the door for under 650 that make amazing looking cues but play amazing as well.
Gilbert
Zylr
Raven
Diviney
blud
Schon
Even to some extent DP still makes a decent cue.
JJ
The best cue I owned was a mottey that was worth 3500.00. But I think if it was just a 1200.00 mottey i would feel the same. He makes great cues. Next down the line is a 250.00 Raven (mike wagner) cue. If I had a choice I would save myself 3200 bucks and go with the raven. A certain price point gets you into the door with a cue maker, then it goes up from there. I would first choose the maker then build a cue based on what I could afford. Unless you are a collector or invester looks should be secondary and so should price. Strickland would spank me hard with his 200.00 cuetec even if I played with a 10k dollar cue.
Here is a list in my opinion that you can get in the door for under 650 that make amazing looking cues but play amazing as well.
Gilbert
Zylr
Raven
Diviney
blud
Schon
Even to some extent DP still makes a decent cue.
JJ
JJ, a Zylr costs $1050 and up now.
Nineballking
Owner of Nineballking.com
I believe price can make a difference
I recently got a Richard Harris Custom Cue. It is built to my specs and plays unbelievable. I payed big time money for it, but it is worth ever dollar. No flaws in the finish, wrap is perfect, and I have never felt a shaft slicker than what came on my Richard Harris cue.
Sometimes a big price does not mean a cue will play better. Most of the time it has more to do with the types of materials used in the cue and the man hours it takes to finish the cue.
A big difference between custom cues and production cues is custom cues pick thru the best maple, the best ivory, the best everything to make their cues. I talked to a maker that strives for such production that he sends back over half the shaft blanks he gets and over seventy percent of the ivory inlays are not up to his standards and sent back.
I recently got a Richard Harris Custom Cue. It is built to my specs and plays unbelievable. I payed big time money for it, but it is worth ever dollar. No flaws in the finish, wrap is perfect, and I have never felt a shaft slicker than what came on my Richard Harris cue.
Sometimes a big price does not mean a cue will play better. Most of the time it has more to do with the types of materials used in the cue and the man hours it takes to finish the cue.
A big difference between custom cues and production cues is custom cues pick thru the best maple, the best ivory, the best everything to make their cues. I talked to a maker that strives for such production that he sends back over half the shaft blanks he gets and over seventy percent of the ivory inlays are not up to his standards and sent back.
this is just my .02 here.............its all up to the shooter how a cue "hits" or "feels".
as far as costs, some would argue "you get what you pay for". which in some cases holds true.
although as stated before, as the demand for their cues goes up, so does a cuemakers price. i call this "making money off their name" which is basically what it is, and there is nothing wrong with it.
example, i believe a plain jane, no points, no nothing scruggs starts off around 750 and the 4 pointer is around 1100. this is what i have been told, so i could be wrong. where some other cuemakers (that make fine cues) will make you a 4 pointer for 750 (or less sometimes) scruggs has been doing this forever, he is in high demand, and has name recognition, therefore his prices are higher, kudos to him for running a successful business.
so in my opinion, after about 500-700 you've gotten all the "playablility" or "hit" or "feel" that you can get out of a piece of wood, after that you're paying for a name, for the work, inlay material, etc etc. as the 500 plain jane cue will "hit" just as well as the same cuemakers 3000 loaded cue, you just paid more so it would look better.
so for the original question, does price equal quality...............to a certain point yes, after that, you're paying for the extras.
thanks
VAP
as far as costs, some would argue "you get what you pay for". which in some cases holds true.
although as stated before, as the demand for their cues goes up, so does a cuemakers price. i call this "making money off their name" which is basically what it is, and there is nothing wrong with it.
example, i believe a plain jane, no points, no nothing scruggs starts off around 750 and the 4 pointer is around 1100. this is what i have been told, so i could be wrong. where some other cuemakers (that make fine cues) will make you a 4 pointer for 750 (or less sometimes) scruggs has been doing this forever, he is in high demand, and has name recognition, therefore his prices are higher, kudos to him for running a successful business.
so in my opinion, after about 500-700 you've gotten all the "playablility" or "hit" or "feel" that you can get out of a piece of wood, after that you're paying for a name, for the work, inlay material, etc etc. as the 500 plain jane cue will "hit" just as well as the same cuemakers 3000 loaded cue, you just paid more so it would look better.
so for the original question, does price equal quality...............to a certain point yes, after that, you're paying for the extras.
thanks
VAP
JoeyInCali said:
Holly cow. Well I guess good for him. They are worth it. I should have grabbed mine from him when I had the chance at 685. Damm
Three Different Cues....
From the same cuemaker hit different and that's just the way it is. Who knows what makes those three different cues from the same guy hit so much different.....perhaps its just a zen thing.
Why does a Schon hit so damn good fwhy does some high dollar custom stuff hit so damn average ? That mystery is right up there with Stonehenge and the crop circles.
If you find a cue that you like, that gives you confidence and has the look you want - don't (like I have done so many times) get rid of the cue to spend more money on another one hoping to get an even better hit.
I had a Jensen about three years ago that hit so, so, so good!!! I traded it (like a dummy) and have never found another Jensen (or SS jointed cue) that hit like that one (the closest has been a couple of Schon's I've played with).
Ordering cues from a cuemaker, as compared to hitting cues that are already made, is a crapshoot at best... and a very expensive crapshoot at that.
Oops.......gotta run - the postman is at the door with my new custom cue!!!
From the same cuemaker hit different and that's just the way it is. Who knows what makes those three different cues from the same guy hit so much different.....perhaps its just a zen thing.
Why does a Schon hit so damn good fwhy does some high dollar custom stuff hit so damn average ? That mystery is right up there with Stonehenge and the crop circles.
If you find a cue that you like, that gives you confidence and has the look you want - don't (like I have done so many times) get rid of the cue to spend more money on another one hoping to get an even better hit.
I had a Jensen about three years ago that hit so, so, so good!!! I traded it (like a dummy) and have never found another Jensen (or SS jointed cue) that hit like that one (the closest has been a couple of Schon's I've played with).
Ordering cues from a cuemaker, as compared to hitting cues that are already made, is a crapshoot at best... and a very expensive crapshoot at that.
Oops.......gotta run - the postman is at the door with my new custom cue!!!
scottthesnot said:
When he visits me in Montana he can "special deliver" it to you.
Jack Madden
www.johnmaddencues.com
To answer your question--no.
However, in general, higher priced cues usually come from cue makers with established reputations for making great playing cues.
But keep in mind that no two cues will be the same and every single one will play differently. Every single aspect of a cue impacts it's playability and it is impossible to duplicate these aspects from cue to cue.
From personal experience, I have owned over 300 cues from a $5 house cue I used to drag around while in college to cues valued at over $5,000 now, to include many from the same cue makers. Every single one of these cues played different. More than a few times the cheaper cues played better than the expensive ones. For example, I have over 20 cues right now but I am playing with a $400 Gilbert jump/break cue as my playing cue because it just plays so well.
To clarify further, some cue makers can generally stay within a consistent hit range, but as I said, all of their cues will play slightly different as well. It comes down to how the cue is constructed and the range of different materials used from the tip down through the handle.
Bottom line, it is the cue makers that can repetitively make cues that play consistenty well that command the cash.
However, in general, higher priced cues usually come from cue makers with established reputations for making great playing cues.
But keep in mind that no two cues will be the same and every single one will play differently. Every single aspect of a cue impacts it's playability and it is impossible to duplicate these aspects from cue to cue.
From personal experience, I have owned over 300 cues from a $5 house cue I used to drag around while in college to cues valued at over $5,000 now, to include many from the same cue makers. Every single one of these cues played different. More than a few times the cheaper cues played better than the expensive ones. For example, I have over 20 cues right now but I am playing with a $400 Gilbert jump/break cue as my playing cue because it just plays so well.
To clarify further, some cue makers can generally stay within a consistent hit range, but as I said, all of their cues will play slightly different as well. It comes down to how the cue is constructed and the range of different materials used from the tip down through the handle.
Bottom line, it is the cue makers that can repetitively make cues that play consistenty well that command the cash.
turquoisecrazy
Banned
I love my Schon--best cue I got on ebay for $500. Lots of ivory...
Cannto go wrong with one of those Schon.
Peter
Cannto go wrong with one of those Schon.
Peter