Biloxi Boy
Man With A Golden Arm
Can anyone tell me anything about this cue? Marked "VH". Lots of Looks. 1 Bid.
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EBAY CUE
- Thread starter Biloxi Boy
- Start date
It is a Balabushka that George personally gifted to the band Van Halen in 2012.
I think the VH is for accomplished cue maker Shawn Von Hoening. 
Someone bid probably bc they believe that it is a Verl Horn cue which it is not.
Paul_#_
Well-known member
Seller required minimum bid of $425 and provided photos and this nothing-like description of the "Vintage Unknown 2-piece Billiard Pool Cue":
Up for your consideration is this sharp looking vintage cue. The weight is 19.2 oz. Butt half measures 29 1/4, the shaft is 29 1/2, together it's 58 3/4. Stainless pin is 5/16•18. Cue has 4 points with multicolor veneers and an Irish green wrap that is nice and tight.
Shaft lifts at center when rolled, butt half has tiny daylight at the wrap area when rolled. Please review all photos as they are part of the description and best way to determine if the condition meets your standards.
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Iwishiwasrich
Well-known member
I had a Verl Horn cue in the mid to late 90's I don't remember the buttcap being like that or having a VH on it. It was a beautiful cue but hit like a brick.
How much bricks?? Half ton or a full ton??
I saved the pics and put them up on my big high res monitor. I don't think it's Dacron. It looks like it might be natural fibers.
Dacron, for those that might not know (I know you know) is a brand of polyester. It is used in many things, including textiles and fishing line. Cortland did and still does sell Dacron fishing line (at least they still did the last time I looked). There are have been numerous brands of Dacron fishing line, including green spec.
Nylon is another can of worms. It's a different synthetic with different properties and feel. It has also been used on many pool cues.
I have seen the common synthetic fishing lines used, and also threads meant for the textile industry. I have an ebony Titlist converted by Ricco Cervantes that is wrapped with nylon thread.
As for Dacron, GB did use it on some cues, I have pictures of one in my wraps folder, I think I grabbed that pic here on AZB years ago.
The synthetics don't sand/press/polish like natural fibers.
Generally, people very often confuse the names and materials a lot.
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"nothing-like description"
It's a 14 pin. and I don't know what an "irish green wrap" is except an obfuscation.
The cue is a bit of a train wreck, but I find it very curious. I would buy it in a heartbeat for cheap, but certainly not anything like the starting bid. I just dig curiosities.
I downloaded the pics and looked at them on my big monitor.
The machining marks haven't been polished out of the joint collar or butt sleeve. There are rough grinding marks on the end of the pin.
I think that black butt sleeve might be synthetic, not ebony or any kind of wood.
The wrap looks like natural fibers to be but hasn't been pressed or polished.
What is pressed or polished wrap? Can it be done to an existing wrap or does it need to be done new??
Most fabrics feel rougher in their more raw state than they will after they have been shaved, pressed, ironed, etc, and linen thread is no different. Also linen thread is round so you would feel those little micro ridges the whole way down the wrap (which bugs many people) unless it has been pressed flat. Hence the wrap pressing process to take care of those two issues and leave it feeling very smooth. It can even be done in a way that it you would swear it was a wrapless cue if you had your eyes closed, but most don't take it that far.
It can be done to an existing wrap but if your wrap has been through enough to need it there is a good chance it is time for a new wrap anyway. You can also do a simplified version at home on your own though if you feel your wrap needs some help but you aren't ready to have it done professionally yet. Search for various methods but one example is to rub a piece of wax paper onto your wrap to get just a little bit of the wax on there (or you can use wax from just about anywhere else too but only put a tiny bit at a time, you can always add more but you are screwed once you put on too much), rub the wrap really well with the side of an empty beer bottle or similarly smooth object (that you don't mind getting a little wax on), and hand burnish it well with a piece of smooth paper while trying to generate a little heat in the process.
Every installer does it slightly differently but a process that involves sanding, waxing, pressing, starching, and ironing the wrap through various means and steps is pretty typical. Below is the process used by these respective linen wrap installers, and the pressing part of the wrap installation starts at 18:23 in the first vid and at 21:00 in the second.
Linen wraps are usually pressed and polished. You can watch some YouTube videos of how it's done.
It can be re-done if that's what you're asking. Best with a lathe but many of us have cleaned and re-pressed a linen wrap. You can press it with a beer bottle. It takes a lot of elbow grease. Just find a good movie to watch and get busy pressing after you clean your wrap. Cleaning it will raise the fibers and make it feel rough.
There are already threads on doing it yourself.
A hight quality linen wrap properly pressed feels wonderful.
i dont understand why anyone would buy an unknown cheaper cue off the internet without hitting it first. you can do that in many poolrooms that sell cues.
most are for sale because they are junk and the owner doesnt know much about it. good cues are well know even by people that inherit them.
and if its some rare find it will be gone before you get to bid on it.
most are for sale because they are junk and the owner doesnt know much about it. good cues are well know even by people that inherit them.
and if its some rare find it will be gone before you get to bid on it.
Biloxi Boy
Man With A Golden Arm
A major reason not to buy on ebay.
Ballbustabushka.
It's a crooked cue!!!
Butt and shaft length don't match, inlays are diff lengths, OMG what a piece of **** for what they're asking!! Color is kinda cool tho.