ebony or african blackwood ???

[bbb]

i am thinking of having an all black cue made...( the stealth bomber cue..)
either african blackwood or ebony
flat faced wood joint with a black phenolic / juma? or some other black sleeved joint
radial pin
black leather wrap
your thoughts on the concept
and the pros and cons of one wood or the other would be greatly appreciated
thanks in advance

 

[Tony_in_MD]

Which ever wood you go with, be sure that the cue is cored.

I have an African Blackwood cue with a segmented amboyna burl handle. Black Phenolic joint and G10 radial pin.

African Blackwood is in the rosewood family, which make excellent cues.

The cue suites me well.

i am thinking of having an all black cue made...( the stealth bomber cue..)
either african blackwood or ebony
flat faced wood joint with a black phenolic / juma? or some other black sleeved joint
radial pin
black leather wrap
your thoughts on the concept
and the pros and cons of one wood or the other would be greatly appreciated
thanks in advance

 

[jdempsey]

In the knife world, much of us have moved on from Ebony, to African Blackwood. Availability is a factor, but the primary reason IMO is stability. It moves a lot less than Ebony, which saves makers tons of heart ache.

I think this is more of a modern phenomenon, because of the availability of old growth, top grade ebony, being very low or non-existant. If you can get truly supreme ebony, it can be blacker, and tighter grained than any blackwood, but as a baseline of what's currently available, the blackwood available tends to be darker and tighter grained, and more stable.

I've been curious as to why I haven't seen more blackwood in cues, it's definitely what I'd be chosing if I were having one made, unless I had a line on some supreme quality ebony.

I use mostly fossil ivory, pearl etc, so I'm not an expert on these matters, so maybe someone else with more knowledge will chime in.

I'm curious also if anybody has seen a cue that used ancient bog oak? Some of it can be insanely black with a charcoal like iridescence I haven't seen in any other wood.

 

[phil dade]

i am thinking of having an all black cue made...( the stealth bomber cue..)
either african blackwood or ebony
flat faced wood joint with a black phenolic / juma? or some other black sleeved joint
radial pin
black leather wrap
your thoughts on the concept
and the pros and cons of one wood or the other would be greatly appreciated
thanks in advance

Hi Larry,
You mean butt only correct, not the shaft? Butt only great concept , think G10 pin. If you are going to the trouble to have it made, there is a guy just up the road from you that can do the trick and cores his ebony noses. I would use a black phenolic joint, not wood in case you need jointwork ever, black shiny lizzard as well and the cue will look great. It must be cored. Finally, you can get a black gold or metal. I would do black on black ring work above and below wrap. I would also do a fantasy black on black hoppe ring. The cue and cue details all black and by adding these details it is an understatement that the cue is black by intent. Like a chrome delete on a car.
Good luck and enjoy,
Phil

 

[bdcues]

i am thinking of having an all black cue made...( the stealth bomber cue..)
either african blackwood or ebony
flat faced wood joint with a black phenolic / juma? or some other black sleeved joint
radial pin
black leather wrap
your thoughts on the concept
and the pros and cons of one wood or the other would be greatly appreciated
thanks in advance

The African blackwood is not entirely black if that is the ultimate look you are going for, the background color is purplish-brown. The black striping gives it the predominately black color but finished, in the light, you will see the purple come out. Could be considered an added bonus or a negative depending on your outlook.

The blackwood is also heavier, about 10%. I would make the cue on a full length 6-pie Maple core since it is getting a wrap and also would have blackwood for the butt sleeve. The core and a g-10 pin would help keep overall weight down to a minimum.

JD is certainly correct about both woods.