Figured BEM handle, on a Players PureX pool cue. Real, or Fake / Decal / Graphic Overlay?

[vintagecollectibles831]

I'll throw $10 in the pot
Let's cut this baby

Thanks a lot, lol.

 

[vintagecollectibles831]

It does look like a different cue than Carl is holding.

JFlowers advertise cues with inlays and some (most) are overly.

Here is the description of Carl’s cue from the web site:
Myth meets crazy detail! VALKYRIE is a full‑inlay showpiece—natural ebony, Ivory‑style Juma, abalone, and aluminum—offered wrapless with an inlaid grip or with White Lizard and Embossed Elephant Ear leather (standard or triple‑stack). Built to stun, tuned to run racks.

Now I see that on some cues they have a new term - micro inlay…

Ebony in a tux. JF30‑03F layers exotic solid black ebony with razor‑clean Juma detailing, a band of engraved abalone micro‑inlays, and a double‑stack Genius leather wrap—modern, elegant, and built to hold the line.
And some are plain overly

Abalone turned up. Ebony tuned in. Massive shell work over a calm ebony canvas, ivory‑style overlays, and silver‑wire ringwork, finished with a pebble‑embossed leather wrap—dressed to impress, built to behave.

The point is that the overly quality today is very high, and only the price is a giveaway

This is all very confusing to me, lol. But the wrapless handle in this PureX cue just looks so real. Can see the unique figure, and grain lines, going through it, in different parts. Could it be some sort of a wrap, like this other guy was told by someone? The Marketing in these cues confuses the hell out of me, lol. But, there should be no Overlays in a cue that costs nearly $2k. That is just wrong, in my opinion, lol. They are charging people over $2k, with the CF option added, for that cue.

 

[skor]

This is all very confusing to me, lol. But the wrapless handle in this PureX cue just looks so real. Can see the unique figure, and grain lines, going through it, in different parts. Could it be some sort of a wrap, like this other guy was told by someone? The Marketing in these cues confuses the hell out of me, lol. But, there should be no Overlays in a cue that costs nearly $2k. That is just wrong, in my opinion, lol. They are charging people over $2k, with the CF option added, for that cue.

Again, I think the guy in the video is holding a different cue that goes for a lot less.
There are a handful of JFlowers cues that actually described having real inlays.
And again, the point is that overlay just look real these days and only the price point is a giveaway.
Also look at Rhino, it's all overlay and looks darn good

RETRO II

Rhino, established in 2013, is a brand under Carbon Billiards Vietnam—a Vietnamese startup specializing in the research and production of billiard products using composite fiber materials.

rhino-billiards.com

 

[JasonATX]

I'll throw $10 in the pot
Let's cut this baby

I'm still in.

 

[vintagecollectibles831]

Again, I think the guy in the video is holding a different cue that goes for a lot less.
There are a handful of JFlowers cues that actually described having real inlays.
And again, the point is that overlay just look real these days and only the price point is a giveaway.
Also look at Rhino, it's all overlay and looks darn good

RETRO II

Rhino, established in 2013, is a brand under Carbon Billiards Vietnam—a Vietnamese startup specializing in the research and production of billiard products using composite fiber materials.

rhino-billiards.com

Do you believe that all of the cue companies from China are doing it, no matter the price?

Wow, Cuetec charges a lot of money for their Truewood Series, and in their marketing, they use this marketing wording, "every Truewood series cue is enveloped in exotic veneers surrounding a kiln-dried Canadian Maple core". Does not sound like true wood to me, lol.

Cynergy Truewood II Series Cues Archives

The Cuetec evolution continues with the next generation of Cynergy Truewood Series Cues.

www.cuetec.com

 

[skogstokig]

Again, I think the guy in the video is holding a different cue that goes for a lot less.
There are a handful of JFlowers cues that actually described having real inlays.
And again, the point is that overlay just look real these days and only the price point is a giveaway.
Also look at Rhino, it's all overlay and looks darn good

RETRO II

Rhino, established in 2013, is a brand under Carbon Billiards Vietnam—a Vietnamese startup specializing in the research and production of billiard products using composite fiber materials.

rhino-billiards.com

point taken. rhino is cf butt so decal makes sense i guess.

 

[vintagecollectibles831]

Again, I think the guy in the video is holding a different cue that goes for a lot less.
There are a handful of JFlowers cues that actually described having real inlays.
And again, the point is that overlay just look real these days and only the price point is a giveaway.
Also look at Rhino, it's all overlay and looks darn good

RETRO II

Rhino, established in 2013, is a brand under Carbon Billiards Vietnam—a Vietnamese startup specializing in the research and production of billiard products using composite fiber materials.

rhino-billiards.com

I was under the impression that these very nice looking O'Min cues were made of real woods too (not just a Decal wrap), but now I would not be surpriced if they are made of some sort of a decal wrap, or Magical Graphic, lol.

O'Min Cues

O’Min Cues is a premier Thai manufacturer led by master cue maker Somkiat Kulawattanaporn, specializing in handcrafted snooker and pool cues made from elite materials like aged Ash and Brazilian Rosewood. Their production extends to high-quality aluminum and shockproof plastic cue cases...

ozonebilliards.com

 

[vintagecollectibles831]

I'm still in.

Cool, thanks. If ChopDoc is still in, and can get the pot to a $100, then I will send the butt to him. I would be happy with a $100, for the butt. At this point, I would not be surprised if the entire butt is just one big decal, lol. This cue is honestly such a bummer. It does look really pretty from the outside though, lol. And, the Maple Core must have been aged, because it has kept the butt very straight, for whatever that is worth.

 

[CajunPopeye]

the BEM,

Looks curly, to me.
Birdseye

 

[CajunPopeye]

Why does it appear stained? It looks like the sticker got wet.

 

[vintagecollectibles831]

View attachment 923456

Why does it appear stained? It looks like the sticker got wet.

So, it is in fact just a sticker? Lol. A sticker. That just sounds horrible.

 

[vintagecollectibles831]

Looks curly, to me.

Birdseye

I see Curls and Eyes. I thought that was common in BEM.

 

[VTEC John]

A while back, Players had an Exotic Woods series that included a number of unwrapped Merry Widows. They sell very quickly when they show up on eBay, etc. I have several--they're all lovely unadorned wood--including two that are absolutely real Rengas butt cap and forearm with real, solid Birdseye handle. It doesn't seem too farfetched to wonder if PureX did the same as its parent company. Unless you have the cue in your hands, I'd be careful about insisting the plain jane components of the OPs cue are decals. Points, sure.

 

[vintagecollectibles831]

A while back, Players had an Exotic Woods series that included a number of unwrapped Merry Widows. They sell very quickly when they show up on eBay, etc. I have several--they're all lovely unadorned wood--including two that are absolutely real Rengas butt cap and forearm with real, solid Birdseye handle. It doesn't seem too farfetched to wonder if PureX did the same as its parent company. Unless you have the cue in your hands, I'd be careful about insisting the plain jane components of the OPs cue are decals. Points, sure.

That is interesting. Thanks for your reply. Any way to tell, for sure that anything on the cue is not some sort of a decal. I thought that at least the handle is real figured maple wood, and not some sort of a decal, or whatever.

I did post a video on my ebay listing, which shows the wrapless handle, fairly close. It is about a 1 minute long video, in with the pictures.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/137607621802?mkcid=1&mkrid=711-53200-19255-0&siteid=0&customid=link&campid=5335988529&toolid=20001&mkevt=1

 

[VTEC John]

That is interesting. Thanks for your reply. Any way to tell, for sure that anything on the cue is not some sort of a decal. I thought that at least the handle is real figured maple wood, and not some sort of a decal, or whatever.

I did post a video on my ebay listing, which shows the wrapless handle, fairly close. It is about a 1 minute long video, in with the pictures.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/137607621802?mkcid=1&mkrid=711-53200-19255-0&siteid=0&customid=link&campid=5335988529&toolid=20001&mkevt=1

That is interesting. Thanks for your reply. Any way to tell, for sure that anything on the cue is not some sort of a decal. I thought that at least the handle is real figured maple wood, and not some sort of a decal, or whatever.

I did post a video on my ebay listing, which shows the wrapless handle, fairly close. It is about a 1 minute long video, in with the pictures.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/137607621802?mkcid=1&mkrid=711-53200-19255-0&siteid=0&customid=link&campid=5335988529&toolid=20001&mkevt=1

I just advised against too much certainty without handling the cue, but the handle looks like curly/birdseye to me. Could the Chinese make a Merry Widow with a curly maple handle and some combination of wood and decals for the price a U.S. made Schmelke plain jane? Sure they could.