Here It Is The SILVER GINACUE

[kvinbrwr]

Funny, but true Kevin, make up my room please.

Dave

It is true. Lots of great stuff passes through my hands, but my thrill is in the acquisition and the selling, collecting or holding or displaying stuff holds no allure for me.

I go to lots of brick and mortar auctions in LA, been doing it for some time and most everybody knows me. So last week I was standing in the back with the dealers, bidding up a storm, when this pretty new girl (probably really hitting on me) asked, "what do you collect ? you bid on everything"
One of the dealers nest me to explained to her, "he collects Benjamins". Funny but unfortunately lately the profits been just like the items I get, just briefly passing through my hands on the way out the door.

Thanks

Kevin

 

[kvinbrwr]

i offered $300,000 for it a few years ago. Ernie turned it down, its one hell of a cue.

Eric

I look at this cue and I'm just in wonder that Ernie made it more than 40 years ago after being in the biz for 3 years. It was like he could see the future and know he was going to be a legend.

But the proof that Ernie could see into the future was him putting the birthday (on the case) of one of the few people in the world that would grow up to be rich enough, and crazy enough, to want to buy a cue like this. There he was on the day you were born, creating one of the most collectible cues ever. If that's not fate I don't know what is.

Hope all is well.

Thanks

Kevin

 

[poolhustler]

Enough talk about a shoddy cue, built by some hack over 30 whatever years ago....

I Want My Crown Back!!

Besides Kevin, you only have it with an *.

You don't have the real crown anyways.

 

[kvinbrwr]

Enough talk about a shoddy cue, built by some hack over 30 whatever years ago....

I Want My Crown Back!!

Besides Kevin, you only have it with an *.

You don't have the real crown anyways.

I don't know what this "crown" talk is, I am in possession of the Sunland/Tujunga World Heavyweight Championship 9 Ball Belt and am enjoying the fruits of my victory with the Sunland/Tujunga Watermelon Festival Queen. Its good to have the belt.

If you want the belt, there's only one way to get it, and making empty claims about some crown is not it.

Thanks

Kevin (you can call me Mr Belt)

 

[kvinbrwr]

This cue belongs in the Smithsonian! Seriously!

Jay

You know the story of the Smithsonian Collection and how they contacted what they deemed the 12 top American living cue makers to have them each donate a cue to their exhibition? The exhibit that never happened and those one-off cues are stuffed in some closet over in the Museum?

It would be very unlike Ernie to donate a cue to have it sit in a closet and he didn't. He's got the invitation letter and the cue he built for the ill-fated exhibit (well he sold that). Ernie's dad was a castanet maker and an accountant, and you can see both influences very strongly in Ernie.

Kevin

 

[Petros Andrikop]

This is out of this planet...
Most impressive cue I've ever seen, it's like a statement in a possible poll about best cuemaker ever: "eat my dust"...
Petros

 

[kvinbrwr]

As Requested BUMP

Sorry about that, I changed servers and lost the pics. I've put them up on my new server and here they are.

Ernie's 70th birthday was recently celebrated (after he worked on his current 50 cue batch all day).

Thanks

Kevin

 

[jay helfert]

This cue is the "Holy Grail" of pool cues!

 

[kvinbrwr]

This cue is the "Holy Grail" of pool cues!

Certainly in the Big Four:

1) The Last Gus

2) The Golden Balabushka

3) The Silver Gina

and of course

4) Jay Helfert's Crooked Old Butt Zebrawood Gina

 

[Diamond Jack]

Thank you for building the No.1 Mr. Ernie Gutierrez.

Hans

 

[Brozif]

This cue is a true work of art!!

When is the raffle?

I would like spots...

Seriously, thanks for sharing. I don't think I would have ever seen this cue had you not done that.

 

[Sev]

Dam that is beautiful!!!

 

[poolhustler]

This cue is a true work of art!!

When is the raffle?

I would like spots...

Seriously, thanks for sharing. I don't think I would have ever seen this cue had you not done that.

I'll talk to Ernie about a raffle.

BTW, the spots would be $7,000 to $8000 each

 

[rich337]

wow

that has to be the nicest stick i have ever seen thanks for posting

 

[kvinbrwr]

Ernie was talking to me about rebuilding and refurbishing The Silver Gina, which would be stunning.

Thanks again

Kevin

 

[Brozif]

I'll talk to Ernie about a raffle.

BTW, the spots would be $7,000 to $8000 each

Okay, so maybe instead of rattling off the cue, you can raffle off each raffle spot and call it a sub-raffle. So in a raffle with 46 spots, that would be like $175 per spot. The winner of that sub-raffle would then get to pick the first spot in the main-raffle for the cue. You limit each person to only one spot in a sub-raffle and you can only buy a spot in one sub-raffle. At the end of all the sub-raffles, you would have a full board of 46, with 46 different members.

Could you imagine? At the end of 46 sub-raffles, you would then have a full main-raffle where every member only paid $175 to get into and one would win that amazing cue. I would love to win a $350,000 for the low investment of $175.

Okay, I'm done dreaming now as I would never expect anyone to do something like this! I just wanted to have a little fun. I might just have a raffle like this for one of my cues. Each sub-raffle spot would only cost $.72 a piece! Hahaha!

 

[JUSTABANGER 2]

Thanks for posting this.

 

[Fatboy]

Here are some pics of what is arguably the most collectible cue ever made. The way I understand it, the trinity of holy grail cues is the Golden Babushka, the Last Gus and the Silver Gina. Ernie Gutierrez's 69th birthday was yesterday and he celebrated by working all day like he does every day except Sunday. Kam Daswani (Kam here at AZ) was there visiting Ernie's, as was my friend Joe Richland (junksecret here in AZ land). Ernie was kind enough to show the Silver Gina and Joe ran and got whatever camera he had and shot with the light available in Ernie's shop. I was a little surprised that Ernie allowed the pictures and very surprised when he gave me permission to post them on AZ. I consider this a rather rare treat and that's why I'm posting them here in the Main rather than in cue gallery. My thanks to Kam for inspiring Ernie, Joe for taking the best pics he could in those conditions, and of course, to Ernie for the permission (and for building this monster to begin with).

Ernie started the Silver Gina in 1965 and finished it and the hand made case in 1966. He built the cue as a display of his skills and would take it to tournaments and play with it as a way of drawing attention, showcasing his talents and gathering orders. As you can see, the cue has been used as all Ginas are intended to be used, as a pool playing instrument. The cue and case are constructed of silver, ivory, mother of pearl, maple and ebony. Ernie had been building cues for 3 years when he built this cue more than 40 yeas ago.

I deal in high-end collectibles and the Silver Gina is one of the few instances I can think of where a collectible of high value has been retained in the possession of the person who actually created it. Generally a historically collectible piece gets valued by what it sells or auctions for as it gets passed up the chain from collector to collector to gallery and museums. The Silver Gina is valued in a different way, as it has never been sold. It is valued by the offers Ernie has turned down. Starting in 1966 at turning down the unheard of at that time sum of $3,000 all the way up to modern times with him refusing a purported $350K.

Here it is:

I never get tired of this cue, Great pics, I offered Ernie $300,000 for it back in 07. He wouldnt take it. He didnt even consider it for a second, and I dont blame him, I was born in Dec 66 just like the case says on it, so eventually one day i'll own this cue and case. When the time is right. the month and year are perfect, its destiny. :thumbup:

 

[Fatboy]

Okay, so maybe instead of rattling off the cue, you can raffle off each raffle spot and call it a sub-raffle. So in a raffle with 46 spots, that would be like $175 per spot. The winner of that sub-raffle would then get to pick the first spot in the main-raffle for the cue. You limit each person to only one spot in a sub-raffle and you can only buy a spot in one sub-raffle. At the end of all the sub-raffles, you would have a full board of 46, with 46 different members.

Could you imagine? At the end of 46 sub-raffles, you would then have a full main-raffle where every member only paid $175 to get into and one would win that amazing cue. I would love to win a $350,000 for the low investment of $175.

Okay, I'm done dreaming now as I would never expect anyone to do something like this! I just wanted to have a little fun. I might just have a raffle like this for one of my cues. Each sub-raffle spot would only cost $.72 a piece! Hahaha!

this is a brilliant plan, its like the satelight tournemnts for the WSOP Main Event kinda sorta.

a raffle for a spot in a raffle. I love it, i'm in.

 

[Brozif]

this is a brilliant plan, its like the satelight tournemnts for the WSOP Main Event kinda sorta.

a raffle for a spot in a raffle. I love it, i'm in.

Thank you Sir! I didn't think it was a bad plan. Ernie would still get the money for his cue, and one of us would get it for an unbelievable price! :thumbup: