How Can I Tell If My Cue is a Joss West or Joss East?
- Thread starter Sire380
- Start date
Or simply....what did you pay?
Danny Janes would probably cringe if he read this! But yes, you have a Joss, not a Joss West. Dan would also cringe if he saw that you have asked about Joss East as there is no Joss East. There is Joss (Dan Janes company in Towson, MD) and Joss West (Bill Stroud, custom cue maker, currently in NM).Sire380 said:
You know, I asked Dan Janes that question once via email, and got no answer. A cue maker friend of mine said that the split was because Bill Stroud wanted to continue making one-of-a-kind custom cues, while Dan wanted to expand production. So Dan bought Bill out and Bill went west and started calling his cues Joss West cues. Dan stayed in Towson, MD and continued to make Joss cues. I don't believe they are very close these days.geocheren said:
Dan Janes's cues were called Joss East at one time, to differentiate them from Joss West. At that time, they were still all hand built. Tim Scruggs learned the trade working for Dan Janes. I had a Joss East custom that was built shortly after Tim left to go on his own. One of the best cues I've ever owned. When Dan went to almost all production line cues, the name became Joss Cues, LTD.
Both are good guys, who I consider friends. Danny went one way and Billy went another. And both have done rather well in their chosen path.
I have a couple of older Joss West four pointers that I think play extremely well, for 25-30 year old cues. And they have only gained value over the years. Around $200 new and worth $1,000 or more now. I also have a more recent solid ebony Joss (maybe 5 years old) that is far less expensive and has a very clean hit to it as well. It's a keeper also. Tang loves playing with this cue and has taken it along to several tournaments in the last two years.
What I will say about these two gentlemen is that you will find no more honorable or well respected man in the Pool world than Danny Janes. And he is a big supporter of tournaments as well. Hence the Joss Northeast Tour. And I can think of no one more knowlegeable about cues and the entire cuemaking process than Billy Stroud. He is always mentioned in the upper echelon of cuemakers, right there with Ernie and Tad and Barry Szamboti and maybe a couple of others.
Billy also puts on some wonderful high end cue shows. And by the way, he can play a little too. Many people have no idea that Bill Stroud was once a top money player, maybe a ball or so under the best One Pocket players. Of course, Billy will tell you he can still play that good, but I think he may be too busy with more pressing matters these days.
I have a couple of older Joss West four pointers that I think play extremely well, for 25-30 year old cues. And they have only gained value over the years. Around $200 new and worth $1,000 or more now. I also have a more recent solid ebony Joss (maybe 5 years old) that is far less expensive and has a very clean hit to it as well. It's a keeper also. Tang loves playing with this cue and has taken it along to several tournaments in the last two years.
What I will say about these two gentlemen is that you will find no more honorable or well respected man in the Pool world than Danny Janes. And he is a big supporter of tournaments as well. Hence the Joss Northeast Tour. And I can think of no one more knowlegeable about cues and the entire cuemaking process than Billy Stroud. He is always mentioned in the upper echelon of cuemakers, right there with Ernie and Tad and Barry Szamboti and maybe a couple of others.
Billy also puts on some wonderful high end cue shows. And by the way, he can play a little too. Many people have no idea that Bill Stroud was once a top money player, maybe a ball or so under the best One Pocket players. Of course, Billy will tell you he can still play that good, but I think he may be too busy with more pressing matters these days.
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And I guess I was trying to give you some additional information that I thought useful. Apparently it was not useful. BTW, are there any cue makers whose thoughts would be worth two or more of your fecal expulsions?Sire380 said:
no offense Bill, the phrasing of your reply simply seemed a little bit pompous. Perhaps I felt a little bit defensive due to my lack of knowledge of cuemakers. Gotta learn sometime right. As for any cue makers whose thoughts I would give two eliminations about, I'm not sure any.
No problem, Sire. I can see how it could come across as "pompous." It's just that if you are ever talking to Dan Janes, I think the conversation will go more smoothly if you don't refer to his company or cues as Joss East. Heck, I've been around pool for 45+years and it was only recently that I learned he was a bit sensitive about that.Sire380 said:
I see, interesting to know who made my cue. Even though mine is a production cue, it is still a very well made cue. Hits a little stiff but I have gotten used to it. But I still would prefer a little more deflection. Would you recommend treating it to sandpaper or looking into another shaft?
If you have a good cue repair person or cue maker in your area, you might have them turn down the shaft to a smaller diameter and/or longer taper. Joss cues use a 13.25 mm shaft and a pretty short taper unless you order something different. They play quite stiff as they are normally configured. So one option is to have the shaft turned down to maybe 13 mm or 12.75 mm and pro tapered back to maybe 12 inches. Another option is to buy an after market shaft like a Predator or OB-1. My friend Mike Haines just got a Joss and is having a cue maker fit an OB-1 shaft to it.Sire380 said:
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Sire380 said:
And giving a smart ass reply to people who were trying to help you out. You won't win any friends on here this way.
well if you bothered to read the messages after that one you would see that it was a misunderstanding that was easily resolved. You see, misunderstanding are quite commonplace on message boards such as this due to the lack of actually interacting with a person and seeing where he or she is coming from.