Thank you very much for the insight, I really appreciate it, especially because it turned out so interesting! THANKS!
These old JW's were firsts in many aspects, this one could be one that was built using CNC - although it has a sideways W [and I could be wrong...] Bill used a CNC while still marking the W sideways - correct?
If so, this could be one of the first ones of those, and as a result of the new possibilities, the crowned butt cap was used - I like how these crowned butt caps are in their renaissance presently as they are so very often seen on Black Boars and other high-end cues.
This is a very nice cue and it definitely is a stone in the long road that led JW and Bill Stroud to where he is now with his designs.