Legendary Herman Rambow Cue

Looks like it was a neat cue at one time, its unfortunate it has the owners name on it. The seller said it has a few imperfections, to me it looks like that cue is going to require a lot of costly restoration, its in rough condition.
 
fastone371 said:
Looks like it was a neat cue at one time, its unfortunate it has the owners name on it. The seller said it has a few imperfections, to me it looks like that cue is going to require a lot of costly restoration, its in rough condition.
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Having the owners name is a desirable attribute with Rambow cues, and increases the rarity of the item as roughly 10% were actually signed. It also makes it easier to authenticate the cue. The cue is in great shape considering it's from the 50's at the earliest. I think whoever wins this auction would be crazy for refinishing the cue, or restoring it in any way... Rambow should be the last person to have altered the cue in any way, and he died in 1967. This is a historical artifact, and from the looks of it, maybe the most ornate Rambow ever produced. I would leave it untouched personally. Anyone else agree or disagree?
 
Jwchandler said:
Having the owners name is a desirable attribute with Rambow cues, and increases the rarity of the item as roughly 10% were actually signed. It also makes it easier to authenticate the cue. The cue is in great shape considering it's from the 50's at the earliest. I think whoever wins this auction would be crazy for refinishing the cue, or restoring it in any way... Rambow should be the last person to have altered the cue in any way, and he died in 1967. This is a historical artifact, and from the looks of it, maybe the most ornate Rambow ever produced. I would leave it untouched personally. Anyone else agree or disagree?
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Ask Paul Rubino. That's my advice. He inherited Rambo's equipment and is the foremost authority on these cues.

Also, you should have posted this in the E-bay forum in the wanted/for sale section. Something tells me it's not a mere coincidence that both you and the cue are both located in Arkansas. I suspect you have a vested interest in this cue sale.


playonepocket
 
I wonder if this auction will go to completion with the multiple mentions of that white devils material - hope it does. Obviously this guy has not read the for sale page on AZ. Instead of hits a ton, monster player etc he describes it as little to no playablilty lol. Cool to see a cue like this come up for sale, anyone want to ballbark the value?
 
Here's a better link if anybody is having a problem:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Herman-Rambow-LEVEL-5-MONSTER-/131643318616?hash=item1ea68da158:g:LiEAAOSw~bFWNvqS

This is a very rare, ornate Rambow with a verifyable history. A lot of research on the origin of the cue was done right here on AZ and I for one am happy about this notification, I rarely look at ebay anymore. Hopefully someone who knows these cues will see it is for sale.

The seller might want to check out some of the billiard marketplace sites on facebook as well.
 
That's a rare gem. Anybody know the name of the man who wrote the personalized caligraphy on these cues? He also signed non Rambow cues.
 
Please post the butt diameter.

Btw that's a very fluffy description. A little liberal with the presumptions.
 
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Mr. Bond said:
Frequently it was Charles Kimmel.
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As you know he wrote out the hand written scoreboards at PGA tournaments for many years. I found his obituary online once, interesting man. He wrote buyers names on many Brunswick customs. One cannot ever presume that a cue with these inscriptions inherently means the cues were made by Rambow. Many cues were made by other employees at Brunswick.

This cue is real nice. Although with a reserve price it likely won't ever sell. Sellers using reserve are always unrealistic on value. It's only worth what somebody will pay.
 
Well first let's talk truth about bias vs facts.
The ebay description is biased. Which is to be expected to a certain extent from someone trying to sell something. But, not to the point of stretching the truth.

Is it your cue?

Friend of your's cue who asked you to plug it in the main forum ?
 
Mr. Bond said:
Well first let's talk truth about bias vs facts.
The ebay description is biased. Which is to be expected to a certain extent from someone trying to sell something. But, not to the point of stretching the truth.

Is it your cue?

Friend of your's cue who asked you to plug it in the main forum ?
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This cue is my cue, and it is a very rare piece of history. Every pool enthusiast deserves to see it. Even non-buyers. I researched it for almost a full year, and the only photos of similar cues I ever saw were in private e-mails. So I agree... Let's talk truth about bias verse facts. The fact is you want the cue, and you don't want competition, and with me sir your money would be no good. The butt diameter is 1.25." The only misrepresentation in the listing is that the wood is actually Ebony and not Brazilian Rosewood. That would make it even more rare sir. I have multiple citations for the published information in the listing. I ask again... Which material was presumptuous exactly?
 
Jwchandler said:
This cue is my cue, and it is a very rare piece of history as you well know. Every pool enthusiast deserves to see it. Even non-buyers. I researched Rambows for almost a full year, and the only photos of similar cues I ever saw were in private e-mails. It's a shame that one can search the World Wide Web and only see 15-20 cue's fabricated by the "grandfather." Almost all of those available for viewing were up for sale, and common examples. So I agree... Let's talk truth about bias verse facts. Is it a fact that you have information that refutes any claim or claims that I have made in the listing? If so, I will gladly make a donation to the billiard museum to hear it. The butt diameter is 1.25." The only misrepresentation in the listing is that the wood is actually Ebony and not Brazilian Rosewood. That would make it even more rare sir. I have multiple citations for the published information in the listing. I ask again... Which material was presumptuous exactly?
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This is much more appropriate. I don't like being called a liar.
 
Shouldn't this thread be in the eBay WFS section since it is just a link to the sale?
 
Joseph, don't play head games with me and we'll get along just fine.

You know exactly what you did when you posted this thread.

You know exactly what you said in the listing that is "presumptuous" and what isn't.

Lets just leave it at that.
 
Jwchandler said:
This cue is my cue, and it is a very rare piece of history. Every pool enthusiast deserves to see it. Even non-buyers. I researched it for almost a full year, and the only photos of similar cues I ever saw were in private e-mails. So I agree... Let's talk truth about bias verse facts. The fact is you want the cue, and you don't want competition, and with me sir your money would be no good. The butt diameter is 1.25." The only misrepresentation in the listing is that the wood is actually Ebony and not Brazilian Rosewood. That would make it even more rare sir. I have multiple citations for the published information in the listing. I ask again... Which material was presumptuous exactly?
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I chuckled when I saw your description saying it was BRW... if you don't know what wood it how expert could you be about the cye?

Why not just let people know your asking price or at least your reserve? The cue won't bid over 2k on ebay anyway. So your sales tactics are not going to be effective. Just put that you'll take offers and be done with it.
 
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Mr. Bond said:
Joseph, don't play head games with me and we'll get along just fine.

You know exactly what you did when you posted this thread.

You know exactly what you said in the listing that is "presumptuous" and what isn't.

Lets just leave it at that.
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Sounds like you are recanting your initial statement... If I am misrepresenting the item, then why would I suggest that it has little play-ability? Why not omit that statement in the least? Because it's true. I believe this is a wall hanger at the end of the day... And it is a beautiful looking cue. If I was misleading why would I error on the side of stating that the wood in the butt sleeve is less rare when I knew there was potential that it was Ebony? I did that because the wood has a slightly red hue to the naked eye. I want the potential buyer to be happy... not disappointed. The grains and lines in the wood are not indicative of BRW, but I still choose to downplay instead of bolster... Furthermore, if I was attempting to play head games with you, I would bring this very cue with little playability, and race you to 7 without saying a word other than good shot... in the event that you were able to have a turn.

I would like to make a donation to the Chicago Billiard Museum to further research Michael Paluch, and this particular cue. I would like photos of this item to be accessible to all pool enthusiasts. If anyone knows of a more ornate Rambow, I would like to see it. In my research, I found many collectors with Rambows. One individual had 7 alone, and I know there are others with more than that...somewhere.

All the cue owners I found were happy to share their collections, but it was a grind to seek out those items. I never saw a more ornate Rambow in the 30+ photos I was able to see through researching. I saw Minnesota Fats cue. I saw a gifted cue to Frank Amelio from Willie Mosconi with an inscription. (one not on the web). I saw Ray Schular's cue. I saw Eddie Taylor's cue owned by Sammy Blumenthal at one time. I saw many cues. All Rambows. Not accessible to those interested in viewing. How many Rambow's does the museum have on display? What is the number of tangible cues? What is the number of photos?
 
The discussion is actually inviting some interesting opinions and observations. The blank (Titlist ebony) makes the cue even more rare. That is something that's truly difficult to find. I would like to see this cue restored. Generally the people that buy these cues know a lot about them. The condition and specs is what a seller really needs to focus on - most of us read through the fluff anyway. Usually I wouldn't recommend a restoration but I can see some inherent beauty in this cue that's marred by the finish, popping and swelling. A minimalist restoration would probably yield sensational results.
 
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Share your Rambow!

Good day folks! The controversial listing was removed from EBAY due to an infraction regarding EBAY's ivory sales policy. I know some of you forecasted this, and you were right... Now, I obviously have a biased opinion as I am an owner of one of his creations, but what Rambow did to revolutionize an industry paved the way for many cue makers that followed. He got the ball rolling:). He produced cues for almost 50 years, and many of them have been lost, destroyed, or hoarded away. I've seen multiple threads asking owners to post photos of their Rambows, but no one hardly does. I would like to see as many as I can lay eyes on... In this thread. Anyone in possession of a Rambow original, please take time to post them to this thread... Here's one right here. Have a monumental day!
 

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