Okay....as promised, here's the rundown on my visit to the Black Boar Industries shop:
It was a short drive to his shop from where I work (20-25 minutes or so)...so there wasn't a whole ton of time eaten up on the Beltway. After getting lost in College Park for a few minutes, I found Tony's spot. I walked in the door, and just to the left of it, on the inside, was a decked out chopper. Point for Tony. I walked into the shop, and Tony came striding up to say 'hello," and shook my hand, a big bright smile on his face...and an eye-to-eye greeting. Point for Tony. He guided me over to a card table to lay my case down, and before we could talk about any details of the work I was wanting him to do for me, he asked if I would like to take a walk around the shop and see what he's got going on in there. Point for Tony. He showed me the back room, where the pool table and a couple of bikes were at (a BSA and a Triumph in the process of a complete overhaul). Point for Tony. The main part of the shop was filled with cues in various stages of construction. Some being turned down, some having inlay work done, some in the fit and finish stage...all of which looked awesome. Tony took me to the front offices, where is CNC machine and such was at. Then the main part (admin section, I assume) with all the catalogs, calanders, pictures of completed cues, and so on. A floor to ceiling cigar rack along one wall caught my eye...as did every picture, poster, and nik nak in the whole place. Point for Tony.
After 10-15 minutes, we got to talking about my cue. I pulled out the buttsection and handed it over. Tony looked over the cue, smiled a bit, and then noticed the signature on the forearm, in between the points. He said "Wow....that's really rare." I asked him what the significance of the cue was, since it was signed....and he said he couldn't remember the precise reason behind it...but if he signed it, then it was really special. Then he went on to say he's only signed 3 or 4 cues EVER!!! I know of 2 in existence personally (mine and one owned by Mr. Jack Justis). So AZB can claim HALF of the total amount. 3 Points for Tony...2 points for AZB.
He looked over the cue, put his mic to the joint, and got all the measurements he needed. To me, it looked like he took 5 or 6 different measurements...but I didn't want to interrupt him while he was working on my cue, either!
Back to the admin room we went, where he took down my personal info, and wrote down my order for 2 brand new Black Boar shafts to be matched perfectly to the buttsection. He did this while, at the same time, talking about the cues he was currently making and sending overseas. From the sounds of it, every Black Boar cue made now has already been sold to a collector across the pond...and it sounds like it may be that way for quite some time...making Black Boars even harder to get ahold of here. Point for Tony...but more difficult for me!
All in all, that was one of the most pleasant pool-related experiences I've ever had. Maybe it's got something to do with Maryland cuemakers...but Mr. Scruggs and Mr. Cochran in Baltimore... and Mr. Scianella in College Park... have both been FANTASTIC people to work with and talk to. Each experience was unique, but equally pleasant.
Long and the short of it is....I'M SOLD ON BLACK BOARS. I'd like to find another one to put in my case....and I'm going to be selling a few of my cues in order to do so.
Stay tuned...a few really good deals will be coming up, so I can buy another Black Boar.
Okay....my story's done now. Thanks for listening!
