Lowballing prices

desi2960 said:
After giving this some thought, and a few saying what a nice guy you were and you telling us what a nice guy you were with all hour volunteer work.

Instead of trying to take a 100 out of my pocket, why did you not take a 100 out of your pocket and help this guy get a cue?
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With an attitude like this......

You know what? Just... F*CK you. You could have just clammed up, and not made the situation worse. You could have said, "Your sentiment is very admirable, but my finances just don't support it at this time. I wish you luck in your endeavors..." But no... You have to be a jerk about it.

Hey Larry.... If you buy from ANYBODY but this guy, I will throw a $100 your way by PayPal. desi2960 doesn't deserve your business, and if my $100.00 towards your cause helps him do a little worse this year, I will feel better for it.

PM me on here, let me know your PayPal address and who you'll be buying from, and I will ship it right on over.

Short Bus Russ
 
There are many so called “cuemakers” that over value their work and think it should command the same price as the true masters of the craft. I don’t know who Desi2960 is nor do I care to after reading this thread.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
desi2960 said:
By offering me 3/4 of price, as a cue builder, which is my job, is exactly like your boss telling you at, your job, that you have to work this month for 3/4 of your normal pay.

I am trying to educate buyers, building and selling cues is a job for some people.
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If your boss "tells you" that you have to work for 3/4 of your pay, you maybe don't have a choice in the matter...if you want to work.

In your case, you are your own boss...you call the shots. Take it or leave it and wait for someone to pay you what you want for it.

Personally, I think cues are "over priced" from the beginning, unless they have tons of inlays and intricate work.
 
desi2960 said:
After giving this some thought, and a few saying what a nice guy you were and you telling us what a nice guy you were with all hour volunteer work.

Instead of trying to take a 100 out of my pocket, why did you not take a 100 out of your pocket and help this guy get a cue?
Click to expand...

Wow man just wow
 
desi2960 said:
After giving this some thought, and a few saying what a nice guy you were and you telling us what a nice guy you were with all hour volunteer work.

Instead of trying to take a 100 out of my pocket, why did you not take a 100 out of your pocket and help this guy get a cue?
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Keep on digging that hole!
 
nobcitypool said:
Actually, that's gross profit. Then you have to factor in your overhead such as equipment, building lease/payment, utilities, salary, etc.. The net profit is the only one that really matters as that is the one you get to put in your pocket.
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Good morning, I seen your post and wanted to see if you read my comment, it clearly said TOTAL COSTS.

I could have been very long winded on the subject but I kept it to a minimum, total would include every cost and that is for him to figure out, not me. I didn't say cost of goods sold.

Thanks, Dave.
 
desi2960 said:
After giving this some thought, and a few saying what a nice guy you were and you telling us what a nice guy you were with all hour volunteer work.

Instead of trying to take a 100 out of my pocket, why did you not take a 100 out of your pocket and help this guy get a cue?
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I sent him a PM and offered a $500 cue for the $300 to make sure he had options.

So I guess I took $200 out of my pocket?
 
desi2960 said:
Is offering a cue builder 75 percent of asking price on a new custom unplayed one of one cue a fair offer ?

Or is it an insult ?
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Fair offer depending on the cue.

Any offer is fair imo. You can be amused or intrigued, but being offended is wasted energy.
 
HawaiianEye said:
If your boss "tells you" that you have to work for 3/4 of your pay, you maybe don't have a choice in the matter...if you want to work.

In your case, you are your own boss...you call the shots. Take it or leave it and wait for someone to pay you what you want for it.

Personally, I think cues are "over priced" from the beginning, unless they have tons of inlays and intricate work.
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I have to disagree with you on cue pricing in this particular instance. 400 dollars for a cue handmade in the US is very reasonable, considering the amount of work that has to go into it. When people ask 3 k for a sneaky pete, that's when you should be outraged.

Anyway, the OP truely made an ass of himself on this one. He could have said either of these three things and nobody would have batted an eye or lost respect for him:

1. "I've put a lot of effort and expensive materials into this cue and unfortunately I cannot let it go for under the asking price"

2. "I'm sorry but the price is firm"

3. "No"

I mean, what is wrong with just saying no? Does there have to be a huge amount of drama every time someone lowballs a person? Creating a thread and then the later idiotic reply to the guy really did the OP no favors.
 
desi2960 said:
Is offering a cue builder 75 percent of asking price on a new custom unplayed one of one cue a fair offer ?

Or is it an insult ?
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Maybe you should buy a one piece house cue and forget insulting a cue maker. Or better yet take up playing cornhole. Bean bags are cheap. You can make your own.
 
desi2960 said:
If your boss ask you to work next month for 75 .percent of your normal pay.
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A large company I worked for did this exact thing except it wasn't for a month, it was indefinite. Everyone in the company agreed to the pay cut. Eventually everyone was actually making more than they were originally.

In your case I wouldn't get butt hurt, a simple negotiation may result in a favorable outcome for both of you or you just pass on the offer. Not a big deal in any case. Happy New Years.......
 
there is no such thing as an insulting low offer if
done correctly

if he says no deal,no dice

and you still want the cue go ahead and buy it
to make a second low offer if he doesn't respond is
poor form

there is a certain kind of person who just never pays a fair price
if offered a good deal he still tries to steal

Randy Morris had a 6 point Szamboti,he came from houston to sell it to me for $1600

back in the day

I asked if he would take $1400

He replied that he wouldn't even take 1600 ,the new price was $1800

I quickly paid the $1800 before he went up again

he and I have both enjoyed that story

I learned an important lesson

Today if someone offers me x-1 for something
I always go up to x+1

it almost always works
if not I go to x+2

this is the way i work with the habitual haggler when i am already offering
a good price


i like working with will prout
we made a trade,fair to both of us
he sent me a free case as a bonus

it was my favorite case of all time
centennial made it for me and i had sold it to him
as i knew he would treasure it
yet i missed owning it

will realized that,and sent it back

he is a class guy

trying to get way the best of a deal is poor form
 
all this over 100 bucks less, OFFER, for a cue for an elderly/vet group

guy could have said no thanks and it would have been done
 
Last edited:
Low ball or not!

There will always be people that want to haggle a better price. You could offer a TAD for $300 and there would be people try to haggle you down. It's your product and your choice, you have control of the situation. If you think it's too low then say "no thanks" and go on.

To a different subject, cue maker reputation. Your reputation is tied to the price of your cues. If people don't like you it won't matter how well your cues play. You could build the Cadillac of pool cues, but if you are an asshole people will say "your cues play like shit, I would never have one". People go on and on about how well this cue plays and how well that cue plays, but at the end of the day you are buying a name. It is not necessary to pay big bucks for a playing cue. Some of the best playing cues are less than $100 at your local pawn shop. Pool cues are functional art and therefore collectible. Your reputation is just as important as your cue's play-ability if not more so.
 
If you ask a cue-maker to build you a cue, and you want to offer less than what you are quoted,
then you are figuratively slapping that person in their face. If you want a bargain, then buy a
used cue and negotiate a better price. But do not tell someone else what their labor is worth.
If you can't afford the quoted price, which may be the situation, just say what you can pay


You should simply reveal your budget to your cue-maker and see what can be built and still
stay within your budget. If the cue was already built and sitting in inventory, then negotiate a
price no differently than with a private sale. Make an offer which is always acceptable when
the cue is sitting in the corner waiting for a buyer. However, if it going to be newly made cue,
respect the cue-maker's quote and ask if there's anything that can be done to lower the price.

If you build a relationship with the cue-maker that is built around honest communications, you will
discover that discussing price is perfectly fine, especially if you let the cue-maker know that their
quote if more than your budget. There is always a middle ground and it might require tweaking
the design & for that matter, the cue-maker might be interested in tackling the design since that
is how their reputation gets established.......building great cues and customer satisfaction as well.


Matt B.
 

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desi2960 said:
After giving this some thought, and a few saying what a nice guy you were and you telling us what a nice guy you were with all hour volunteer work.

Instead of trying to take a 100 out of my pocket, why did you not take a 100 out of your pocket and help this guy get a cue?
Click to expand...
Hard to believe that this thread has gone on so long. Despite a lot of excellent advice given to this cuemaker from well intentioned and respected forum members here, this cuemaker, based on his additional comments since the initial thread, including this latest one, has doubled down on his assertion that he has been insulted so greatly by this offer that he's felt a need to air it publicly here.

It's very sad to see the damage he is continuing to do to whatever reputation he may have once held here, instead of simply apologizing and admitting he may have let his emotions get the best of him and overreacted to the situation. My advice to him would be it is not too late!
 
Brookeland Bill said:
Maybe you should buy a one piece house cue and forget insulting a cue maker. Or better yet take up playing cornhole. Bean bags are cheap. You can make your own.
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Didn't read the thread at all, even to understand who is who in this little bit of drama and respond (poorly, IMHO) to the proper poster?
 
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