Nicest Cue Builder you’ve dealt with?

[Sealegs50]

My favorite cuemaker was Bill Schick. I never had problems speaking with him when I had questions or specific needs. Amazing man.

For repair/refinishing work, Mike Webb can’t be beat.

I had a cue on order from William Gentry. Like everybody else, I’m still sick over the loss of him. Great guy!

Barry Szamboti was especially helpful when I was purchasing one of his father’s cues.

I’ve also had excellent interactions with Laurie Franklin, John Showman, and Dan Janes. Never any issues reaching any of them.

 

[MmmSharp]

Ed Prewitt is a super nice guy
Rick Howard is cool
The Petes are no bullshit but very friendly
The Diveneys are great
Richard Harris is a nice guy though he has zero issues telling you what he won't do, lol. But that's his prerogative as the builder, and he's just particular about what he'll build.
Laurie Franklin is very kind, if she counts
Dave Barrenbrugge and I have had very friendly email exchanges though we've never gotten anything done

Honestly, most cuemakers I've interacted with are pretty cool. I haven't had a lot of bad experiences - the worst I've had are guys who are still very friendly, but tell you they can't build you a cue. Those are guys like Ed Prewitt and Richard Harris, and it's not their fault they're booked up. I'd rather they tell me no than take a deposit and hopefully something shows up years later.

I'll also say Mike Lambros is perfectly fine over the phone and told me he'd build me a cue and that it was part of a batch that would be done in a matter of months, took down all my information, and never called me again. This was 3-4 years ago. I've heard this is a thing with him - tells you he'll build you something and then sells it to one of his dealers. Guy builds a monster cue, but pretty chickenshit behavior IMO.

I had Mike build me a cue, and it was a great experience. Simple merry widow with extremely top quality wood. Every time i order a cue from a builder, I set a date like 6 months out, to call and check in. These guys are so busy, and usually getting yelled at by other people. If you don’t check in,busy one man shops may never get to your order. Forgotten in a corner.