Pictures of Ernie Gutierrez's (Ginacue) shop

[JCIN]

I was very fortunate to have the chance to visit Ernie in his shop in North Hollywood, California. He was a very gracious host and took time out of his day to do an interview and show me around his shop. He is a craftsman of the old school and a true gentleman. Thank you very much Ernie.

Here are some pics of his shop:

Ernie at the CNC machine he built.

The machine he uses to cut rings. An example of the purpose built nature of all the machines in his shop. You can see it in operation in the interview.

Imagine the cues that have sat in these.

The Silver Cue

The Office. You could write an amazing book with the stories on these walls.

Rocky. Head of Ginacue Security and Guest Relations. Like most Rotties I know he is the sweetest thing in the world to people who are supposed to be there. I do not want to know what he is like to people who are not supposed to be there.

The people who made the interview possible. Chad and I want to thank them all. From left to right: Keone, Teddy, J.J., Ernie

Me and the Master. Thanks Ernie.

It was an honor to meet Ernie and I appreciate him allowing me into his shop and sharing his time. You can see the 1h24m interview for free here: http://www.theactionreport.com/Gina_Interview.html

 

[easy-e]

Nice photos bud! Thanks for sharing.

 

[Johnnyt]

That is some shop. Do they make anything esle there? How many cues does he put out a year? Very clean also. Johnnyt

 

[cornerstone]

that cue pictured is the holy grail of cues!! that cue will hit the 1,000,000.00 mark before any cue!

 

[bigshooter]

My favorite is the second photo to the right edge you can see the Ruffles and the chip dip... very important part of any good shop.

 

[JCIN]

That is some shop. Do they make anything esle there? How many cues does he put out a year? Very clean also. Johnnyt

It is a one man shop that Ernie designed specifically for building cues. Every machine is dedicated to a certain task or type of task related to making a cue. He told me he does 3 to 4 batches of cues a year with 30-40 cues per batch plus some of the really high end cues that take years to complete.

The man is really a mechanical genius.

 

[bigshooter]

It is a one man shop that Ernie designed specifically for building cues. Every machine is dedicated to a certain task or type of task related to making a cue. He told me he does 3 to 4 batches of cues a year with 30-40 cues per batch plus some of the really high end cues that take years to complete.

The man is really a mechanical genius.

The shop looks huge, I would never guess a cue makers shop would be that
big.

 

[Fatboy]

I have been to his shop many times, JJ is great-he is just the nicest man and a pleasure to know.

The pics here are great but they dont capture everything thats there, it would take alot more pics-hell a video to show all the tools Ernie has built over the years, And the motercycles in the back are awesome too, that shop is amazing, His inventory of ivory is huge and wood too,

Thanks for posting up the pics, you did a great job and its nice to share them with other people who cant make it out there to see his shop.

he might be the most creative and artistic cue maker ever-or something similar to that, I perfer the hit of the Szam's over the Ginacues, but Ernie's work with silver is amazing. I have hit balls with alot of Ginacues and there are some that (to me) play as good as anything.

Ernie is amazingly talanted!!! And a great guy too!!!

 

[Craig]

The shop looks huge, I would never guess a cue makers shop would be that
big.

I agree the place looks more like a factory more than just a shop all I can say is wow.

Very Nice.......

 

[JCIN]

The shop looks huge, I would never guess a cue makers shop would be that
big.

It is safe to say that Ernie is on a different level than most cuemakers. The whole shop is designed for one purpose. To make cues perfect and fast as possible by automating certain tasks and laying out the workflow in a very effecient manner. I can't even guess what it would cost.

 

[JCIN]

I have been to his shop many times, JJ is great-he is just the nicest man and a pleasure to know.

The pics here are great but they dont capture everything thats there, it would take alot more pics-hell a video to show all the tools Ernie has built

You mean like this one?

http://www.theactionreport.com/Gina_Interview.html

 

[Fatboy]

You mean like this one?

http://www.theactionreport.com/Gina_Interview.html

oopsI missed that one:embarrassed2: sorry I dont know why I didnt see that before, my bad. It wont happen again Sir!!!! i think i'm gonna be in Ks when the next show is, see you then, if you have time call me between now and then, take care buddy!!!!

 

[JCIN]

oopsI missed that one:embarrassed2: sorry I dont know why I didnt see that before, my bad. It wont happen again Sir!!!! i think i'm gonna be in Ks when the next show is, see you then, if you have time call me between now and then, take care buddy!!!!

I am headed down Monday. Hope you make it, it will be a blast. Side Pockets is a great place and we have a nice set up there.

 

[watchez]

That shop is incredible looking. Thanks for the pics JCIN. Good to see Keone too. If you ever came to St Louis to interview and take pics of Jim Buss' shop - it would take him 6 months to get it that clean and organized. This is no offense to Buss - he would be the first to admit it.

 

[Ktown D]

You mean like this one?

http://www.theactionreport.com/Gina_Interview.html

Hey J,

give me a little heads up on why I can't see the interview. it just goes to a "Internet Explorer cannot display" .

 

[fan-tum]

Saw my first Ginacue in '68 or '69 in the hands of Al the Plumber, and it was love at first sight. I could have afforded one 20 yrs. ago, but dang it, never bought one.

 

[fan-tum]

that cue pictured is the holy grail of cues!! that cue will hit the 1,000,000.00 mark before any cue!

Surprisingly the shafts show some wear.
Who hasn't fantasized about that cue for 30 yrs. Hey Fatboy--you're the only one who could afford that one--when are you going to snap it up?

 

[JCIN]

Hey J,

give me a little heads up on why I can't see the interview. it just goes to a "Internet Explorer cannot display" .

It is a Window Media File so it should be pretty easy to view. If you havent already you should update your Windows Media player

http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windowsmedia/download/AllDownloads.aspx

Also it could be security related so you may check the settings on whatever you are using. I guess it could be a browser setting as well though I am not sure which one

 

[JCIN]

Surprisingly the shafts show some wear.
Who hasn't fantasized about that cue for 30 yrs. Hey Fatboy--you're the only one who could afford that one--when are you going to snap it up?

I asked Ernie if he would ever sell it and he said yes, that he had a guy interested but he would just have to wait and see.

I assume by interested he means wealthy because I am interested. Just not capable.

He also mentioned a figure and it was impressive.

 

[Roadkill]

Thanks for the video. It was great listening to Ernie's insights into cues, money, watches, rice burners, new mass production views, and demanding customers that have a lot of cheese. Business for sale. Blank check required.

RoadKill
( Was the interview in his office shot with the crotch cam? :grin: :grin: )