Question from a newbie

[Hooper840]

I am 21 years old and new(er) to pool and pool equipment. My second cue ever was a Dale Perry eBay which I liked way more than my first Viking retailed at $320. I have seen/heard people bashing DP for selling his cues on eBay and depreciating the value of their cue they bought in the 80's or 90's etc. I get that, but all of his eBay cues are designed from a handful of templates with slightly different wood variations. Why is this such a big issue for some people? If you go to his real website, you see the work he does on his "real" cues are beautiful and completely unmatched from what he puts on eBay. It's a whole different level of cue aesthetically. So why the hate? Is it not the same as buying a the cheapest car from a dealer knowing there are much better cars available worth much more money?

 

[JohnPT]

Losing money is always a big issue. Everyone lost money on his cues.

Yeah if you buy his cues now its okay. But those people havent forgotten still.

 

[PaulieB]

If you go to his real website, you see the work he does on his "real" cues are beautiful and completely unmatched from what he puts on eBay. It's a whole different level of cue aesthetically.

I'm gonna guess that you answered your own question. Most (if not all) custom cue makers don't have a "real" line and an Ebay line that is still advertised as "custom 1 of 1 signed cues" with 10+ cues for sale with 1 of 1 designation and the only difference is the fact that no two wood grains are identical. Yeah, I get the whole "snowflake" argument, but even still ... running a line of identical cues and calling them different because of things like wood grain or whatever is junk, imo. Hence the aggression from buyers who originally didn't understand his "snowflake" theory.

 

[mrsmith1976]

Take all of this for what you will, but I had one of Mr. Perry's ebay cues. It hit just like any other cue (I can't tell the difference between the feel of cues for the most part--and I have hit with boat loads of cues for a long time).

The cue was fine, didn't warp in the five months I owned it, inlays were the same cnc bs that most do.

I will admit to breaking the cue over my knee. This is where I really found the downfall of the DP cue. The cue broke like a toothpick. The wood used in the handle was garbage. A few of my friends saw it and took photos--it seemed like balsa was used for the handle.

As an aside, to qualify this, I am not a big guy--I've never tipped the scales at over 172.

Also, my cue was more 1/1 than any other dale perry I have ever seen in that it wasn't marked 1/1. :grin:

So are you saying they don't "Break" very well?? LOL:rotflmao1:

Sorry couldn't help it. Great cue for the cash...

 

[ArizonaPete]

Don't pay attention to the haters. I shoot with a Dale Perry butt and a McDermott I-3 shaft. Beautiful balance and hits true. This combo has been my main player now for about 2 years. When I watch the Oscars, and hear all the ladies talking about their dress designer, it reminds me of some of the threads here on the Forum. If you're into collecting and trading that's fine. But the price of the cue does little in making a ball. I've heard that Efrem won a tournament playing with a cue he bought in Walmart (may or may not be true). A good cue is one that feels good to you regardless of price.

 

[measureman]

A lot of people dislike DP for his way of doing business. But he has the right to sell his product anyway he wants to stay in business and make a living.
I have seen his low end cues and for the money thay look and play well.
A lot of it is snobbery from some people.
I have a Lucasi and a Pechauer. The Lucasi is 9/10 of the Pechauer in fit-finish and playability.But people put down the Lucasi and talk up the Pechauer and there is not much differance between the two cues.

 

[KRJ]

Hmmmm

I am 21 years old and new(er) to pool and pool equipment. My second cue ever was a Dale Perry eBay which I liked way more than my first Viking retailed at $320. I have seen/heard people bashing DP for selling his cues on eBay and depreciating the value of their cue they bought in the 80's or 90's etc. I get that, but all of his eBay cues are designed from a handful of templates with slightly different wood variations. Why is this such a big issue for some people? If you go to his real website, you see the work he does on his "real" cues are beautiful and completely unmatched from what he puts on eBay. It's a whole different level of cue aesthetically. So why the hate? Is it not the same as buying a the cheapest car from a dealer knowing there are much better cars available worth much more money?

For the price, I"m sure the DP is a good cue. Certainly not a great cue as far as quality goes, but for the price, I mean I was tempted to buy one just for a break cue.

But as a collector cue, it will never be. Just like a Lucasi or Players and many others (not singling out those two,)will never find their way into the "collector status" cue. Does not mean they are bad, just like a Ford Taurus, a good car, just not going to be sought after in 5, 10 or 20 years.
But the Taurus does the job for you today.

It don't matter if that ain't your thing. If the cue plays good for you, then you're ahead of the game. And that is fine, not all cars we buy will be collectors either, but just enjoy it if you like it.

But if you are going to keep buying cues in search of the "magic" one, or just because you enjoy a new cue everu now and then, you might want to consider a custom cue to retain more of the value so when you eventually "trade up" you are ahead of the game as well.

 

[phread59]

Not to knock the DP thing. His cues are OK. But as far as a Tarus not being collectable. Weeeeeellllll I gues you never heard of an SHO before. They are definately sought after and are starting to be worth some decent money. They are just starting to become collectable. So there goes you're Taurus theory:grin:.

Mark Shuman

 

[au2ag]

Not to knock the DP thing. His cues are OK. But as far as a Tarus not being collectable. Weeeeeellllll I gues you never heard of an SHO before. They are definately sought after and are starting to be worth some decent money. They are just starting to become collectable. So there goes you're Taurus theory:grin:.

Mark Shuman

Hehe. That is funny. Is it the classy Mercury Sable syling, the ho-hum 6.6-60, or the fact that they also made it in a station wagon?

It had a manual tranny. Pretty cool. But kinda like putting a miniskirt on an LDS chick. What's the point?