Rounceville blanks................

Dunno if I’ll pull the trigger, but I’ve been thinking of a Chicago splice blank and a cue maker to turn it into something cool. I seem to be a production cue guy tho. 😆
 
These would pair perfectly with a CF shaft:

Veneer - Full Splice Pool Cue Blank | Gaboon Ebony Butt, Gaboon Ebony Front with Veneers | Hand-picked #162169

This piece of _ Mixed Exotic Wood, Exotic Lumber is available as a unique, individual board (PKK#: 162169)
www.bellforestproducts.com www.bellforestproducts.com

Sneaky Pete Pool Cue Blank | Purpleheart Butt, Gaboon Ebony Front | Hand-picked #162231

This piece of _ Mixed Exotic Wood, Exotic Lumber is available as a unique, individual board (PKK#: 162231)
www.bellforestproducts.com www.bellforestproducts.com
 
I must admit my first real love for a at the time to me high dollar pool cue was the C 18 McDermott cue as for me it hit a cue ball like nothing I ever experienced before , yes you could say it was love easily before I even played an hour with it !
One thing I really liked about it was the mother of pearl inlays on it and every cue I've owned was compared to it in one way or another .

With that said I honestly enjoy playing with me old Mike Gulyassy cues now that I'd like to think I've figured out what it takes for a stroke to really make it shine in my eyes , so I get to hear oh well that was fun as I finish pocketing my object balls then the 8 !

As long as my darn non marker Rheumatoid Arthritis isn't giving me fits , so yes it's not just the table cloth and balls that are affected by different weather conditions !
 
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I bought a beautiful African Blackwood / Teak Burl sneaky blank last year from Bellforest and had a local buddy of mine convert it for me. It came out perfect. I already had 1 of my buddies maple shafts so it fit perfect and I bought a CF shaft (smo jflowers shaft) from another buddy of mine and it plays amazing (atleast to me) it does, I couldn`t be happier with the purchase from bellforest. Everything went smooth and they even mailed the Rounceville blank directly to my cue makers house. I`m pretty sure the blank I bought was under $400 and when it was finished I don`t think I had a grand wrapped up in it. Well worth the money spent. Just wanted anyone to know that these blanks from bellforest are nice ones. Hope this helps any one that is looking to purchase 1 of these blanks, go for it, well worth the money.
 
Are cue makers really that open to you showing up with your own blanks for them to finish out? There's quite a few turns still left to do on those blanks before they're even ready to be jointed or a shaft fitted to them and finished. I would think you makers would rather work with their own materials.
 
middleofnowhere said:
Are cue makers really that open to you showing up with your own blanks for them to finish out? There's quite a few turns still left to do on those blanks before they're even ready to be jointed or a shaft fitted to them and finished. I would think you makers would rather work with their own materials.
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A lot don't mind, but a lot of them will also turn away blanks they feel aren't good enough to build out.

I send back a percentage of the wood and blanks I buy due to warpage, checking, poor moisture content, etc. If someone showed up with a blank for me to build, I'd look it over, let it sit in my shop for a month and keep an eye on it if it passes the smell test. If I suspect any defects or faults, I'd just turn it away. I don't do full splicing, or any splicing, so if I produce a spliced cue, it's someone else's blank anyways, why would I mind if someone else paid for it vs me? All I care about is if the piece is quality enough to warrant working with.

On that note, Rounceville is quallllityyyy..
 
RidgeRaider said:
A lot don't mind, but a lot of them will also turn away blanks they feel aren't good enough to build out.

I send back a percentage of the wood and blanks I buy due to warpage, checking, poor moisture content, etc. If someone showed up with a blank for me to build, I'd look it over, let it sit in my shop for a month and keep an eye on it if it passes the smell test. If I suspect any defects or faults, I'd just turn it away. I don't do full splicing, or any splicing, so if I produce a spliced cue, it's someone else's blank anyways, why would I mind if someone else paid for it vs me? All I care about is if the piece is quality enough to warrant working with.

On that note, Rounceville is quallllityyyy..
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Part of my point was, the blank has more turning to do. So essential, other then building the blank, there is all the same steps required to build a completed cue.

When I was building cues years ago, (I'm almost 80) I bought a few pieces from Prather. Once I could do my own splicing I never bought anything from anyone else.

One problem is the cost of a blank. If someone brings you a blank they have paid like $400. For I don't want the responsibility. Things can go wrong no matter how good you are.

I was always running into guys who would say well I don't want to build cues I just want to do repairs. Repairs can be more stressful than building a cue from scratch. You got somebodys $1,000 cue sitting on your bench you better know what you are doing.
 
middleofnowhere said:
Part of my point was, the blank has more turning to do. So essential, other then building the blank, there is all the same steps required to build a completed cue.

When I was building cues years ago, (I'm almost 80) I bought a few pieces from Prather. Once I could do my own splicing I never bought anything from anyone else.

One problem is the cost of a blank. If someone brings you a blank they have paid like $400. For I don't want the responsibility. Things can go wrong no matter how good you are.

I was always running into guys who would say well I don't want to build cues I just want to do repairs. Repairs can be more stressful than building a cue from scratch. You got somebodys $1,000 cue sitting on your bench you better know what you are doing.
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I get what your saying, but different strokes for different folks.

Some people see a prong / full splice blank and just have to have that as a cue. The money the blank costs is negligible compared to the time cue makers put into these things. If $400 makes you squirm for responsibility, cue making or machining in general is not for you.

The bottom line is there is no difference if I buy the blank vs the customer. I make cues from bare scratch, and I make cues with other makers full splices and blanks. It's all just cue building.

Imagine a speed-shop refusing to build your racecar because you're asking them to install a crate motor vs one they built in their shop. Doesn't make a difference to them.
 
RidgeRaider said:
I get what your saying, but different strokes for different folks.

Some people see a prong / full splice blank and just have to have that as a cue. The money the blank costs is negligible compared to the time cue makers put into these things. If $400 makes you squirm for responsibility, cue making or machining in general is not for you.

The bottom line is there is no difference if I buy the blank vs the customer. I make cues from bare scratch, and I make cues with other makers full splices and blanks. It's all just cue building.

Imagine a speed-shop refusing to build your racecar because you're asking them to install a crate motor vs one they built in their shop. Doesn't make a difference to them.
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It's not the price of the blank but I liked building my own stuff. That is the fun of building cues. I owned pool rooms if I just wanted to make a few bucks I would sell someone else's cues.

I was a McDermott dealer. In fact I even sold Scruggs cues. I had a deal where I could buy 5 cues at a good price and resell them. In the end he didn't really want to take orders anymore. Just build cues and offer them for sale.

I knew Tim for many years and after a while he wanted nothing to do with customers.
 
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