Sterling Wave Cases -- First Review

[Rocket354]

Maybe wrong section, but I figured I'd put this here for potential buyers to read.

John Barton, aka JB Cases on here, has been pushing the new Sterling Wave cases pretty hard, as they just made their debut last month. I just got two of them in and I figured I'd give one of my reviews for them. I've only had them for about 1 hour now so I can't say how living with them has been, but I can give initial impressions on quality, and how dealing with Sterling has been.

I first contacted Sterling via email on December 14. They said the cases would be in right before Christmas and they wouldn't know pricing and availability until then. I contacted them again on December 22, and was told to call the next day. I called the next day and was told to call the next day, again. I gave up temporarily to spend Christmas with my family and not worry about pool cue cases.

On December 29, I got an email from the rep at Sterling giving me a link to where the cases were at that point available online at cuesight.com. I immediately sent an email to the sales department there and received no response, so I went back to the other rep and he gave me a number to call.

On Wednesday, December 31, I finally was able to place an order for the cases. I ordered two of the wave cases, a 4x8 in black and brown, and a 3x4 in tan and brown. I also ordered a 2x3 basic case, but one of the newer ones with John's new interior in it. I made very clear that I wanted the new design, with the soft interior, and not the old design with the tubes. I was told that they wouldn't be shipped until Monday, January 5, due to new years and the weekend, but I should get them Friday, January 9. Lo and behold, I come home today and there's two big boxes sitting on my porch.

Bad news first: the 2x3 basic case was, of course, one of the older models with the tubes, not the newer one with the soft interior. I will return that case, and kindly request the correct case.

Good news: the wave cases seem quite nice, especially for the price. They come in four different color schemes, each one has varying amount of tooling. The black and brown is heavily tooled, the tan and brown has tooling only on the "wave" parts, and I think the other two color options have either medium tooling or no tooling at all. (I say tooling, I understand it's just print or whatever, I'm not a case maker so I don't claim to know the correct terminology, just bear with me.)

So the outside looks good, and even feels good. The material is "high-grade vinyl" according to one of my phone conversations, and seems to be of fairly high quality.

The handle is without a doubt the most comfortable handle I've ever felt on a case. The strap, as well, is very comfortable, and although it looks large and bulky, does not feel awkward in the least. The cases pass those tests with flying colors. I like the handle and strap feel much better than my Whitten 3x4.

There's two straps, allowing one to wear it like a backpack, or just leave one on whichever side is more convenient. I like that as I removed one and it basically gives me a backup strap.

This leads into the first drawback of these cases, which is that a few of the materials seem, to me at first glance, to be somewhat suspect in their ability to survive the long haul. The strap clip and rings are all plastic, and they connect to the case via what appears to be some very thin material. Maybe John could chime in and let us know but it seems to me that those areas could wear out pretty quickly. I wonder if it wouldn't be a better idea to only have one strap, and use the money spent having the other strap instead for having somewhat sturdier and more confidence-inspiring hardware for the parts that do bear a lot of the weight.

Also a little annoying is the zipper. It seems definitely of much higher quality than most of the cheaper cases, and maybe I'm just spoiled by my Whitten, but it doesn't whizz around to open and close, rather it kind of lurches a bit, especially at the narrower part of the oval opening (the 4x8, being bigger, has less of a problem in this area, but the 3x4 is somewhat annoying).

(Continued next post....)

 

[Rocket354]

Review, Part II

The interior is nice, with plenty of room for longer cues. The bottom has some sort of spring that holds the cues fairly high, but can be compressed down quite a bit.

The interior is very soft and seems to cradle the cues well. Also, however, it seems as though it would attract lots and lots of chalk.

For the 3x4 there is a pretty big design flaw, and where the case fails for me--it cannot actually fit 3 butts and 4 shafts, as advertised. I filled up the case and I could fit 3 butts and 3 shafts pretty snugly, but I could not get the fourth shaft to fit. So I removed the center butt and was able to fit the shaft, but then there was no way the butt would come close to fitting. I didn't have a fifth shaft to try, but I'd be a little surprised if a fifth shaft would even fit. At best, then, this case is a 2x5, not a 3x4.

For $130 or so, this case line is great. That price is right in line with the Introke premier line, and not too far above the $80-90 mass produced cases available anywhere and everywhere online. I like these cases better than all those, and it even has some aspects I like better than some of the higher end cases. Some materials could be improved, and the interior really seems to me as though it will be a chalk magnet, but the looks I feel are A+ and most importantly, fairly unique, and the quality seems quite good, at least right out of the box.

I have not yet tried stuffing cues into the 4x8 (that's going to a friend), but the 3x4 really should be just a 2x5 or really just a 2x4. If one is looking for a case in that configuration, it seems as though it would work great. For me, who really wanted a 3x4, the case will be returned.

 

[JB Cases]

The interior is nice, with plenty of room for longer cues. The bottom has some sort of spring that holds the cues fairly high, but can be compressed down quite a bit.

The interior is very soft and seems to cradle the cues well. Also, however, it seems as though it would attract lots and lots of chalk.

For the 3x4 there is a pretty big design flaw, and where the case fails for me--it cannot actually fit 3 butts and 4 shafts, as advertised. I filled up the case and I could fit 3 butts and 3 shafts pretty snugly, but I could not get the fourth shaft to fit. So I removed the center butt and was able to fit the shaft, but then there was no way the butt would come close to fitting. I didn't have a fifth shaft to try, but I'd be a little surprised if a fifth shaft would even fit. At best, then, this case is a 2x5, not a 3x4.

For $130 or so, this case line is great. That price is right in line with the Introke premier line, and not too far above the $80-90 mass produced cases available anywhere and everywhere online. I like these cases better than all those, and it even has some aspects I like better than some of the higher end cases. Some materials could be improved, and the interior really seems to me as though it will be a chalk magnet, but the looks I feel are A+ and most importantly, fairly unique, and the quality seems quite good, at least right out of the box.

I have not yet tried stuffing cues into the 4x8 (that's going to a friend), but the 3x4 really should be just a 2x5 or really just a 2x4. If one is looking for a case in that configuration, it seems as though it would work great. For me, who really wanted a 3x4, the case will be returned.

Thanks for the review.

To address two of your points. The strap attachments are made of high grade plastic that is very durable. The nylon holders for the d-rings are reinforced through the back so that they should hold up very well. My personal case has taken a lot of abuse the last six months and it is still going strong. (yes I eat what I cook). However the point is well taken that the appearance doesn't look very strong.

The other point is the capacity. The case does hold 3x4 but you have to insert the butts first bumper down and then the shafts. Please refer to the jbcases website www.jbcases.com to see that they pieces all fit.

I will do a short video here shortly to show how the cues should be inserted. I put an awful lot of time into developing this interior so it's not a matter of false advertising but instead a matter of failing to provide the proper instruction on how to load the case for the 3x4 configuration.

Springy effect: There are no springs in the case. It is done entirely through a system of fabrics with different tensile properties. That's why I call it the Organic Rebound interior. Basically this allows you the full use of the tube without anything mechanical taking up room and makes for a case that doesn't need to be longer than neccesary.

Thank you again for the comprehensive review.

 

[DogsPlayingPool]

I'm looking into these as well, or the regular line with the new JB designed interiors.

One question I had is how do you like the "croc" grain vinyl? I'm not a big fan of faux grains on vinyl and therefore I think I'm most interested in the orange with black accent case as this does not have grained accents but rather just the more smooth vinyl. But I like the look of the tan color.

Also, from the pics of the tan and the orange model, the material seems to have a suede-like texture to it. Does it actually appear this way for real or is it more just the leather-look vinyl?

Thanks for the review and the great pics! :thumbup:

 

[Rocket354]

Thanks for the review.

To address two of your points. The strap attachments are made of high grade plastic that is very durable. The nylon holders for the d-rings are reinforced through the back so that they should hold up very well. My personal case has taken a lot of abuse the last six months and it is still going strong. (yes I eat what I cook). However the point is well taken that the appearance doesn't look very strong.

The other point is the capacity. The case does hold 3x4 but you have to insert the butts first bumper down and then the shafts. Please refer to the jbcases website www.jbcases.com to see that they pieces all fit.

I will do a short video here shortly to show how the cues should be inserted. I put an awful lot of time into developing this interior so it's not a matter of false advertising but instead a matter of failing to provide the proper instruction on how to load the case for the 3x4 configuration.

Springy effect: There are no springs in the case. It is done entirely through a system of fabrics with different tensile properties. That's why I call it the Organic Rebound interior. Basically this allows you the full use of the tube without anything mechanical taking up room and makes for a case that doesn't need to be longer than neccesary.

Thank you again for the comprehensive review.

I like the organic rebound interior.

I tried loading the cues with the butts first. They did not fit. I could get three shafts in, although the third was getting kind of tight, and the fourth was hopeless. I tried lifting the cues up some so they rode as high as possible and the fourth shaft still did not fit, although it got maybe halfway down. I tried doing the outer butts last. Nothing realy worked.

Also, I was very uncomfortable with how crammed everything was in there, and even if there were some way to get everything jammed in there I'm not sure I'd want my cues under that much duress at all times. At the very least, I'd hate to have a case where it takes time, effort and special skills just to get everything to fit that should fit--I just wanna drop my cues in the case and go.

For what it's worth I went and shot some tonight with my buddy who wanted the 4x8. I gave it to him and explained that it might be a tight fit. All he really needed was a 4x6 anyways, so he was fine with it (and, in fact, absolutely loves the case). We tried loading his case, first putting the butts in then the shafts. He could get 4x5 with ease, 4x6 with minimal work. Then we lifted everything as high as it would go and were able to get a seventh shaft in there, but there was absolutely no way an 8th would go. As far as he's concerned he has a 4x6 that will hold a seventh shaft in a pinch.

I hope you understand I'm not trying to pick on you, just informing you as you seem to be one who really does listen to the customer. I'll certainly listen/watch any video on how to properly load the case; I just hope that should I still not be satisfied with what I have, I don't give up my opportunity the return the case, be it through waiting a few days or marking the interior of the case with chalk.

 

[Rocket354]

I'm looking into these as well, or the regular line with the new JB designed interiors.

One question I had is how do you like the "croc" grain vinyl? I'm not a big fan of faux grains on vinyl and therefore I think I'm most interested in the orange with black accent case as this does not have grained accents but rather just the more smooth vinyl. But I like the look of the tan color.

Also, from the pics of the tan and the orange model, the material seems to have a suede-like texture to it. Does it actually appear this way for real or is it more just the leather-look vinyl?

Thanks for the review and the great pics! :thumbup:

The tan exterior more closely resembles suede than leather. The tooled exterior materials are more like leather, although are obviously not leather.

I like the way the tan case looks a lot. I think personally I'd like it a little better without all the tooling, but it definitely looks good as is. That's all just personal preference, of course.

 

[JB Cases]

I like the organic rebound interior.

I tried loading the cues with the butts first. They did not fit. I could get three shafts in, although the third was getting kind of tight, and the fourth was hopeless. I tried lifting the cues up some so they rode as high as possible and the fourth shaft still did not fit, although it got maybe halfway down. I tried doing the outer butts last. Nothing realy worked.

Also, I was very uncomfortable with how crammed everything was in there, and even if there were some way to get everything jammed in there I'm not sure I'd want my cues under that much duress at all times. At the very least, I'd hate to have a case where it takes time, effort and special skills just to get everything to fit that should fit--I just wanna drop my cues in the case and go.

For what it's worth I went and shot some tonight with my buddy who wanted the 4x8. I gave it to him and explained that it might be a tight fit. All he really needed was a 4x6 anyways, so he was fine with it (and, in fact, absolutely loves the case). We tried loading his case, first putting the butts in then the shafts. He could get 4x5 with ease, 4x6 with minimal work. Then we lifted everything as high as it would go and were able to get a seventh shaft in there, but there was absolutely no way an 8th would go. As far as he's concerned he has a 4x6 that will hold a seventh shaft in a pinch.

I hope you understand I'm not trying to pick on you, just informing you as you seem to be one who really does listen to the customer. I'll certainly listen/watch any video on how to properly load the case; I just hope that should I still not be satisfied with what I have, I don't give up my opportunity the return the case, be it through waiting a few days or marking the interior of the case with chalk.

You will never have a problem returning anything that I make. Worst case scenario, I buy it.

I am not happy to hear that you are having problems with this interior as I have been shipping the same interior for a year now. It should be dead easy as I sent out samples to other folks and they work perfectly and there have been no other reports of problems. I hope that this isn't indicative of some other problem with production :-(.

As for duress your cues aren't under any - it's just foam and fabric in the case. At least there shouldn't be any issue. Again the cases I have here all work just as they should with no stress and no special training required. I am really bummed about the fact that there is an issue.

I will certainly have our people at Sterling check the next case should you agree to an exchange and we will make sure that it works perfectly or let you know otherwise.

John

 

[JB Cases]

Here is a video of the 3x4/2x5 case in action. This shows how the case is supposed to work. If anyone has one that does not work this way then something is not right.

I want to reiterate that there is NOTHING in the case that can harm the cue. There is not enough pressure to damage the cues in any way. The cases are made differently than other people's in that we put several layers of foam rubber in between the layers of fabric. The foam rubber acts as a cushion that fills the space in between the parts but it is truly gentle in how it holds the cues.

You Tube - How to use the Sterling Wave Case 2x5/3x4

 

[Rocket354]

Update

I managed to fit all three butts and four shafts into the case. The key was something John sent me via PM, which I don't think he'll have a problem with me sharing (if so, just let me know):

The way that the compartments are made in this case is essentially individual socks that hang down. It seems that through the shipping that the socks tend to bunch up a little and that is why you may have a hard time putting the cue parts in. All you need to do is force your parts in a little at a time - work them in and then the sock will be straightened out and won't be a problem anymore.

So before trying to fit everything in again, I slowly but surely pushed a shaft down each compartment as far as it would go. Sure enough, two of the shaft compartments were kind of tight, but loosened up. Then when I again tried to fit everything in, it worked. The hole still looked entirely too small to fit the shaft, but then the material compresses nicely so there's plenty of room.

So what happened before was I saw what appeared to be a tight fit, I tried pushing it down, and the tube itself was bunched up, keeping the shaft from going down, and I interpreted that to mean that there simply wasn't enough room in the case. John, you have my apologies, and thank you very much for patiently explaining the situation.

I really, really love my Whitten 3x4 case, but I've now moved all my gear over to the Sterling case. I can think of only three more potential drawbacks to the case (besides the connection hardware, which John has already addressed):

1) There's no feet on the bottom of the case. Again, I'm comparing this $130 or so case to a $400+ Whitten which is a bit unfair, but I like a case that stands on its own. Having it stand on its own for the 30 seconds it takes me to take out my cues and screw them together is much nicer than having to find a place to lean it and then having to make sure the lid is out of the way, and what not. It's convenience.

2) The pockets could be designed slightly better, I think. The smaller pocket up top isn't really an issue, but the bigger pocket looks like any smaller items might drop down to the point that they're hard to access.

There's a tip tapper and a couple breath mints on the very bottom there, and I have to dig through a lot of stuff to get to them. I think the pockets could be designed better one of two ways: a) make them so they flip up easier or, even better, b) take a design cue from Whitten and have the zippers zip from the top right of the pocket to the bottom right of the pocket around the left-hand side, so the "hinge" is the long side of the pocket instead of the short side. This allows all parts the pocket to be easily accessible.

3) Maybe getting really nit-picky here, but while the case does hold all 3x4 as advertised, the fact that it inhibits my ability to access the middle butt without first removing two other shafts is a bit of a pain. Again, it's all give and take--if you want compact space you have to make sacrifices, and if you want affordable prices, you have to allow to not have every convenience around. But still, it's nice to be able to just reach in and grab whatever you want without having to go through a song and dance just to take it out and put it back. I'll just make sure whichever cue I play with less often occupies that slot.

So to summarize, strong points of the case are:

• Very attractive, unique style
• Most materials seem to be of very nice quality
• Very competitively priced
• The most comfortable handle and shoulder strap I've ever used
• Very soft interior
• Very big pockets
• Backed by a man of his word

Weak points, mostly minor, are:

• Potentially weak connection hardware
• No feet on the case
• Pockets have hard to reach places
• Tight fit makes accessing third cue a little more work

So far I can't see any reason to believe this isn't the best case for the price in the market. I have a full week of pool ahead of me, and I'll be using this case every day. Assuming everything goes well, the Whitten will be up for sale.

Thanks, again, John, and I hope my review has been helpful to some considering these cases.

 

[DogsPlayingPool]

Too bad the pics on the website of the orange/black wave case aren't as good as the ones you posted here.

John, if you have any better pics of the orange case feel free to post them up, I'd like to see them.

Thanks for the review. Good unbiased report.

 

[JB Cases]

The good thing is that since my office is 1 minute from the factory floor I can implement good suggestions and change the cases batch to batch.

Thank you again for the comprhensive review and I will be addressing all the points you raised.

John

 

[JB Cases]

Too bad the pics on the website of the orange/black wave case aren't as good as the ones you posted here.

John, if you have any better pics of the orange case feel free to post them up, I'd like to see them.

Thanks for the review. Good unbiased report.

 

[DogsPlayingPool]

Thanks, John.

Correct me if I'm wrong but my understanding about the new version of the more standard black vinyl hard case is that it has essentially the same padded interior as the wave case but without the organic spring foam in the bottom. Is that about right?

 

[JB Cases]

Thanks, John.

Correct me if I'm wrong but my understanding about the new version of the more standard black vinyl hard case is that it has essentially the same padded interior as the wave case but without the organic spring foam in the bottom. Is that about right?

That is correct. And the 2x4 is just 2x4, not 2x5.

 

[billyjack]

Good idea to do a video, John. While I was waiting for my case to be delivered (Thanks again!) I watched your GTF case video a few times, so I was prepared for the "alternate taper" loading. I still learned something from your video-the little shake to energize the rebound. I also tried something different; I loaded the shafts and butts joint first. I was hoping to keep the tubes cleaner by keeping tips up. Since the underside of the cap is lined with vinyl, chalk marks are easily cleaned. I'll save my full review until I use it for another week or two, but, so far, my only negative is the zipper binding around the sides. Maybe with a little silicone and some use it will smooth out. I have absolutely no issues fitting 3 butts and 4 shafts. Everything is tight, but nothing can touch, even if you try to pinch them together. The interior is absolutely the nuts, and there's a lot of upscale features in a moderately-priced case.

Bill

 

[CocoboloCowboy]

The interior is very soft and seems to cradle the cues well. Also, however, it seems as though it would attract lots and lots of chalk.

For the 3x4 there is a pretty big design flaw, and where the case fails for me--it cannot actually fit 3 butts and 4 shafts, as advertised. I filled up the case and I could fit 3 butts and 3 shafts pretty snugly, but I could not get the fourth shaft to fit. So I removed the center butt and was able to fit the shaft, but then there was no way the butt would come close to fitting. I didn't have a fifth shaft to try, but I'd be a little surprised if a fifth shaft would even fit. At best, then, this case is a 2x5, not a 3x4.

Rocket it is not the interior that is the problem with chalk, it is the owner of Cue heavenly laden with CHALK that inserts in DIRTY SHAFT in to Clean Tube, or Dividers, IMHO.

If people would spin there tip on the Carper, Wipe their Shafts down with a CLEAN RAG there would be ZERO Chalk TRANSFERED.

But I know that about 70% of the Pool players I encounter in our community room, or tournaments don?t have much care for their equipment, as I see many ferrule loaded with chalk, and the insides of cases with Blue, Green or what ever color chalk in them because the OWNER did not take the minute to wipe the chalk off his tip, ferrule, and shaft with a clean cloth.

Last I will say I think if you first look at the ?Soft Interior? John uses in his Jay Flower Tributes, and other CASES, thing look tight.

But in my particular instance when I first got my Flower 2 x 4 I put the Two Butt Section in Bumper Down, and inserted 4 Shaft in Tips down, and and 110% PLEASE with how the Cae offer my equipment protection, and also hold everything firmly like it was being held by my hand.

Back to

 

[ftgokie]

Thanks for that review....and I will say, its a nice looking case and a very good price. If I was looking at this case and didnt see a pricetag, I would have guessed it was at least 50.00 more than what it sells for. Good job!:thumbup:

 

[Rocket354]

Rocket it is not the interior that is the problem with chalk, it is the owner of Cue heavenly laden with CHALK that inserts in DIRTY SHAFT in to Clean Tube, or Dividers, IMHO.

If people would spin there tip on the Carper, Wipe their Shafts down with a CLEAN RAG there would be ZERO Chalk TRANSFERED.

[/IMG]

I should have been more clear. Most interiors I encounter it's possible to avoid rubbing the tip against the interior. Tube cases, even most cases with a soft interior have enough empty space that even if you have a fully chalked up tip, it doesn't have to actually come in contact with the material as you put it into the case, until of course it touches the bottom.

This case has a very puffy interior, and the compartment you're putting your shaft into, especially that last shaft, is often smaller looking then the shaft as it requires the material to be compressed outwards to fit. Because of this, there's no way to avoid lots of contact between your tip and the interior fabric. Whether you wipe your tip on the carpet or not, it seems as though there will be more chalk that's transferred to the case than other cases. The first time I put my cues in, I saw that there was more chalk on the interior of this case than on the interior of my Whitten I had owned and used regularly for 6 or so months.

I have not owned the case long enough to evaluate it fully, but I'll be careful when inserting my stuff and see how it looks a little while down the road.

 

[JB Cases]

I should have been more clear. Most interiors I encounter it's possible to avoid rubbing the tip against the interior. Tube cases, even most cases with a soft interior have enough empty space that even if you have a fully chalked up tip, it doesn't have to actually come in contact with the material as you put it into the case, until of course it touches the bottom.

This case has a very puffy interior, and the compartment you're putting your shaft into, especially that last shaft, is often smaller looking then the shaft as it requires the material to be compressed outwards to fit. Because of this, there's no way to avoid lots of contact between your tip and the interior fabric. Whether you wipe your tip on the carpet or not, it seems as though there will be more chalk that's transferred to the case than other cases. The first time I put my cues in, I saw that there was more chalk on the interior of this case than on the interior of my Whitten I had owned and used regularly for 6 or so months.

I have not owned the case long enough to evaluate it fully, but I'll be careful when inserting my stuff and see how it looks a little while down the road.

This is true because most other cases use dividers that are much bigger than they need to be. Well not always as when you use individual tubes you are constrained to a minimum sized hole which must be larger than the the maximum diameter of the cue. This however makes for a larger case. Also on the tube styles, especially the ones made like Whitten where the holes are at the very top, it's a natural move to put the part into the hole because you can see it right there. With the cases which have recessed cavities like this one you will always see more chalk around the top of the cavities because people can't "find the hole" as easily and most don't really look they just put the shaft in the general area of the opening.

Just for comparison I have been asked the past few days to make some samples that are like the foam core style of Porper and most "house" brands. So, using the laser we created the forms and we can only get 2 butts and 4 shafts into the same sized tube as we now can make as a 3x4. We can only make a 2x5 using the same sized tube that we now do a 3x6 now, and we can only get 3x6 in the same sized tube as we currently do a 4x8.

So it is a trade off certainly. But even when full you should be able to put the tips in without touching the lip of the interior cavities with a little practice.

The advantage is that all the parts are now nice and snug and nothing rattles but it takes a little practice. And as I said before the fabric we use is very soft and it's like a polishing cloth so really your shafts and butts are getting wiped down each time you put them in the case.

I am however still searching for the "best" way to make a case and the tremendous collective brainpower and suggestions here on AZ is better than anything I could possibly afford as far as market research goes.

 

[djdisturbed]

Rocket it is not the interior that is the problem with chalk, it is the owner of Cue heavenly laden with CHALK that inserts in DIRTY SHAFT in to Clean Tube, or Dividers, IMHO.

If people would spin there tip on the Carper, Wipe their Shafts down with a CLEAN RAG there would be ZERO Chalk TRANSFERED.
[/IMG]

Personally I feel anyone who spins their tip on the carpet in not taking proper care of their tip, You never know who has spilled what on that carpet that has not gotten ground into your tip.

I just got one of these cases the last night (the Sterling 4x8 tan/brown) and so far i love it. I too wish it could stand on its own (even for just a few mins while i put together/take apart the cues, not long term). I think the pockets could have a little more outward space put a small bottle of baby powder in the top pocket and t was tight w/ all my other tip/shaft/chalk stuff i keep in there, and put my q-claw, a pro-justa-bridge, extra chalk, few apa patches, and jump butt in the bottom and it feels a little tight on the pro-justa bridge. everything fits BUT it just feels like the outside part of the pockets could have more room in it, the length and width of the pockets is nice! The zippers seem a little stiff, but that might clear up with use, but on a same note, i dont feel like the zippers will work themselves loose and let anything fall out like would happen with my older case.