There is this guy that wants to know how much his original Balabushka cue is worth.

Blue Hog ridr said:
I have one with the original signature on it, so there!
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No No NO! Here you are claiming you have it in your possession. That is poor form and doesn't have that genuine Balabushka feel.

Claim you know a guy that knows the guy that maybe saw the cue and then you'll be having things.

(make sure you have your hand out palm up in that unmistakable world-wide recognizable "genuine Balabushka" hand signal.)
 
DoubleD said:
So, you are saying that you want money for doing something on which you aren't an expert and have no experience?

Give me this guys name, I can probably convince him that he needs brain surgery...I have no experience, but I like money.

dld
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Not only did he say it, he said it three goddamned times. In. One. Post.
 
Cue ID

sjm said:
Arguably, the greatest authority on Balabushka cues is Pete Tascarella of New York.

Surely, many AZBers have his contact info, but I do not.
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I tried to get in contact with PT a while back through his website and got a response from someone other than Pete, who wasn't terribly helpful.

I wonder if the experts charge a fee if the cue is NOT a Balabushka or whatever? I wouldn't want to spend $200 to find out my cue is worth $150!

Barry Szamboti and Richard Black are two among others who can identify such cues.
 
Donny Lutz said:
I tried to get in contact with PT a while back through his website and got a response from someone other than Pete, who wasn't terribly helpful.

I wonder if the experts charge a fee if the cue is NOT a Balabushka or whatever? I wouldn't want to spend $200 to find out my cue is worth $150!

Barry Szamboti and Richard Black are two among others who can identify such cues.
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99.9% of the time, if you post good pics on AZ you will know with really good accuracy whether it is worth the 200 to send to Pete for the paper. Especially if you have pics of the joint pin, weight bolt, bumper, points, etc...
 
flyvirginiaguy said:
99.9% of the time, if you post good pics on AZ you will know with really good accuracy whether it is worth the 200 to send to Pete for the paper. Especially if you have pics of the joint pin, weight bolt, bumper, points, etc...
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It didn't work this way last cue I sent to him for authentication. Pete didn't charge me to determine if the cue was genuine or not. As I recall, he charged me $250 for the LOA. If the cue was not authentic, I believe all he would have charged me was the cost to ship it back. I might be wrong.


Thanks

Kevin
 
Donny Lutz said:
I tried to get in contact with PT a while back through his website and got a response from someone other than Pete, who wasn't terribly helpful.

I wonder if the experts charge a fee if the cue is NOT a Balabushka or whatever? I wouldn't want to spend $200 to find out my cue is worth $150!

Barry Szamboti and Richard Black are two among others who can identify such cues.
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I don't think Pete charges you to tell you a cue is not a Balabushka. The way it has always worked with me, he charged for the letter after he determined the cue was real.

Can I have a link to the website you are referring to?

Thanks

Kevin
 
DoubleD said:
Pete sounds like a classy guy...that is definitely going beyond what is demanded. His expertise should easily demand some coin just to look at cues.
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In my experience with Pete, which isn't vast, just maybe 4 or 5 Balabushkas, I found him to be extremely careful with my money, very mindful of my expense and looking to make sure I got my money's worth. I don't know him well, but I would classify him as an "old school" type of business man.

Kevin
 
kvinbrwr said:
It didn't work this way last cue I sent to him for authentication. Pete didn't charge me to determine if the cue was genuine or not. As I recall, he charged me $250 for the LOA. If the cue was not authentic, I believe all he would have charged me was the cost to ship it back. I might be wrong.


Thanks

Kevin
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Maybe so with Pete. I was just letting him know pictures to some of those here would tell him if it even warranted Pete's time. as many many cues are "thought" to be George's, when in no way shape are form do some of them even remotely resemble a cue made by George.

We have even seen it where the guys said they had original receipts that it was one of George's cues etc... I am sure JV is still waiting to see that receipt? lol
 
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Well, I did not think that a seller needed to have that much expertise about a cue that would probably sell itself using really good pictures of it. Does a seller really need to be an expert on a cue maker to sell a cue? I am sure that most of you guys would jump at the opportunity to sell any cue of great value (if you were to find someone that might need help selling their cue). By the way, I am only asking the person for pictures of the cue (so that I can post them in the image gallery on here), and I am also going to give the person Petes contact info. I thought that maybe I could possibly make a little money as a middle man on a deal, but now I realize that it was a silly idea. So I guess that I am a horrible person for even thinking about it.



DoubleD said:
Okay, you can be the first person on my official 'molly-coddle' list.

Next time I will tell you how great you are for wanting to profit off of an infirm old man by selling expertise that you clearly don't have.

It isn't an insult to point out that you don't have this expertise...very few people really do, I certainly don't.

I guess I did insult you for wanting to be paid for doing nearly zero, but I insult those who take something for nothing all the time, so don't feel so special.

dld
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kvinbrwr said:
In my experience with Pete, which isn't vast, just maybe 4 or 5 Balabushkas, I found him to be extremely careful with my money, very mindful of my expense and looking to make sure I got my money's worth. I don't know him well, but I would classify him as an "old school" type of business man.

Kevin
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i'd send it to Barry over Pete 8 days a week.

i will just leave it at that, if i cant say anything good about someone i just say nothing.

"NOTHING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
 
I never contemplated charging a fee (other than a small % of the sale price if I were able to sell the cue), and I never told the person that I am an expert on cues. The only type of service that I could possibly offer is selling the cue for the person, but I know that would not be possible without actually having the cue in my possession (and I know that that will never happen, and I would never actually expect the person to trust me, a complete stranger, and sell the cue for him). I thought that maybe I could sell the cue for the person on here (and maybe make a very small % of the sale), but now I realize that it was a very silly idea. I would imagine that would be better then if the guy took it to some billiard shop or collector (not knowing what it is worth), and really get ripped off by someone. I imagine that the guy knows how special his cue is, so hopefully he does not get conned in to selling the cue for a fraction of what it may be worth.

kvinbrwr said:
I hope you don't see this as an insult, but how about you actually offer the owner some level of service in an attempt to earn the fee you are already contemplating? How about you call Tasc, you see what the procedures and costs of authentication are (the LOA is more than $200). Then you can go to the owner, offer him some decent advice and help him with the arrangements. I know it might be a novel idea but rather than just getting a fee, how about you try to earn it?

Kevin
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Great point, and I was thinking the exact same thing.

To add, what a crappy way to treat people, someone asks what something is worth, and your brain (not you DoubleD) says I can make some money off this deal, instead of just helping someone out.

This thread begs to have the title changed to "Is this the right thing" we all know the threads where someone makes a foul, but their opponent was turned away for 1 split second and the shooter didn't tell him that he fouled, so he comes to the AZ community to ask if what he did was acceptable by pleading the facts of his lame case.


DoubleD said:
So, you are saying that you want money for doing something on which you aren't an expert and have no experience?

Give me this guys name, I can probably convince him that he needs brain surgery...I have no experience, but I like money.

dld
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The way you are acting, I'd rather take my chances at a pawn shop, don't act like you're doing the guy any favors.

justinb386 said:
If he were to take it to a billiard shop (or pawn shop, or collector), then they might be dis honest, and offer him like a 10th of its fair market value.
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Fatboy said:
i'd send it to Barry over Pete 8 days a week.

i will just leave it at that, if i cant say anything good about someone i just say nothing.

"NOTHING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
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Oh please Eric I know EXACTLY where you are coming from. And I've got to say, in the last dealing I had with Barry, he treated me so great, made me feel so valued, did such great work at such a great price and (a you ready for this???) such a quick turn-around that I was truly (no exaggeration) completely stunned. I would never have an opportunity to feel that way with Pete.

However, its different for me than it is for you. I buy a cue with selling it foremost on my mind. So its not just "is this a Balabushka?" but for me, its is it a Balabushka and how do I best make my buyer (whom I probably won't know which is another difference between us two) comfortable with the fact that it is a Balabushka? And the answer to that, right or wrong, is a LOA from Tasc.

Kevin
 
So you are telling me that a pawn shop would offer the person a better price for the cue then what I might be able to get out of it for him? It is just my opinion, but I do not think you are right about that. I know how cheap pawn shops are, and they love making big profits. Why is everyone grilling me so badly about this? I already said that it was a silly idea, but I guess you did not read through the rest of the thread before you posted your reply.

tommyceilings said:
The way you are acting, I'd rather take my chances at a pawn shop, don't act like you're doing the guy any favors.
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justinb386 said:
I never contemplated charging a fee (other than a small % of the sale price if I were able to sell the cue), and I never told the person that I am an expert on cues. The only type of service that I could possibly offer is selling the cue for the person, but I know that would not be possible without actually having the cue in my possession (and I know that that will never happen, and I would never actually expect the person to trust me, a complete stranger, and sell the cue for him). I thought that maybe I could sell the cue for the person on here (and maybe make a very small % of the sale), but now I realize that it was a very silly idea. I would imagine that would be better then if the guy took it to some billiard shop or collector (not knowing what it is worth), and really get ripped off by someone. I imagine that the guy knows how special his cue is, so hopefully he does not get conned in to selling the cue for a fraction of what it may be worth.
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Oh, a small percentage of the sales price and not a fee. I get it.

Wait! What's the difference?

Thanks

Kevin
 
i sold a Bushka once for $4,000 less than I paid for it by accident. the buyer seemed a bit anxious, my dumb ass was too lazy to look up what I paid, i did a week later. easy come, easy go-i think.
 
Fatboy said:
i sold a Bushka once for $4,000 less than I paid for it by accident. the buyer seemed a bit anxious, my dumb ass was too lazy to look up what I paid, i did a week later. easy come, easy go-i think.
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You need to make a mistake like that with me, say with an ivory jointed Gus.

Kevin
 
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