what is your best stupid customer story!!!

[dukeboy1977]

VERY right!

Customers call me all the time, email me, pm me, and have several write letters asking me some of the darndest things. I do not look at any of this in a make fun of kind of way at all.
There is nothing better than to talk to a pool player that has absolutely no idea on cue construction, what an a-joint or tenon is, buttsleeve or taper. All he knows is he wants a cue to feel right and shoot the way he wants one to shoot.
These are the customers I love to work with, you get to start from scratch, a blank pallet so to speak. And the feeling of walking them thru the total construction of a cue they really want, well it is priceless.
The best reward is , you happen to walk into a pool room and there is your customer, explaining what we had talked about construction, helping another player by explaining what he can , coming from our talks, and sharing with him what he has learned and listened to.
That my friends, is what it is all about! Not stupid, not at all! It is what we are supposed to do as
cuemakers. Don't ya think?

TAP, TAP, TAP!!!! VERY WELL said sir! Now if only more cuemakers thought like this, this could be a better venture for the consumer

 

[dukeboy1977]

maybe

I would rather have the dumb people because you can teach them something. The people that think they are smart are the biggest problem.

Well, there IS one problem with this though. Dumb people will inevitably remain dumb no matter what you tell them. "smart people" who 'think' they know something, but really don't and won't change their opinion, are also a problem. The ideal customer should be an intelligent individual with an 'idea' of what they want, yet have only minimal knowledge of cues, and are willing to listen and learn about your craft. Cuemaking is difficult work I'm sure, but when a cuemaker is not open to helping his customer learn anything so they might be able to understand their new cue, that has to make it harder for the cuemaker, AND a bad experience for the buyer. A buyer should want to understand, and a cuemaker should explain, the needs of a particular cue for it to play how the customer wants it to, or it is just a waste of both their time discussing it. JMHO

 

[Mr. Wiggles]

Education

Customers call me all the time, email me, pm me, and have several write letters asking me some of the darndest things. I do not look at any of this in a make fun of kind of way at all.
There is nothing better than to talk to a pool player that has absolutely no idea on cue construction, what an a-joint or tenon is, buttsleeve or taper. All he knows is he wants a cue to feel right and shoot the way he wants one to shoot.
These are the customers I love to work with, you get to start from scratch, a blank pallet so to speak. And the feeling of walking them thru the total construction of a cue they really want, well it is priceless.
The best reward is , you happen to walk into a pool room and there is your customer, explaining what we had talked about construction, helping another player by explaining what he can , coming from our talks, and sharing with him what he has learned and listened to.
That my friends, is what it is all about! Not stupid, not at all! It is what we are supposed to do as
cuemakers. Don't ya think?

. Absolutely! Having cue made right now and my man has given me a great education into his craft. Had I not had him build my cue it would have been a free education! He did mention some folks just pick his brain and have no intention of buying. Guess that just goes with the territory. Keep educating us players, it's just good business.

 

[Destroyer125]

I take on a lot of work from internet forums for custom anodizing work on various types of aluminum parts. Automotive parts, gun parts, and a massive number of paintball marker parts. The basic procedure and process is not a heavily guarded secret and guides to doing anodizing in a bucket are scattered all around the interweb along with the technical mumbo jumbo on what anodizing is and the different types. Customers are usually pretty silly when it comes to talking to me as well. I am speaking a different language when they talk to me about having parts done. "I would like to have my parts painted in solid white", they say. I go on about how the process creates an aluminum oxide coating that grows directly out of the surface of the aluminum and that white cannot be done because there is no such thing as a white dye. The coating is dyed like an easter egg, not painted. I have been asked several times if the parts could be dipped in milk. :withstupid:

 

[DaveK]

What time does the 8 o'clock boat leave?

I can tell that you've never been to Newfoundland eh !

A friend who traveled to the rock on occasion (and hated it btw) told the story of driving to the terminal at about 9:30 or so for the 10 o'clock ferry ... and found no ferry and no cars, the place was empty ! When he asked he was told "the 10 o'clock ferry leaves at 9 o'clock, everyone knows that !".

Dave

 

[Quesports]

Passion Flower!!!

I can tell that you've never been to Newfoundland eh !

A friend who traveled to the rock on occasion (and hated it btw) told the story of driving to the terminal at about 9:30 or so for the 10 o'clock ferry ... and found no ferry and no cars, the place was empty ! When he asked he was told "the 10 o'clock ferry leaves at 9 o'clock, everyone knows that !".

Dave

Hey Dave, Actually I have been to St John's. We were swordfishing out on the banks and went in to avoid some nasty weather. Drank up a storm and had some Skreech as well. If you haven't already read it and for anyone that hasn't there is a great book about the Newfie way of doing things. It's called The Boat Who Wouldn't Float, by Farley Mowat. Farley will keep you in stitches if you truly understand just how different life is in Newfoundland. I spent lots of time all over Nova Scotia in Yarmouth, Halifax, Port LaTour, Camapbello, and Cape Breton Island as well. The whole maritime region between Nova Scotia and Newfoundland is a remarkable place with some of the finest men of the sea anywhere. I was fortunate to be among them. Lucky for me on the transom of our fishing boat it read Gloucester, Mass as our home port. We were afforded a certain measure of respect because we were Gloucestermen!
Dan

 

[Blue Hog ridr]

Those Newfies are a different breed of cat. Friendliest folk you ever want to meet and I've not met one that didn't know his way around a pool table. Not much else to do in the fishing villages when you're down for the winter. Drink Skreech, beer and play pool.

 

[JoeyInCali]

Well, there IS one problem with this though. Dumb people will inevitably remain dumb no matter what you tell them. "smart people" who 'think' they know something, but really don't and won't change their opinion, are also a problem. The ideal customer should be an intelligent individual with an 'idea' of what they want, yet have only minimal knowledge of cues, and are willing to listen and learn about your craft. Cuemaking is difficult work I'm sure, but when a cuemaker is not open to helping his customer learn anything so they might be able to understand their new cue, that has to make it harder for the cuemaker, AND a bad experience for the buyer. A buyer should want to understand, and a cuemaker should explain, the needs of a particular cue for it to play how the customer wants it to, or it is just a waste of both their time discussing it. JMHO

The ideal customer is the one who knows what he wants.
Not the one who changes his mind everytime the moon is lined up wrong or something.
And for heaven's sake 19.0 oz and 19.2 have no difference.

 

[bnall]

The ideal customer is the one who knows what he wants.
Not the one who changes his mind everytime the moon is lined up wrong or something.
And for heaven's sake 19.0 oz and 19.2 have no difference.

Like me or cubswin? :grin:

 

[DaveK]

Hey Dave, Actually I have been to St John's. We were swordfishing out on the banks and went in to avoid some nasty weather. Drank up a storm and had some Skreech as well. If you haven't already read it and for anyone that hasn't there is a great book about the Newfie way of doing things. It's called The Boat Who Wouldn't Float, by Farley Mowat. Farley will keep you in stitches if you truly understand just how different life is in Newfoundland. I spent lots of time all over Nova Scotia in Yarmouth, Halifax, Port LaTour, Camapbello, and Cape Breton Island as well. The whole maritime region between Nova Scotia and Newfoundland is a remarkable place with some of the finest men of the sea anywhere. I was fortunate to be among them. Lucky for me on the transom of our fishing boat it read Gloucester, Mass as our home port. We were afforded a certain measure of respect because we were Gloucestermen!
Dan

Good place for sure, some of my best stories started in the merry-times !

Dave

 

[lenoxmjs]

The ideal customer is the one who knows what he wants.
Not the one who changes his mind everytime the moon is lined up wrong or something.
And for heaven's sake 19.0 oz and 19.2 have no difference.

Sure they do .2 to be exact

 

[JoeyInCali]

Sure they do .2 to be exact

:grin-square:
Helium inside solves that.

 

[n10spool]

Here's one i just got hit with in the pool hall in a middle of a tournament. I said hello to the manager then he turned around and yelled hello and I need to talk to you in a load voice you owe me a predator shaft from 3 years ago either give it back or reinburse me so I asked what was I supposed to do to it? All he could say was think about it in the last5 years I have not picked up a predator shaft in that pool hall onl worked on friends shafts that usually stayed the weekend because they were in the military. So he can't tell me what i was suppposed to do with it tip, ferrulle or clean it I do remember back then he wanted a new shaft made with a special taper from an Ed Prewitt taper machine but I didnt have it running then to make him one for him or out of a partial blank.

So do I buy him a shaft not knowing the real story but atleast I keep a friend. O r let him kick me out of the pool hall for a missing shaft that i dont remember having or 3 yrs ago i sold alot of equipment to buy better stuff but dont do anything other then tips and ferulles right now.

just weird timing,
Craig