What questions do I ask a cuemaker?

F

fathomblue

Rusty Shackleford
Silver Member
I stumbled across this site a few months ago and have pretty much lurked since that time. What a WEALTH of info on here! Kudos to all who contribute in a positive manner.

My question for today is........what are the right questions to ask of a custom cue maker? What options are generally available? What options are usually expensive? What options are "must haves" no matter the price? What details actually don't cost as much as one would think?

Is there a custom cue red flag? As in....if the cuemaker says...."insert comment here"....I need to just walk away.

I'm a low-Intermediate level player (according to the skill tests I've tried). I've played off and on for maybe 20 years (I'm 37). I just re-covered my home/commercial 8 ft. table with Simonis 860 cloth and purchased the new Aramith Tournament ball set. I'm trying to upgrade my equipment all around, so that I have very few excuses to not be decent at the sport of billiards.

I'm also looking very closely at attending RandyG's pool school in Dallas sometime in the late Fall or maybe the Spring of 2012....mutual schedules permitting. So, I'm trying to do all of this right.

My current cue is a Meucci 333-5 that I bought new in 1992. I love the design, but over the years, it seems like it never just felt.....right. Not bad, but not....right. I've noticed for quite a while now that the shaft has warped. I considered just buying a nicer shaft for the upgrade and calling it good. But, after surfing this site, I'm thinking maybe I should consider a entry-level custom cue (is there such a thing?).

But, while I have a cuemaker or 2 in mind.......what questions do I ask them when I'm trying to get a quote? Besides weight, color scheme preference....I'm a bit at a loss as to what's available to me.

FWIW, I'd say my budget is somewhere around $400-$750 (absolute stretching my budget at the far end).

Thanks for any and all suggestions! BTW, I hope this is the right sub-forum. I figured the cuemakers themselves would know what the right questions are.........
 
First of all, RandyG's pool school will be a great step for you.

Ask any questions you like. Ask a lot of them, and ask a lot of builders. And be prepared because the builders will likely have questions for you, too. There are no set rules or guidelines. Each builder has his own style & own methods. Some have formulas they stick to pretty strictly while others are truly custom to build exactly what you ask for. All want you to be happy. So do your shopping & choose the best for you.
 
Mine are CTE friendly. :grin:

I say go to a show and see a ton of cues first .
 
Red Flags.

How cheap can u make it?


Any sentence that includes Chinese. Unless u offer to buy dinner.

Sent from my BlackBerry 9800 using Tapatalk
 
Never ask:
Can you build me a cue that plays just like a (Insert Brand)?
or
Can you make me a copy of a Balabushka and not sign it?
or
Can you ship an Ivory inlaid cue to my friend in Canada?
or
Can I come watch you build it?

The first question is an insult,
The second shows dishonest plans.
The third is just plain illegal.
The forth is just not happening. :smile:

Things you can ask:
Can you descibe how your cue hits?
Do you have a test cue I can hit some balls with?
How much will it cost for such and such design?
Can you make some design suggestions?
How long will it take to complete it?
How much of a deposit is needed?
Do you have any completed cues ready to sell?
How much is an extra shaft?
Do you make custom joint protectors?
What type of joint options do you offer?
Are your shafts all interchangeable?
How long have you been making cues?

You can ask just about anything that shows sincere interest.
But avoid questions that show you doubt the cuemaker's abilities.
Recently a customer insults my son by telling him that at 27 he can't have enough experience to build his cue. He went on to explain that someone would need at least three or four years experience. When my son told him that he had been building cues since before he even started high school, the guy then asks who we would recommend if he were not going to buy one from us. He has called at least 4 or 5 times with insulting questions similar to that one. I have talked to him and had those same wasted time conversations. My daughter's advice is to memorize his phone number and not answer if it pops up on the caller ID. I didn't follow that advice, but was tempted to.

Remember this. Your phone call is probably costing the cuemaker between fifty cents to a dollar a minute of lost time in his shop. Please only call if sincere about buying a cue and be considerate of that time.
 
Questions for cuemakers

fathomblue said:
I stumbled across this site a few months ago and have pretty much lurked since that time. What a WEALTH of info on here! Kudos to all who contribute in a positive manner.

My question for today is........what are the right questions to ask of a custom cue maker? What options are generally available? What options are usually expensive? What options are "must haves" no matter the price? What details actually don't cost as much as one would think?

Is there a custom cue red flag? As in....if the cuemaker says...."insert comment here"....I need to just walk away.

I'm a low-Intermediate level player (according to the skill tests I've tried). I've played off and on for maybe 20 years (I'm 37). I just re-covered my home/commercial 8 ft. table with Simonis 860 cloth and purchased the new Aramith Tournament ball set. I'm trying to upgrade my equipment all around, so that I have very few excuses to not be decent at the sport of billiards.

I'm also looking very closely at attending RandyG's pool school in Dallas sometime in the late Fall or maybe the Spring of 2012....mutual schedules permitting. So, I'm trying to do all of this right.

My current cue is a Meucci 333-5 that I bought new in 1992. I love the design, but over the years, it seems like it never just felt.....right. Not bad, but not....right. I've noticed for quite a while now that the shaft has warped. I considered just buying a nicer shaft for the upgrade and calling it good. But, after surfing this site, I'm thinking maybe I should consider a entry-level custom cue (is there such a thing?).

But, while I have a cuemaker or 2 in mind.......what questions do I ask them when I'm trying to get a quote? Besides weight, color scheme preference....I'm a bit at a loss as to what's available to me.

FWIW, I'd say my budget is somewhere around $400-$750 (absolute stretching my budget at the far end).

Thanks for any and all suggestions! BTW, I hope this is the right sub-forum. I figured the cuemakers themselves would know what the right questions are.........
Click to expand...

Most important for myself would be are you a one man shop? Many makers are somewhat eccentric and want to do it all. That's a good thing. How many cues a year do you make? Think about it. One guy who does everything having five cues in the oven every month. Sixty cues a year! That's reasonable. How long to make my cue? If he says a month, start running, fast. The shafts are constantly being turned many months in advance, so they are somewhat ready to go at any time. Butts take months to turn IMO. Not a cue maker myself but it should take about a half a year to make your custom cue. Of course he may have some ready to go and that's okay, but most of the elite only start when they have a customer. Educate yourself and get your questions lined up so you don't waste his time. Ask any questions you like, he has heard it all. Also ask if he cores butts and why or why not. It's easy to explain why you core but harder to explain why you don't. If you don't understand coring, look it up, it's the Internet!!! LOL that's what my kids tell me! Think about supporting a cue maker in your area, even in your town. There are great makers who are somewhat off the radar and they need your business more than the big boys do! Reflected in their reasonable prices. Know what specs you want. Good luck.
 
First of all, I am NOT a cue maker. However, I have been through the 'journey' of ordering a custom cue more than a few times. Throughout that, I have learned a few lessons.

You mention that you currently play with a Meucci, but are not quite happy with it. The first question to ask yourself is....what is it about the Meucci that you don't like? Is it the way it feels when it hits the CB? Is it the weight distribution throughout the cue (balance)? Does the butt feel too meaty or too thin? Shaft taper?

Next time you play with your cue, try and think about what it is that just doesn't feel quite right to you, and if possible, jot it down so that you can reference that later when talking to a cue maker. It may well help a maker to determine what you may be looking for in the way a cue plays.

Joey's comment is also a very good suggestion, if possible. If you cannot make a cue show...how about those who play in the same area as yourself? Do any of them have cues that you might be able to try out for a rack or two? If so, again, jot down what make/maker of cue it is, and what about it you liked and disliked. If it's a custom cue, quite likely the owner will be more than happy to talk about it with you, and will know most, if not all, the specs of that cue. Things to note would be: maker, forward or back balance, overall weight, joint/pin type, shaft taper, ferrule/tip, butt diameter (thin or thick), overall cue length, and if the cue has a wrap, what type?

Consider this your 'homework' or Phase One. It will go a long way to help you and a maker get you into a cue more suited to your playing style, and ultimately increase your confidence at the table.


While I did do some homework on my very first full blown custom cue order, I didn't do quite enough. The whole process itself went quite smoothly, and the maker produced the prettiest, most fully loaded cue I could afford ($2500). His execution was flawless. I played with the cue for 6 months or so when I realized I just could not settle in with it. No one's fault but my own. I kept the cue until an unforeseen financial obligation forced me to part with it. When I purchased a much lesser expensive sneaky pete (shop stock) to tide me over from a different maker, the light bulb went off! It was very much a happy accident, or kismet.

Since then, I have a whole lot better idea of just what it is I love in a cue. The last 3 or so cues I have commissioned have not only come out looking exactly as I had hoped for, but played even better than I could have hoped for.

I'm gonna leave it at that for now...because it's a good starting point. Believe it or not, once you figured out what you like, the rest is much easier all the way around.

Lisa
 
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Lisa, aren't you forgetting something.
You have to ask what kind of Chatoyancy, the wood has, right?
Haha, I got to say that word again.
 
Blue Hog ridr said:
Lisa, aren't you forgetting something.
You have to ask what kind of Chatoyancy, the wood has, right?
Haha, I got to say that word again.
Click to expand...

LoL!! Glad you are having fun with it. I am trying to take this in steps.....figure out what he likes first, and then he can move on to the woods that might be suitable. Cue makers being more informed than I as to what might work for him or not. I personally prefer Bocote and Tulip and some Rosewoods in a playing cue...most not having any chatoyant value, save perhaps the Bois de Rose. :grin-loving:

Lisa
 
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Thanks for the replies!

To turn the tables....what questions do cuemakers ask of customers?

I'd like to already have some things in mind, so I'm not stumped. I have no clues about wraps available, what the best tip is nowadays, how hard the tip should be, strictly shooting with no breaking, etc.

I do know that I'm a small guy. About 5'5"....185 lbs, but I carry it well. I also have very small hands, so I'd need a tapered shaft. Not sure what my options are on those.

What's the standard length of a cue? I guess I should measure my current Meucci. I think the shaft has a decent taper to it. I had Billiard Pro Shop shave it down by special order, but I don't know the size.

Does taper size affect deflection?

I wish I knew more about this, but I'm just now learning the intricacies of cues.
 
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