Why buy a custom cue over a factory made one?

JohnPT said:
Not all cues are the same but any decent cue will do the job. Shane and his Cuetec R360 proves this.
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With hours and hours of playing with it he shoots well with it. From my understanding it is an off the shelf version as well. Schon, Viking, Action, Duffrin and Mcdermott all are production cues and they all play different. The advantage to playing with a custom cue is what made me start building my own cues. Back in the late 80s I had every production cue and could not find one that "fit" me. So in high school I started making my own cues (horrible playing) and started changing things here and there to make the hit feel like I wanted it to. The smallest things make the biggest difference and it took several years to get what I wanted, but I have it. For me the biggest eye opener was when I had a Hurricane sneaky pete made with a steel joint....it was a thinner steel joint sleeved over black linen. It had more of a straight taper instead of the long Muecci taper. That was around 95 maybe? After I hit the first ball with it I knew what I wanted in a cue. With a custom cue builder you generally get someone who can relate to your issues with the way your production cues play. For playing on bar boxes and banging stay with the production cues. Bar boxes beat up cues pretty bad and you really don't have to move the cue ball as much on them as compared to big tables. I still have my old brass jointed Viking that I used to play with back in the 80s so I am not bashing or hating on production cues. I am just saying if you can't find a cue you are in love with talk to a custom maker. I tell most people to let me see what we do to their cue to make it more to their liking before spending money on a custom. Case in point is most people dont like the way Schons play from the factory anymore and say they hit too hard and they can't get english out of it....the fix is to retaper the shaft and they are happy. Custom is not always the fix.
 
If you've only been playing for a short time, you probably haven't yet got a solid idea of what's best for you. Stick with a cue for a while unless you just like to buy nicer things.
 
RBC said:
Daniel

Going the custom route gives you more choice in design and materials and a little more involvement in the construction process. My only recommendations for going this route is to really know you're cuemaker before doing a deal with him. Over the last several years there have been hundreds of new cuemakers. While I believe that all have good intentions, some get caught up in life's issues and fail to deliver what they have promised. Please don't take this as a reason not to buy a custom cue, but just a recommendation to choose wisely.

If you go the more porduction route, then I'll give you a few reasons to consider our OB cues. We do build our cues in groups of certain models so we can offer a better quality designed and built cue at a better price. What we don't do is short cut the cue building process. In fact we do quite a few things that other production cue companies don't and even a few things that no custom cuemakers do.

Of course the first thing you notice is our Infinity inlays. We have developed a new technology that enables us to produce inlays with razor sharp points without using any "cheats" like filling rounded holes with colored epoxy. There is a reason the custom cues with sharp inlays are almost always ivory into ebony or something similar.

Next, we use high figured woods and quality materials. We're more like a custom cuemaker in choosing our woods.

Our signature silver stitch rings are very unique in a production cue. We use them for a very specific purpose. Many custom makers use silver in either stitches or rings, or both together. While there are some production companies who use silver in rings, which is pretty easy, we chose not to use them because they have a tendency to "pop" or fracture the finish around them over time. The way we build our rings with the vertical stitches gives us a great look with lots of bling, but shouldn't have the finish issues of silver rings.

The last thing I'll mention is the foundation for our cues. Our Straight Line Core system, or SLC, is stronger and more stable than any other way to build a cue. It takes more work, but the result is a cue that plays better and will last longer.

Of course there are more, but those are the big ones. Sorry for the sales pitch, but I'm pretty proud of our cues.

Royce Bunnell
www.obcues.com
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The OB cues I've played flair out a lot towards the butt.
That's my only complaint about the cues.
As to the shafts I had a bad experience with a shaft I got for my Schon.
Was very sticky, impossible to get a smooth stroke from it regardless of humidity (only way was to have on a glove), anyway....ended up returning it.
I'm sure it may have been an isolated incidence.
 
jhugo said:
Royce,

Where in Mass or close by can I try out all your cues - I'm kind of in the same boat as the OP, but I want to try stuff out - on your website it lists a place in Billerica - no website, no location, and number just rings through?

Cue companies should create something like the golf fitting carts - small package - try all the combos out from a production cue company and then order.

I could even see this being a service you sent out to folks. In other words you have a kit - I pay $100 or something for you to ship me the box with the 7-8 butts and 4-6 shafts - you of course insure the package - I try them out to my hearts content for say three days and then I ship them back to you, if I purchase a cue my $100 fee for the demo package comes off my cue price. Either way you probably make money and I can't see needing more than a few of these demo kits... especially for those of us in a spot without a dealer close by.

Best
John
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Go to any major pool hall, there is bound to be players playing with an OB shaft.

If they sent pool cues to players to try, they would be spending half their time trying to track down stolen cues ;):D
 
hang-the-9 said:
Go to any major pool hall, there is bound to be players playing with an OB shaft.

If they sent pool cues to players to try, they would be spending half their time trying to track down stolen cues ;):D
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Or if you play in a league there is bound to be a few in attendance on league night that someone will let you hit some balls with.
 
custom and prod cues

Alex Pagulayun plays with an OB 121 sneaky if it's good enough for him you know the rest............
 
I love all cues if there well-made. I play at a pretty decent speed and
have a lot of cues that I've bought and sold as a hobby. I have one
of the older rosewood model Poison cue that I've sold and guys
have traded back to go to a bigger cue about 5 or 6 different times.
Personally I love the hit of the cue and have been playing with it
exclusively, even though I barely play anymore as it is.
I tell guys all the time, if you like the hobby of flipping like I do then
go for it. If you want your game to improve, then get a cue that's solid
and your comfortable with and stick to it.
Custom or Production, doesn't really matter, as long as its built properly
with good materials. After all, there all made from wood, no matter who's
name is on it.
 
mcdermotts

I agree with the i2 shaft someone recomended. Before you spend the money on another cuetry thei2 and get lessons with what you save on a cue .
 
rayjay said:
I think the difference really comes down to build tolerances, the custom is a tighter, more precise instrument. Sure, they both make balls, just like a house cue off the wall, you really don't have to spend a cent if that's the only consideration.
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Yes, you would hope so. Unfortunately it seems that is not always the case. Therefore really need a reputable cue maker.
 
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