For some time I've been lamenting my future situation after I soon change over my Schon 314/2 to a new OBXL+ shaft. It just seemed such a waste to have my Predator shaft just collecting dust in my cue rack.
Then the blessed light bulb moment. I went downstairs, removed the now toothpick replacement shaft from my 1963 Willie Hoppe Professional Brunswick cue, and with baited breath, screwed the 314/2 on to my 53 year old Hoppe.
It fit absolutely perfectly.
I bought the Hoppe in 1963 when I was 15 years old. I paid the full Brunswick retail, if memory serves, of $19.95 at a local Cleveland Brunswick bowling and billiard shop; the Kegler shop on Lee Road. I remember that day so vividly since it had taken months for me to save up for the cue. My mom had to drive me there, and I can still remember her thinking I was absolutely crazy for spending that amount of my own money on a silly pool cue.
Except for the last 3 years when we moved and I finally found my dream Anniversary and treated myself also to a new Schon, I literally shot each and every shot for 53 years with my ol' faithful Hoppe.
The cue was my pride and joy and was always carefully maintained, although it of course shows the patina of a lifetime of fun and joy.
The cue is in absolutely great condition, but I relegated it to a keepsake thinking that it wasn't worth much compared with all the new advancements in pool technology. As a young teenager, I removed the butt cap and drilled it out and filled it with lead so as to increase the weight as I too was still growing. I later thought lesser of the idea, and removed the lead weight and in the process it somehow ended up having a non original rubber bumper. At least I seem to think it is, in that I think it originally had a hard screw on cap. It's somewhat vague after all these years.
At this point, the Schon shaft decal doesn't line up perfectly with the turquoise Brunswick decal, and while fitting the Brunswick joint perfectly, it now has the expected mismatch of a brass color and the Schon black and silver trim ring.
I could absolutely care less. After a quick polishing of the butt and the smooth original leather wrap, this cue looks and plays as well as I had remembered in all those games so long ago and far away.
It took a few racks to readjust to the larger butt diameter, but after I settled in, I was again in love.
It's hard to put into words how one feels playing on a mint original Anniversary with what was one of the classic cues of that time. If you weren't around, you really missed out. The hobby literally and albeit temporarily, exploded after that Newman guy made a movie about the sport. For a brief time in college, I can remember double dating with a friend and actually making a few games of pool the center of our evenings.
As for me, I'm absolutely ecstatic to have been reunited with my lifelong friend. She ain't all that pretty, but damn, she's got an enormous amount life an soul.
Then the blessed light bulb moment. I went downstairs, removed the now toothpick replacement shaft from my 1963 Willie Hoppe Professional Brunswick cue, and with baited breath, screwed the 314/2 on to my 53 year old Hoppe.
It fit absolutely perfectly.
I bought the Hoppe in 1963 when I was 15 years old. I paid the full Brunswick retail, if memory serves, of $19.95 at a local Cleveland Brunswick bowling and billiard shop; the Kegler shop on Lee Road. I remember that day so vividly since it had taken months for me to save up for the cue. My mom had to drive me there, and I can still remember her thinking I was absolutely crazy for spending that amount of my own money on a silly pool cue.
Except for the last 3 years when we moved and I finally found my dream Anniversary and treated myself also to a new Schon, I literally shot each and every shot for 53 years with my ol' faithful Hoppe.
The cue was my pride and joy and was always carefully maintained, although it of course shows the patina of a lifetime of fun and joy.
The cue is in absolutely great condition, but I relegated it to a keepsake thinking that it wasn't worth much compared with all the new advancements in pool technology. As a young teenager, I removed the butt cap and drilled it out and filled it with lead so as to increase the weight as I too was still growing. I later thought lesser of the idea, and removed the lead weight and in the process it somehow ended up having a non original rubber bumper. At least I seem to think it is, in that I think it originally had a hard screw on cap. It's somewhat vague after all these years.
At this point, the Schon shaft decal doesn't line up perfectly with the turquoise Brunswick decal, and while fitting the Brunswick joint perfectly, it now has the expected mismatch of a brass color and the Schon black and silver trim ring.
I could absolutely care less. After a quick polishing of the butt and the smooth original leather wrap, this cue looks and plays as well as I had remembered in all those games so long ago and far away.
It took a few racks to readjust to the larger butt diameter, but after I settled in, I was again in love.
It's hard to put into words how one feels playing on a mint original Anniversary with what was one of the classic cues of that time. If you weren't around, you really missed out. The hobby literally and albeit temporarily, exploded after that Newman guy made a movie about the sport. For a brief time in college, I can remember double dating with a friend and actually making a few games of pool the center of our evenings.
As for me, I'm absolutely ecstatic to have been reunited with my lifelong friend. She ain't all that pretty, but damn, she's got an enormous amount life an soul.
