Any Shops with Wooldrige/Parris Cues

[djyates]

Hmm not sure where I sit on this, I assume you don't actually know Martin but he just told you this as a customer?
If that's the case then he shouldn't be telling you things about other people that he doesn't want you to repeat.
If someone were to say to me Mikes cues are made in Thailand I would say they are wrong, but I'm curious why no one "in the know" so to speak has come out and said that... Surely the best way to deal with it is "No Mikes cues are made in the UK"
The same allegations get made about Parris all the time and every time the answer you get is a definitive "no they are not"...
This is turning out to be a very bemusing thread

And for the record I couldn't care less where cues are made as long as this fact is transparent. I couldn't care less if Mikes cues are made on the moon and then finished off by trained monkeys in his workshop. Your still buying the same quality brand.

Exactly! That is the point I was making: I don't care where a cue is made, as long as the manufacturer is honest about it. I've only heard good things about Thai cues, but having read all of Mike's website, I would still be shocked to hear that his cues were actually made in Thailand (and I think most people would be).

No I don't know Martin at all. He just made those comments to me as a customer. I tried to make it clear at the time that I didn't believe him.

Confused...

Donny.

[snookerpoolman]

I went down to Martin's place myself in the end. Reading you article I felt De ja vue. I had a very similar experience. Like you he did not put me off the MW cues either. Reading all the positive reviews here on MW cues are worth much more than one visit to a shop.

Having said that the one MW cue I saw I was not that impressed with. More aesthetics than playability.[/QUOTE]

the thing is there is nothing wrong with cues made in thailand - the mastercue one piece i have just sold is as good a cue as anyone can make anywhere.

From the details in posts submitted in this thread, it seems that Martin should have pointed out that the Mastercue he was trying to sell, and recommending over and above the MW cues, was made in Thailand. Sure the county of origin does not guarantee or exclude quality, but if you need an alteration or repair after purchase it's better to have it done by the original maker who know's the cue cos they made it. e.g. for adding a butt joint or extra weight...

dj - be aware of a certain amount of bias towards expensive cues on here...your best bet is to pop over to Chessie and try a few out...

[jrc750]

Thai cues are very good indeed BUT are sub £200
Mikes cues are very good indeed BUT are over £500

If Mikes cues are indeed part/wholly made in Thailand why the big price difference ???

[ADR147]

the reason people have a bias towards expensive cues on here is the age old rule of life "you get what you pay for!"

[ADR147]

Thai cues are very good indeed BUT are sub £200
Mikes cues are very good indeed BUT are over £500

If Mikes cues are indeed part/wholly made in Thailand why the big price difference ???

you pay because mike says they are good enough to bear his name regardless of how or where they were made.

[snookerpoolman]

the reason people have a bias towards expensive cues on here is the age old rule of life "you get what you pay for!"

mmmm... yeah that's fine as it goes, but does a £500 cue make and average or even good amateur player play better than a £200 cue???

I've got a mate local to me who had a 1 piece fancy pants cue made by JP. He travelled all the way down there 150 miles, paid £600 (not inc. a case) and don't get me wrong it looks lovely, but this lad could clear up with a rack cue...

Sometimes the balance needs to be redressed....:snooker:

[ADR147]

mmmm... yeah that's fine as it goes, but does a £500 cue make and average or even good amateur player play better than a £200 cue???

I've got a mate local to me who had a 1 piece fancy pants cue made by JP. He travelled all the way down there 150 miles, paid £600 (not inc. a case) and don't get me wrong it looks lovely, but this lad could clear up with a rack cue...

Sometimes the balance needs to be redressed....:snooker:

absolutely and i have to say that i sell more mastercraft cues than most other because most people don't want to spend the price of a second hand car on a cue!

[snookerpoolman]

absolutely and i have to say that i sell more mastercraft cues than most other because most people don't want to spend the price of a second hand car on a cue!

Yeah dont know much about Mastercraft. Presume they're UK made? I wouldn't knock any other cue maker (or seller for that matter, hence not being picky about MC), as I play snooker with a Parris myself (a severely altered and bent Parris, but they still go in the pockets a lot of the time) and a Powerglide Mannock for pool. I could have any style/specification/design of Cue Craft cue I so desired if I wanted to and may well do if either of my trusty steeds gets damaged in the future.
I've supplied loads of Cue Craft hand spliced and they've done me lots of jointing/weighting alterations over the years and they always do a quality job, hence I am more than happy to represent them on here.

So dont think I'm saying Cue Craft are the only ones that make good cues, NO, I realise there are other good cue makers out there, but peoples opinions are often influenced wrongly that you need to spend £300 - £500 on a cue for it to be of any use on a snooker table... I know that not to be true...

[1lawyer]

I paid a awful lot more for my 9 ball cue than any snooker cue I have ever owned and I have had some really really good snooker cues...
Personally I think all snooker cues, even the top makes, are cheap but paying a high price does not always mean you will like it in your hand.

If you like a cue then it is worth it... does not matter if that cue is 20 bucks or two thousand and it does not really matter who makes it because if you really like it you wont be selling it on will you.

[ADR147]

Yeah dont know much about Mastercraft. Presume they're UK made? I wouldn't knock any other cue maker (or seller for that matter, hence not being picky about MC), as I play snooker with a Parris myself (a severely altered and bent Parris, but they still go in the pockets a lot of the time) and a Powerglide Mannock for pool. I could have any style/specification/design of Cue Craft cue I so desired if I wanted to and may well do if either of my trusty steeds gets damaged in the future.
I've supplied loads of Cue Craft hand spliced and they've done me lots of jointing/weighting alterations over the years and they always do a quality job, hence I am more than happy to represent them on here.

So dont think I'm saying Cue Craft are the only ones that make good cues, NO, I realise there are other good cue makers out there, but peoples opinions are often influenced wrongly that you need to spend £300 - £500 on a cue for it to be of any use on a snooker table... I know that not to be true...

yes mastercraft are uk made. i sell cue craft also and they are great people to deal with the trouble is that for the range i like ie the triumph range people just don't buy them! and i agree that they should!

[ste bed]

you pay because mike says they are good enough to bear his name regardless of how or where they were made.

so are you saying that if they are made in thailand its ok that mike says there made in the uk because there very good cues.

[ADR147]

so are you saying that if they are made in thailand its ok that mike says there made in the uk because there very good cues.

not at all - if mike says they are made in the uk then they will be but he is entitled to say nothing.

[maximumbreak]

Most good wood does not originate in the UK...so if there's a chance that the best quality materials can be shipped into the UK part finished ready made for producing a good snooker cue then why wouldn't anyone buy into this?

I believe there is a trend for many UK cuemakers to source their materials from the far East.

Re. the Chesworth debate, why shouldn't Martin build one cuemaker up over another? Okay, he provides a service and as part of that he should pass on reliable information to customers - fact. If he truly believes there is more value in a Mastercue or Mastercraft than the so called elite cuemakers then he can say what he likes in my opinion. For what its worth, I believe that there is much more value in a respectably priced cue made by Mastercraft or Mastercue :-)

[djyates]

Most good wood does not originate in the UK...so if there's a chance that the best quality materials can be shipped into the UK part finished ready made for producing a good snooker cue then why wouldn't anyone buy into this?

I believe there is a trend for many UK cuemakers to source their materials from the far East.

Re. the Chesworth debate, why shouldn't Martin build one cuemaker up over another? Okay, he provides a service and as part of that he should pass on reliable information to customers - fact. If he truly believes there is more value in a Mastercue or Mastercraft than the so called elite cuemakers then he can say what he likes in my opinion. For what its worth, I believe that there is much more value in a respectably priced cue made by Mastercraft or Mastercue :-)

Of course. I didn't have a problem with Martin giving me his opinions about the cues - quite the opposite - it was very helpful to get his views. Based on his advice, I'm seriously considering getting a Mastercue. The only problem I had was with the hostility he showed towards MW and the claims he made were, in my opinion, out of line (if false).

The debate about origins raises an interesting question: at what point does a piece of ash become a MW or JP or TW cue? Again, I don't really care as long as the cue maker is honest about where it is from / how much work they did, etc. And, if you use the best Thai sourced ash for your cues, why wouldn't you shout about it on your website? It wouldn't put me off in any way.

Donny.

[willytan]

IMO,
Be it the cue shaft is from china, Thailand or even Vietnam, the cue maker must be able to select the best out of the lot in order to produce a good quality cue.

A lot of branded clothing which we worn on our body is labelled ie zara, polo or Gap. Does each and everyone of them all come from the originating country of the brand? Nope!! They don not. But do they feel inferior when you wear them? Nope!

So it doesn't matter whether the cue is from the far east or far west, and then badge under a certain master cue maker. It is how sharp or skillful enough to select the good ones from the lots, customize those that is slightly inferior that he have bought to a certain high standard and then badge them under his name. That is also why he is able to command £500 instead of £200 which MC is charging even though the shaft is from the same factory. If he is to just badge each n everyone of the lot that he have bought, god bless him that his name & reputation will still be hanging high up on everyone's heart after such many years.