high-end cue on a budget?

[Bigmeek]

Why don't you just buy a Plain ebony butted cue and have the splices added when you get the money, if you still want them. Obviously the splices won't make you play better, but you'll still have a top-end cue.

Snookerloopy Is that really a viable option? Hadn't really thought about that approach. Would it not be terribly expensive and would you not change the characteristics of the cue quite a lot? If you've done this sort of thing I'd love to hear about it. I've got an old Powerglide which I'm very fond of and was thinking I could maybe jazz it up a bit.

[MattCash]

Snookerloopy Would it not be terribly expensive and would you not change the characteristics of the cue quite a lot

More than likely. I personally wouldn't do this but it is an option, the only real advantage is, that If you wanted a top-end cue, it could work out cheaper by having it made by a certain maker then having splices added by someone who offers it at a lower price.

[Mick Dundee]

I've had some thuya burr splices added
to my Stamford cue
they havnt made any difference to how
the cue plays at all
I had four splices added instead of One
front splice of kingWood

the cost was around £100
don't think that it's cheaper to buy a cue
then have it altered

[Bigmeek]

JRobbins That Hunt & Osborne for sale just now on the Forum might be worth a look. Probably too soon for you. At £310 ono looks good.

[Bigmeek]

Mick Who did the work?

[Mick Dundee]

Paul at Stamford did the extra splices
as well as making the cue in the first place
as I said made sure the cue was the same
when I got it back apart from the splices
of course

[JRobbins]

thanks for the replies guys. have carried on looking and decided that splices mean nothing and when you're playing you cant even see them! so am looking for anything under £260 which is fantastic quality but with no particular need for splices. the things that are currently topping my list are
John Parris Ambassador
or
Mike Wooldridge Black Shark

However with the shark i'm not convinced its really a 'step up' from my mastercraft - what do you think?

[Bigmeek]

JRobbins I know I'm going to get shot to bits for this post but here goes:-
Personally I wouldn't buy a Parris cue because a lot of what you're paying for is in the name. JP is unlikely to have made the cue you get although he might have had some input into the selection of the wood and supervision of the manufacturing process. If I was Ronnie O'Sullivan I probably would buy (accept!!) a Parris cue.
A Black Shark from Mike W would be a good choice but could be pricey if you want something a bit different from standard eg, heavier or lighter etc. I got a quote a few months back and was staggered at the cost of just a few changes.
All things considered, unless you've got limitless funds, I think going for one of the mid-range price cues is the best option.

[JRobbins]

yeah, I understand what you mean there mate about JP. at the same time though I have heard great things from various people so it can't be all bad. with MW I'm cautious as I even though I'm happy to go with totally standard specs but I'm not convinced that the shark is any better quality than my mastercraft.

[hotpot]

thanks for the replies guys. have carried on looking and decided that splices mean nothing and when you're playing you cant even see them! so am looking for anything under £260 which is fantastic quality but with no particular need for splices. the things that are currently topping my list are
John Parris Ambassador
or
Mike Wooldridge Black Shark

However with the shark i'm not convinced its really a 'step up' from my mastercraft - what do you think?

Your paying extra for the difference in attention to detail and maybe the selection of woods.

As for how they play its a total lottery . Ive paid £300-400 for a top end cue and found a cheap machine spliced powerglide which suieted me and played better for me .

Its nice to have a nice looking cue with fancy trimmings but i,d trade that in for a cheap cue which i could use better any day .

[jrc750]

This cue may have suited you BUT it sold within 6 minutes
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.d...m=170495395774

[JRobbins]

yeah I hear what you're saying hotpot, one things for sure my mastercraft just doesn't feel like it should, technically it's ok but I don't feel like I have that 'connection' with the cue that I want. but I guess that doesn't mean a JP will feel any better I guess. then again there are some things which I would hope could be guarrenteed to be better on a more expensive cues, for example straightness of the chevrons, the balance and smoothness.

[poolqjunkie]

Yes, I think you are right in thinking that a cue custom made for you, or one with "higher quality" probably is better built and is of higher quality. The cue maker would have (or perhaps should have) put in more time into selecting the material and building the cue.
However, it is not to say that such a cue would "connect" with you better. Cue is a very funny thing, you may find something that no one else likes and plays the light out with it.
If you really know the kind of spec that you want in a cue, perhaps find a cue maker who is willing to listen and offer you his advice, and you will most likely be happy with your cue. As to which one, i think there are many great cue makers out there and they are all capable to meet your needs as long as you communicate with them.
If you are not sure what you are looking for, I would suggest to try out many cues with different spec, and again try to communicate with your cue maker of choice. A lot of people look for the name or whatever but I think one very important thing is the balance and the next is the taper of the shaft. Different cue maker could use quite a different taper and some believe in making their cues more front heavy than others. It is something you need to find out for yourself. You need to know what is the ideal dimension/balance for you or you may still find this new cue not connecting with you.
Yes, I agree with you that splices do not pot balls. And a well made plain ebony ash cue can look really nice.
Good luck.