What Cue?

[sberry]

If somebody said to you that you could have a new custom made cue, from who would you choose to make the cue?

There are far too many pages of good and bad points in threads on here to work through so I would just like to see some opinions from players who have had a custom build cue.

I have played with various cues before, had a JP cue made but didn't like it so gave it to my brother in law and am currently using an antique.

Any thoughts or comments gratefully accepted without wishing to start any sort of fight, just innocent references please.

[jrc750]

.... had a JP cue made but didn't like it so gave it to my brother in law and am currently using an antique...

I think that hits the nail on the head, doesn't matter who you get to make your cue, there are no guarantees that it will suit you.
But for the record my Robin Cook cue plays very well for me, thank god after a 55 week wait !!!

[Deepscrew]

IMO - You will most likely get a beautiful cue from any of the following:

Parris (good service, well known brand, few months for a standard cue, over a year for an Ultimate)
Wooldridge (excellent service, not well known unless your a 'cue buff' - multiple months wait in general)
Trevor White (difficult to get hold of, not well known unless your a 'cue buff' - a year wait at least)
Coutts (good service, not well known unless your a 'cue buff' - over a year wait)
Robin Cook (not taking orders)
Mastercraft (can be difficult to get hold of at times, short wait times however of 2 months ish)
Glover - (good service, more than a few months wait time)


So really, imo it all goes on how long your prepared to wait and if you want responses to your emails during the cue build process. They are all top cue makers and wont sell you rubbish.

[willtyson]

Deepscrew is IMO spot on, although I'd add Stamford to the list as well :snooker:

[Deepscrew]

Havent ever seen a Stamford or dealt with them so cannot pass opinion.....what's there service like?


Also OP, one thing to make sure when you order a cue is that you you know your specs and what you want before you contact the maker. Emailing them over and over with question regarding spec only winds them up. Also changing specs half way through an order is annoying for them. Dont do it.

[willtyson]

Havent ever seen a Stamford or dealt with them so cannot pass opinion.....what's there service like?


Also OP, one thing to make sure when you order a cue is that you you know your specs and what you want before you contact the maker. Emailing them over and over with question regarding spec only winds them up. Also changing specs half way through an order is annoying for them. Dont do it.

I have a custom case from them and their service is second to none, fantastic!

[NorthWestJunior]

If I was to order a cue tomorrow I'd be ordering a legend from Wooldridge. Although I've never actually owned a Wooldridge I have never seen a bad review of one of his cues in the few months I've been apart of this forum. All the reviews I have seen highlight the blackspin ferrule, attention to detail in the splicing and shaft choice etc. and the overall finish to the cue. The pictures that some members have uploaded also look top notch. His experience and knowledge in cue making also comes across as nothing short of superb and apparently great service.

[haggishunter]

Don't think he does custom orders but getting in touch with ramo147 on here may be a goos shout, see if he has something almost ready, i got one at the start of month and its lovely. It's plays really nice, i ordered a cook a while back, think I've got about 11 or so months left to wait for that.... But I've never heard a bad word about them, or a wooldridge, dave coutts too.

[matt926_uk]

In my limited experience of cues i have the following things to say:

Wooldridge:- perfect cue and excellent service
Stamford:- very good cue and excellent service
Glover:- i've seen 3 glovers and all 3 have had slight bends

If i was to order a cue tommorrow i would probably get a John Parris special because i fancy trying one from him

[jd147]

Free to buy what you desire, it's your money, but NO CUE from any cue maker will automatically make you a better player, the better you get the less you will be interested in who makes what cue at what price. Your prime concern should be your cue action timing and accuracy in reading potting angles. The Shanghai Masters is played at the moment and the display forum at the venue is full of cues of Chinese manufacture from medium quality to absolute top, ask any of the participating players who have looked at and tried the cues how they compare to cues of the cuemakers you mentioned here! My own playing cue is an old Peradon Royal one piece I had cut down to my size, it has a very straight grained ash shaft and a lovely plain ebony butt, I have had the cue for near 16 years now and for me it is better then any Parris Ultimate etc. I have ever tried. Besides I would never buy a cue sight unseen or untried. If you want a cue that suits you go to where you have the largest choice, and where you can actually try the cues before you buy, you would have to be extremely lucky to get one by mailorder that is both viually and playwise exactly what you want.

IMO - You will most likely get a beautiful cue from any of the following:

Parris (good service, well known brand, few months for a standard cue, over a year for an Ultimate)
Wooldridge (excellent service, not well known unless your a 'cue buff' - multiple months wait in general)
Trevor White (difficult to get hold of, not well known unless your a 'cue buff' - a year wait at least)
Coutts (good service, not well known unless your a 'cue buff' - over a year wait)
Robin Cook (not taking orders)
Mastercraft (can be difficult to get hold of at times, short wait times however of 2 months ish)
Glover - (good service, more than a few months wait time)


So really, imo it all goes on how long your prepared to wait and if you want responses to your emails during the cue build process. They are all top cue makers and wont sell you rubbish.

[pat_wong]

Hi do you or any one have the address link for the order of stamford cue. Thanks very much.

[willtyson]

Free to buy what you desire, it's your money, but NO CUE from any cue maker will automatically make you a better player, the better you get the less you will be interested in who makes what cue at what price. Your prime concern should be your cue action timing and accuracy in reading potting angles. The Shanghai Masters is played at the moment and the display forum at the venue is full of cues of Chinese manufacture from medium quality to absolute top, ask any of the participating players who have looked at and tried the cues how they compare to cues of the cuemakers you mentioned here! My own playing cue is an old Peradon Royal one piece I had cut down to my size, it has a very straight grained ash shaft and a lovely plain ebony butt, I have had the cue for near 16 years now and for me it is better then any Parris Ultimate etc. I have ever tried. Besides I would never buy a cue sight unseen or untried. If you want a cue that suits you go to where you have the largest choice, and where you can actually try the cues before you buy, you would have to be extremely lucky to get one by mailorder that is both viually and playwise exactly what you want.

That's right, however you're more likely to get a better made, higher quality cue for your money and if it doesn't suit you once you've bought it the price you can sell it on at won't have changed much as these higher priced cue makers hold their values very well. Worth the risk IMO as long as you have patience you'll always get your money back.

[sberry]

I started this thread mainly out of curiosity having seen what the custom cues are going for these days and when I saw the price of the cases I nearly fell off the internet! I can only assume these are the prices charged as there are plenty of people prepared to pay them. I also get the resale value bit.

I did once pay £360 for a Parris cue a long time ago and even though it was built to my spec I couldn't get on with it and gave it away and I have been using an antique Riley Prize cue for over a dozen years now and don't believe I will be able to find a better playing replacement.

I did buy one of those cheap HK cues recently mainly as it was too cheap to be true and it's just for something to leave in a club in case I want a game but don't have my normal cue on me, how they make them for the price and ship worldwide with the accessories is beyond me, the VFM is unbeatable compared with anything else and it makes for a good half butt.

One thing that amused me was that the cost of the top custom cues today is more than a weeks wage for over three quarters of professional players, this is serious money and the case is extra.

I have some old memorabilia and could maybe swap something for a custom cue if I find the opportunity and that was part of the reason for the thread, to see what people who have paid for these really think of them.

If you want my advice, go to a sports or snooker shop with a huge cue selection and pick them all up one by one, you'll find something, I've even had club cues out of the cue buckets in snooker halls before as it doesn't matter what it looks like or who made it if it play's right, imo.

Cheers for the answers, keep 'em coming.

[hotpot]

I think you could pick a dozen or so cuemakers and the quality and craftsmanship will be consistently very good and precise . For value i would have to say Robin Cook and Trevor White and a big plus is you dont have to find all the money front . I would love to order another Mike Wooldridge but its the initial outlay of having to find the money up front thats the problem .

[jd147]

Simple question to all who particpated in this thread, what in your minds constitutes a high quality cue?How do YOU determine the workmanship of a cue? Most players seem to be of the opinion that a certain logo disc or cue maker will do for them what nature could not - give them natural talent and a cue action. It's actually quite amusing to read all the slogans about these cues on offer on ebay or elsewhere, ""greatest cue ever by the worlds best cuemaker amazing ash etc. "" that's why they want to sell it I suppose ? Cues generally have different properties in that the throw off or push off angle varies with different cues you must understand the game and your play sufficiently to be able to detect that and to compensate for it, a good player will adjust to a well made cue very quickly whereas a mediocre player will simply get worse as he probably does not know what he does in the first place and hence how to correct or compensate for it. Understand and learn the game before you critize or praise certain cues or cue makers. A good player will be able to play with almost any cue, a novice player or those who think they are great players when in reality they might make one 70 break a month wont be staisfied with any cue, and it is the latter that is the bread and butter for the cue makers. To say that a cue has greatly improved your potting or game in general shows that you have very little knowledge of the game and it's more advanced points.

I started this thread mainly out of curiosity having seen what the custom cues are going for these days and when I saw the price of the cases I nearly fell off the internet! I can only assume these are the prices charged as there are plenty of people prepared to pay them. I also get the resale value bit.

I did once pay £360 for a Parris cue a long time ago and even though it was built to my spec I couldn't get on with it and gave it away and I have been using an antique Riley Prize cue for over a dozen years now and don't believe I will be able to find a better playing replacement.

I did buy one of those cheap HK cues recently mainly as it was too cheap to be true and it's just for something to leave in a club in case I want a game but don't have my normal cue on me, how they make them for the price and ship worldwide with the accessories is beyond me, the VFM is unbeatable compared with anything else and it makes for a good half butt.

One thing that amused me was that the cost of the top custom cues today is more than a weeks wage for over three quarters of professional players, this is serious money and the case is extra.

I have some old memorabilia and could maybe swap something for a custom cue if I find the opportunity and that was part of the reason for the thread, to see what people who have paid for these really think of them.

If you want my advice, go to a sports or snooker shop with a huge cue selection and pick them all up one by one, you'll find something, I've even had club cues out of the cue buckets in snooker halls before as it doesn't matter what it looks like or who made it if it play's right, imo.

Cheers for the answers, keep 'em coming.