handmade ??? probably not !!!

[biggus stickus]

I'm not sure whether you are looking for an argument or whether you misunderstand the whole point of this thread.

Yes the cue industry, but we are obviously talking about the UK, not Asia. The whole crux of this and other related posts is whether or not it is right for cuemakers to pass off foreign made cues as British handmade. As I have said, I don't believe it is.

Yes and as I originally stated so many other things are made in this way.... I believe as I have said as long as its open, honest and priced accordingly as Crispian has been I dont have a problem with it. People are trying to say its Fraud well look at many of the Major producers who do the same thing but are not open about it.

Ps We are also talking about Thai products in this thread which is part of Asia.

[crispian jones]

Cues here in the uk carry a heavier price than other places simply because the costs are higher with the matierials and the hourly
rate needed for a standard of living is far higher than some other countries, personaly i think we are blessed with the choice of quatlity cues to choose from !
the badge issue however is whether you agree or not is a massive problem ! cuemaking is a skilled trade that is in my opinion is in danger of becoming a bandwagon for anyone to jump on, gone are the days it seems that a few commited people do all the sourcing of raw timber, and crafiting cues from scratch, these cues that can be sourced are essential to the uk and also massivly helpfull to provide cues at a sensible price without the waiting time of a handmade cue ! if badged correctly ie green baize there is nothing wrong as people can go along and buy a cue that suits them (a massive bonus to some) the issue that im getting at is that where i buy blank cues and lengthen, weight, taper and splice ect myself, the option of ordering these cues pre spliced is also available (just like greenbaize cues) so in fact all that is needed for anyone on this forum to start a cue making business is a piller drill to add badges (handmade of course) and some sandpaper and a box of elks !!!

all the guys i am refering to in this thread do a super job of finishing of there cues, and i dont think anyone should be dragged in to this thread, i am just trying to get accross the fact that i truthfuly believe that we here in the uk are in a very dangerous position where if not careful this industry can easily be exploited !

[RogiBear]

This is the point I was trying to make earlier. There are obviously different views as to what 'customised' means. We all know GBL cues are fully made abroad and badged for them. I bought one because I needed a cue quick to certain specs and it is a cracking cue.

I feel you are doing yourself an injustice if you call it customised when you lengthen, weight, taper and splice etc onto a blank imported shaft. I would call that handmade but not an 'elite' handmade when made completely from scratch i.e. 2 levels of handmade.

Customised to me are the people who take a complete cue and give it a quick sanding and oil, decorative splice maybe, then whack a new badge on.

Crispian if this is the case, ie you're splicing blank shafts, then I agree you are doing yourself an injustice by calling them customised. I was under the inpression that they came with plain butt splices and you just added the decorative ones. Maybe you should think about changing the name

[jim evans]

i have bought 3 of these shafts to look at ,1 maple which a friend had and 2 ash which i still have even though i lengthened and respliced to get to a 10 mm tip,i still have it as was not happy with the black and white ebony i used on it,the other i left as a plain ebony butt to try as my own with the option of resplicing fancy woods later,i make cues the same as crispian from a blank shaft,as said in earlier post by the time you have done work on these import cues the cost is up towards £200 which is the price i quoted to a forum member after telling him how good the shaft was.i find that in the long run its easier to do but not cheaper and not realy as enjoyable.

[RogiBear]

so jim are you saying that the raw material costs involved in making a plain ebony butt cue, using an imported shaft is close to £200. How much are these shafts ?????

[crispian jones]

Crispian if this is the case, ie you're splicing blank shafts, then I agree you are doing yourself an injustice by calling them customised. I was under the inpression that they came with plain butt splices and you just added the decorative ones. Maybe you should think about changing the name

No these cues come with ebony pre spliced on them !

[RogiBear]

No these cues come with ebony pre spliced on them !

Ok, that's fair enough then

[jim evans]

and ime going to be a bit diplomatic and not disclose how much they are people are making a living as such so not right

[RogiBear]

and ime going to be a bit diplomatic and not disclose how much they are people are making a living as such so not right

Sorry jim, it was a rhetorical question on my part, it just seemed very expensive to me thats all.

[paddybhoy30]

Well it's not a blank shaft if ebonys attached is it.

[Neil Taperell]

Think that's called a cue

[jim evans]

That's how the Thai cues arrived
The shafts that crispian and I use are plain ash or maple

[crispian jones]

That's how the Thai cues arrived
The shafts that crispian and I use are plain ash or maple

No jim mine come with ebony mate ! im that lazy see

[jim evans]

Your handmade ones as well ,the early ones.

[crispian jones]

Your handmade ones as well ,the early ones.

All my handmade cues are handmade jim, from board to square taper to shaft then ebony added, it is the thai cues that come with ebony on them