Another "Black plate" magically appears

[TooDark]

Finished at £2050 plus postage!
Daylight robbery if you ask me (imo of course )

That's f*****g disgusting and I'm sure he'll find another few that that have sat around for 30 odd years and been used twice lol.
Really is shocking!

[narl]

So he's made 4 grand on cues worth £150 each....Not bad.

[Triedandtested]

If what is believed is true that he's falsely advertised cues then his name will be tarnished amongst snooker players for years to come, so he'll be hit in the pockets eventually & finacially.

It's hard to believe that a well respected cue maker across the world would do this ( if true of course) but not 1 but 2 of probably the most famous cue of that decade seem to have been sitting there doing nothing for 30 yrs is quite hard to believe.

[narl]

If what is believed is true that he's falsely advertised cues then his name will be tarnished amongst snooker players for years to come, so he'll be hit in the pockets eventually & finacially.

It's hard to believe that a well respected cue maker across the world would do this ( if true of course) but not 1 but 2 of probably the most famous cue of that decade seem to have been sitting there doing nothing for 30 yrs is quite hard to believe.

There's also the fact that they're both one piece cues, if you look at his current range of cues with Joints they use a totally different joint from the H&O cues so presumably he has no access to those anymore, which basically eliminates one of the tell tale signs of the cue being legit or not. Another 1 piece is bound to appear sometime soon, he might leave it a few months before sticking another on ebay. Just amazes me how people are being sucked into this without putting a bit of thought into it first.

[cueman]

Nobody can prove it and to be honest, more fool the idiots buying these extremely expensive name badges.

If ever a badge on a cue determined the price without any proof of its authenticity its these. A plain ebony cue fetching over £2000 is proof that the cue business is one dodgy industry and I fear now whether others may follow suit.

It makes JPU's look good value for money at least so there is some silver lining for those looking to make a profit!!!

[narl]

Nobody can prove it and to be honest, more fool the idiots buying these extremely expensive name badges.

If ever a badge on a cue determined the price without any proof of its authenticity its these. A plain ebony cue fetching over £2000 is proof that the cue business is one dodgy industry and I fear now whether others may follow suit.

It makes JPU's look good value for money at least so there is some silver lining for those looking to make a profit!!!

While nobody can really prove it, just common sense has to factor in somewhere. He has ways to age the shaft of a cue, he has contacts in Asia to get his own cues produced, wouldn't at all surprise me if that's where the badges are coming from as well. The first cue was basically a tester to see how it would do, and that's started the gravy train rolling.

[cueman]

For some unknown reason I never understood why these cues were so sought after in the first place.

I know Jimmy used one and many became aware of them because of that, but they were just simple plain ebony cues with a joint in.

If anyone can really offer any other insight as to why these became so highly regarded I'd be interested in their views.

[narl]

For some unknown reason I never understood why these cues were so sought after in the first place.

I know Jimmy used one and many became aware of them because of that, but they were just simple plain ebony cues with a joint in.

If anyone can really offer any other insight as to why these became so highly regarded I'd be interested in their views.

More to do with the fact they're no longer around i suppose and there seems to be comparatively few of their cues for sale. I'm sure the jimmy white connection also factors into it.

[Byrom]

For some unknown reason I never understood why these cues were so sought after in the first place.

I know Jimmy used one and many became aware of them because of that, but they were just simple plain ebony cues with a joint in.

If anyone can really offer any other insight as to why these became so highly regarded I'd be interested in their views.

Here is my theory -
1 . if you have a few people bidding on a cue the price goes up
2. When China started booming for snooker they searched for the best coaching cues tables and everything and looked obviously to the UK for answers - somewhere along the way someone must have told one or two of them and word got around that they where the best cues and so before you know it billions of them now bid on these cues. So in effect I blame

Chinese Whispers

[itsnoteasy]

Is there anything else we would buy if someone said this one costs you 2 1/2 grand but there is a very good chance it's far worse than this other example for £250 , I just don't get it. It's only us that whip up the prices of these cues, we can only blame ourselves, we moan and groan about bad service yet the orders still flood in, we moan and groan about prices yet still buy them, it's lunacy.

[the lone wolf]

This thread is the reason why I do not invest heavily in snooker cues, but quite happy to invest in American pool cues. Pool cues have an aesthetic appeal that can be attributed to the cue maker. Inlays, Windows and and forearm work has become so personalised that collectors can recognise cue makers work and there can authenticate the cues origin...

This is more difficult to do with snooker cues (in the main) looking similar.

[jonny66]

This thread is the reason why I do not invest heavily in snooker cues, but quite happy to invest in American pool cues. Pool cues have an aesthetic appeal that can be attributed to the cue maker. Inlays, Windows and and forearm work has become so personalised that collectors can recognise cue makers work and there can authenticate the cues origin...

This is more difficult to do with snooker cues (in the main) looking similar.

I have no idea why snooker cue makers don't bother with inlay work like American pool cue makers do, seems to be a lack of vision. It's all just another splice, then maybe a splice, and perhaps a veneer if you want to be extra fancy. I'd prefer a CNC turned cue with some nice inlay work to be honest, but I do like the look of handmade splices.

[cueman]

I have no idea why snooker cue makers don't bother with inlay work like American pool cue makers do, seems to be a lack of vision. It's all just another splice, then maybe a splice, and perhaps a veneer if you want to be extra fancy. I'd prefer a CNC turned cue with some nice inlay work to be honest, but I do like the look of handmade splices.

Probably because its easy to make a cue with the normal splices. Investing in extra machinery and having to learn how to craft special inlays is probably beyond most cue makers. I don't want to sound too critical of them but making traditional hand made cues requires quite basic woodwork skills that most of learned in school, well those of us old enough to remember woodwork!

Then there is the cost, I imagine if a cue maker offered intricate inlays and special designs we really will be seeing cues sold for £2000+ without the need for Fedia to inflate the price.

[jonny66]

That's the thing though, if I was the sort of person to fork out even £1000 on a cue I would want to be able to tell the difference from one a quarter of the price. It seems the only difference is the name on the badge, and it just opens the door for unscrupulous types who can swap a badge over. It's unbelievably dumb.

[the lone wolf]

That's the thing though, if I was the sort of person to fork out even £1000 on a cue I would want to be able to tell the difference from one a quarter of the price. It seems the only difference is the name on the badge, and it just opens the door for unscrupulous types who can swap a badge over. It's unbelievably dumb.

I agree with this.
I'm lucky enough to own a few American pool cues and each one is not only authenticated by the makers signature or logo, but also by their inlay style and work. Even down to the rubber butt stop can and will be personalised.
Where money is concerned; Reputation and authenticity is everything...