General Cue Description-
Hall of Fame Cuemaker Bill Schick built this conversion cue in 2009 and is one of the finest examples of conversion creativity. Born from the fanciest of Brunswick cues, these early 20th-century pieces continue to inspire modern butterfly-splice cue makers. Schick’s conversion features a Brazilian Rosewood forearm with purpleheart points and butt sleeve. Schick used the bottom set of points (the 360 normally has three sets) to create the forearm, while connecting it to the butt sleeve with a smooth leather-wrapped handle. The wedge design in the butt sleeve is carried through from the Brunswick 360 to this conversion with Schick replacing the original mother-of-pearl design with ivory. He finished the cue with an ivory collar and what is now his signature ivory-tipped pin. Alton Takata of Cue Caps provided the spectacular matching joint protectors. This beautiful conversion is in the collection of Chris Grader.
Here’s what the experts think- they are limited to 500 characters!
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Dick AbbottThe Brunswick~Balke~Collender models 360 & 36 ½ are the monsters of all production cues. Introduced 120 years ago, and selling for under $20, they were true works of art and continue to stand the test of time. Mr. Schick has created a gorgeous conversion. I would like to see if he spliced the second set of prongs into the shaft, as that would be a great touch in keeping closer to the original design. I assume he wrapped the cue to add length as the butt would be about 24” otherwise. The ivory dots in the joint collars are somewhat distracting. The joint protectors are a nice addition. Super conversion but not a monster. |
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Fred AgnirThe Brunswick 360 was way ahead of its time. It would be nice to see an original vs. this end result for people to appreciate the full story of this cue. Schick did a masterful job using as much of the original cue to build the forearm, while keeping the same wedge design element in the butt sleeve. He added a lot of elegance to this historic cue using ivory and a smooth leather wrap. It’s hard to even classify this as a conversion cue. I would have liked to have seen the joint protectors match the collar design, but this doesn’t detract from the fact that this conversion is a Monster. |
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Deno AndrewsBrunswick 360 cues were the wildest thing on the market 100 years ago. I can appreciate Schick’s paying homage to these great cues by converting one. Bill Schick is one of our industry’s treasures and his body of work is vast and impressive. I love this cue and how Schick converted it, meaning that his work and the original cue blend into a cohesive look. In the end though, it is a simple conversion cue, which it should be. Basically what I am saying is that Schick didn’t over-produce this cue, which was the right thing to do, but it also doesn’t register as a Monster to me. |
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JimBoWhen you take the Brunswick 360 arguably the biggest cue from the company that is synonymous with pool for the last 150+ years and have a living legend and Hall Of Fame cuemaker convert it into a modern day player you can’t lose. Toss in a set of caps from Alton and we have ourselves a Monster. This cue is not only a great collectable but a piece of history, the Purple Heart gives it added points in my book. Monster for sure. |
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Jim StadumThe Brunswick 360 is one of my favorite designs of all time and Bill did a first class job with the conversion. I would like to see an image of the whole cue including the shafts. The joint caps add a nice touch. Considering that this cue is probably over 100 years old, and was converted by a HOF cuemaker makes this cue highly collectable and quite valuable. I have seen numerous Bill Shick cues that are way over the top in comparison to this one. Very close but “No Monster” for me. |
Wonderful reproduction? no… it has original parts? but there is added detail and craftsmanship that was not present with the original? I am confused. (nothing unusual with this) but I really have to admit that this Conversion is unique. Bill Schick is a HOF cue artist and deserves all the accolades his work garners. Monster this is, IMO.
A definate Monster… Just like Dr. Frankinstein’s Monster.
An Old Cue, New Heart and Soul of Bill Schick and a Custom Protector “Head”,
(with Bad Brain, thanks to Egor).
A true Monster, without merit to having additional work, but,just how everything comes together,
keeping the all important Theme of this already Rare and Collectable Cue..
BTW, I could not add the matching Ring of Dots, as I was limited to the height of Bill’s
Joint Screw, which Chris wanted to show the Ivory Scrimmed “S”..
I feel the Shaft Cap Design might have added to the overall review..
Thanks for mentioning me..
Alton
The 360 will always be a monster for sure, The added fact that Mr Schick converted it, is like winning the lottery, It will stand on it’s own merit yesterday, today and most certainly tomorrow.
I’m not a big fan of butterfly points, but this cue is an exception. My cue knowledge is probably not as deep as others making comments here and certainly not as deep as the experts. I’d never heard of the 360 before and I thank all for the enlightenment. For it’s era it is an absolute monster, but that would still not be enough to push it into monster status for me. However, Bill Schick’s restoration puts it over the top, beautiful monster for me.
The JPs don’t hurt either.
Historic cue + historic cuemaker = Monster! Nuff said…
This is a great cue redone masterfully, including the cap protectors. My only comment is that I do not like the big “Bill Schick” lettering in the butt point. I love the buttcap. Not a fan of smooth leather wraps… a little grain would have been OK… My vote: not quite a monster, but damn nice! Merry Christmas to all!
As I look at this cue, it seems to me that there is not much balance between the forearm and the sleeve. This a common complaint I have for a number of cue-makers, but I suppose it’s a matter of personal preference. My other criticism is that the butterfly edges are indistinct. I prefer the clean edges that Samsara produces.
This is a great cue and has a great deal of nostalgia appeal in my opinion. I wish there were better photos to view on this Shick conversion, to allow for a better critique. That said I have been a Shick fan for many years and have seen Bill create some perfect MONSTERS. This on the other hand is not a Bill Shick- MONSTER in my opinion. Beautiful cue but just not in the Monster class in my opinion.
I dont know enough about this cue to say much about it. The work is beatigul, the caps are great. I love all the colors. But since I dont know hardly anything about this cue I wont vote for it. I sure would like to learn more about them.
happy Holidays,
Eric
Based on new information I have about the difficult restoration that Schick needed to perform on this cue, I am changing my vote to Monster.
Also about the butterfly points: per a respected cuemaker I know, the butterfly points that have sharp edges are actually pocketed inlays. The butterfly points that fade or become transparent at the ends are veneers that are spliced into the cue before it is turned, resulting in an edge at the point that tapers to infinite thinness.
This cue is absolutely gorgeous. I do not have much knowledge about older cues but I am learning. The fact that this conversion was completed by Mr. Bill Schick brings the “Monster” factor up a few notches. The joint protectors are almost a perfect match. I just wish the ringwork matched. Someday I hope to have a cue worthy of this board to vote on. I say – Monster!
master bill schick – brunswick 360 conversion
this one needs a new category.
some seem to be judging it only on the merits of the conversion by master schick.
but it is a conversion of one of the legendary brunswick 360′s.
loved this cue from the first time i saw pics!
also love brunswick 360′s!
i’d be proud to have this cue in my collection! . . . Monster
and don’t let CMD above fool you on not having a cue worthy of a vote ; )
this does bring up a question for me as to how status is decided on cuezilla.
in a case like this where the panel voted 3-2 mortal, what influence, if any, do the comments have on the final outcome?
Jeff,
I thought I would chime in and answer your question. The comments won’t change the vote, but they do serve an important role. Cues like these are interesting because they split us “experts” and offer a unique opportunity to see how differently we all think about certain cues. The comment section also gives other collectors and experts a chance to add to the collective knowledge base. And while the comments won’t change this week’s vote, the perspectives published here are read and contemplated by the panelists. I have personally had several conversations already relating to what users have written in this section, which, as certainly helped me to challenge some of my opinions.
One of the main objectives of this web site is to spark discussion about all aspects of cue making and collecting. Current and future collectors can use these pages to refine their opinions, collecting criteria, and possibly their tastes. So far, I couldn’t be happier with the content and participation on this site.
Since I only had 500 characters up there to critique this cue, I would like to give some further thoughts on this cue and how I came to my opinion:
I have heard about how bad off this cue was and how by nothing short of a miracle the cue was salvaged. As I said above, Bill Schick is a treasure to this industry and one of the most respected cue makers in the world. With that written, I think we can all agree that not every cue, even by a famous cue maker, is going to be a Monster.
With regard to the original blank, the Brunswick 360 is an amazing creation. If you consider that there are multiple levels of butterflies and points in the original piece, I quickly noticed that much of the original cue was missing. I liked the wedge in the butt and appreciate how Mr. Schick kept that detail but updated it with ivory instead of MOP. The joint and rings are elegant and match the cue nicely. But to be honest, when I look at this cue, I see a simple conversion cue, despite the amount of work it took to salvage the cue. If the blank were a one-of-a-kind historical piece that the world would have never seen had it not been for the salvage, it may have swayed my thinking a little. To challenge this thought process, I asked myself that if he happened to find a perfect blank that was over-sized and needed no work whatsoever, would this cue be a Monster. I answered no to myself. Since there are other 360s out there, another blank could have been found and used, therefore, the salvage, while noble, doesn’t elevate the cue to Monster status. Some cues have hours into the construction, some have hours in design and execution…Monsters have both in my opinion. In the end, this cue’s blank was made by someone else, expertly saved by Mr. Schick, but with very little design to mention. The cue is beautiful and I would LOVE to own it. However, putting this cue in the Monster category would slightly diminish the status in my opinion.
Deno
I have an original Brunswick 360 in near perfect condition; I am looking for a buyer and a value for this cue. rwcollinge@earthlink.net