Δ JOSSWEST Δ
BILL STROUD'S
FIRST TRUE NATIVE AMERICAN DESIGN
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Josswest cues, made by Bill Stroud for nearly 50 years, are well-known and have a great reputation. In his later years he began making some of the finest and most beautiful cues in the world. Most of them have a distinct look - it's hard to describe but you generally know one when you see it.
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Bill always seemed to have an affinity for southwest-style designs, but according to Bill's submission letter with this stick, "I have made many Southwestern designs in the past but none of them were true Indian design." It was only natural that he'd come up with something great for the 2009 International Cue Collector Show in Santa Fe when it was announced the theme for the Special collection that year was Native American Cues.
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This is primarily an ebony cue with lots of accoutrements, including silver veneers and inlays, turquoise, red coral and ivory.
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He uses long silver veneers in the forearm to simulate points, and tops each set with an elaborate inlay pattern of turquoise, red coral, and silver outlined in ivory and more silver. According to Bill, this pattern represents corn, feathers and the shield.
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He then takes that same inlay pattern and doubles it in the butt sleeve, and puts them in opposing directions coming out of a large turquoise oval, all framed in silver.
He engraves his logo in the butt cap, which appears to be ivory. He doesn't specifically state the cap is ivory in his letter, and sometimes it's difficult to say for sure with JW cues because he often used a simulated "ivory" in his caps, but this one looks very much like real ivory to me.
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Between the points, he adds another fine silver veneer pattern, simulatimg shadow points.
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This is a stunning cue, very impactful visually. He adds an ivory joint and butt cap, and then some gorgeous native American trim rings. According to Bill's letter (which accompanies the cue), "the trim rings provide the continuity for the basic design. They come from a common Indian symbol for clouds. The stair step ivory inlay against the turquoise background is a strong visual reminder of the sky."
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Bill stated that the Indians often used a black material called "Jet", and therefore he wanted to use ebony in the cue.
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The shield inlay pattern, enlarged in the butt sleeve and framed with the "sky" trim rings, creates a stunning visual impact.
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Bill always had an artist's eye, and overall design of this cue and his discreet used of color shows why that is true.
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As always, his inlay work is meticulous and near-perfect.
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A few more pics showing some of the great work in this cue.
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This is a beautiful cue - a great playing cue while at the same time being a fine work of art. He builds it with a flat-faced wood-to-wood joint (with an ivory sleeve) with a radial stainless steel pin. As Bill did with other "show" cues, it comes with one shaft. It is of premium maple, very well-aged by now, and measures 13mm. It has a long ivory ferrule and what looks like a Lepro tip with a red pad. It weighs 20.2 ounces.
PRICE: $6750 PLUS SHIPPING
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