BOB OWEN
FANCY FOUR POINT CUE
IN COCOBOLO AND HOLLY
WITH ABALONE INLAYS
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Bob Owen has been quietly making excellent, top-rate cues in Wichita for many years. I am always impressed by the quality of his work, the strong solid hit, and the complexity and creativity of his designs. This cue is just one more example of why I like his work so much.
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There are two features of this cue that stand out, and both relate to the materials used. The cocobolo is very striking and is used in both the butt sleeve and the nose. And the use of holly in the points is an excellent choice, and makes those points very special and a key part of the overall visual effect.
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He uses a fairly simple inlay pattern in the butt sleeve, utilizing a series of abalone diamonds and spearheads carefully merged together. And they are beautifully accentuated by the bold reddish-brown color of the bright cocobolo in the background.
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The veneers in these points are more than just a frame for the holly points. They are so bold that they actually become part of the points. The combination of the black, green, purple and holly veneers is extremely effective, and for some reason, have a much more dramatic impact than veneers usually have.
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Bob is known for is his unusual and seemingly endless variety of ring designs. This one uses dots of abalone lined with a layer of elforyn, and connected with elforyn bars.
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At the base of each holly point, Bob inlays a long stylized abalone diamond.
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He expertly applies a beautiful black elephant ear wrap. And just above and below it, he uses a thin black, barely noticeable ring to frame it. It's these little touches of detail that makes his cues stand out from the crowd.
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At the butt cap he builds in a Hoppe style white ring, with a small black phenolic ring above and a black phenolic butt cap below.
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One of the things you quickly notice at first glance is the impact of the green veneer - the dominant impression is green.
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As always, his work is about as perfect as humanly possible - it is tight, meticulous and sharp.
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His points are long, sharp and even.
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He engraves his Owen logo on the black phenolic butt cap.
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You find excellent attention to detail everywhere in this stick.
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He builds it with his usual 3/8X11 steel pin in a flat faced elforyn joint. It comes with two 13mm shafts from his premium maple stock, with Juma ferrules and soft Precision S tips. They have a stiff taper and have low deflection. It is 58 inches long and weighs 19 ounces.
This is a gorgeous stick that will play and hit marvelously.
PRICE: $3350 PLUS SHIPPING
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