Joss Pool Cues – A Short History of Joss Pool Cues
In the film The Color of Money, the famous scenes with acclaimed actor Tom Cruise flipping his cue around like a Samurai sword was not really a Balabushka but a Joss Pool Cue. The cue is immortalized today in the production cue called the N-7, which is aptly named the Color of Money cue. Sometime in 1968 in a two-car garage in Baltimore, Maryland, Dan Janes and his partner created the renowned Joss Pool Cues. The duo started working using one ancient manual lathe, a butcher-shop band saw, one drill press, and a single work bench. They took some of contemporary cue making's first steps away from the traditional four-prong design, innovating the “floating points” concept and many others. During that time, Dan Janes had great personal relationships with the world's best pool players of all times including: Eddie Taylor, Ed Kelly, Larry Lisciotti, Luther Lassiter, Jimmy Fusco, Richie Florence and Joe Balsis, just to name a few. Their unique ideas, together with Dan's personal relationships to these stick masters helped make Joss cues practically an instant success. For more than three decades, Joss Pool Cues has remained at the forefront of cue making.
In 1972, Dan Janes bought his partner's interest thus taking full control of the Joss Pool Cues business and continued solely to make original cues in Maryland. By then, the cue making business was starting to go up the scale which meant there was a need for more and faster production. Eventually, Janes moved to a larger location and his son Stephen joined him in cue making. The father-son tandem of Dan and Stephen still work side by side in the shop while Debbie and Amanda Janes oversee the office and sales. In the evening of July 11, 2003, Dan Janes, the maker of Joss Cues, was inducted into The American Cue Makers Association Hall of Fame. He always finds ways to improve the play and beautify his pool cues creations while maintaining the traditional look and values of old-time cue making. Since he started some decades back, Dan takes the profession of cue making very seriously. His innate love of the table game coupled with his penchant for detail gives him a feel for what is important in each pool cue he creates and makes him one of the top pool cue makers of all time. Since 1968, Dan Janes and his family have been devoted to making the highest quality pool cues. Even as Joss Pool Cues continues to grow as a company, personal commitment remains.
Joss Pool Cues – Limited Edition Cues
Many of the handcrafted Joss Pool Cues are “limited editions” and are destined to become a family heirloom cue and quite possibly a valuable antique for future generations. Whether you want inlays, points, mother of pearl, holly, birdseye, ebony or cocobolo, there is a Joss Pool Cue design for that. A distinct feature of most these cues is that they are made with Irish linen wraps that are black with white specs. All Joss cues have a 5/16 x 14 piloted stainless steel joint collar, black banding without a silver ring and a standard tip diameter of 13.25mm.
Joss Pool Cues – How to care for your Joss Pool Cue
When you have purchased one of the Joss Pool Cues, it is also important to maintain its good condition. Keeping your prized Joss cue in the same condition as when you first bought it will be very advantageous to your pool game. You will have to shell out unnecessarily if there would be any damage to your pool cue, it can result in you having to pay for repairs or, even worse, a brand new pool cue. Taking good care of your pool cue is actually quite simple as there are only a few things you should remember. Here are some tips on how you would care for your cue.
- Your Joss Pool Cue must be in the right environment. It should never be left in a place that is too hot or too cold. Never place it in a damp area or even inside the car overnight instead place it in its protective case.
- After every use or play, clean the shaft of your Joss Pool Cue. Using a small amount of rubbing alcohol on a dry dish towel, wipe off clean the shaft. Afterwards, take a dry towel and run over the shaft once more. As you play pool, sweat, oil and other substances can get on your shaft and if these things accumulate on the shaft of your Joss Pool Cue, they may actually damage it.
- After you clean the shaft of your pool cue, wipe off the ferrule and tip of your Joss Pool Cue. This will avoid the accumulation of chalk and dirt on the tip and ferrule of your pool cue. Get a dish towel wet and gently wipe both the ferrule and tip off with the towel to clean these two items. After wiping it with a wet towel, grab a dry towel and go over the ferrule and tip once more to make sure they're both completely dry. Any moisture not dried properly might damage either the ferrule or tip and may corrode the whole stick.
- Never make your Joss Pool Cue tip flat. The cue tip should always be curved like a nickel or quarter. Otherwise, you will not strike the cue ball correctly or accurately. Although there are already some cue tip shaping items, it is still best to keep it curved. Never use a sand paper to fix your stick.
- Never rest your Joss Pool Cue against a wall or the side of a pool table. Doing so for even a little bit can cause your pool cue to bend therefore reducing its accuracy. If your stick was damaged, do not attempt to repair it unless you have experience doing so. Instead, let it be repaired by someone who knows how to, otherwise, you may get it further damaged or worst; you will be forced to buy a new one.
Following these tips will keep the great quality of your Joss Pool Cue and ensure you develop a life long relationship with your movie screen partner.
