JERRY McWORTER
"PINNACLE"
IN AMBOYNA BURL, EBONY
AND SILVER, WITH
IVORY RINGS AND FERRULES
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Here is another spectacular Jerry McWorter design which he calls the Pinnacle. It is one of his favorite designs and perhaps his best. It's very innovative - I don't know of another cue that looks like it. He doesn't make this design often.
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The choice of woods in this one makes it very special. Deep dark ebony is used in combination with nicely figured, richly toned amboyna burl. The contrast between the colors is just right, and they work perfectly with this unusual design.
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What makes this particular cue special is that it is an older McWorter, made a number of years ago, and everything white in it is ivory. I purchased it from a private collection, and you can't get it made in ivory any longer. So, this is a rare find - creamy white ivory in the rings and the long ferrules. AND, it is unchalked, unplayed and in mint condition.
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Jerry has many beautiful designs, taking advantage of his natural artistic ability and his fine craftsmanship that has gained him the reputation of one of the finest silversmiths in this business. He has told me this is his favorite design. I love the way the points explode up the forearm of the cue, and in doing so form large ovals between them. It's a very creative and unique design; as I said, different from anything anyone else is doing.
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In the butt sleeve, he repeats the use of the long ovals that are "coincidentally" formed between the points. At the top and bottom of the ovals, as in the nose, he also repeats the use of the starburst rings that circle the cue.
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This "starburst" pattern is spectacular. It is comprised of small white diamonds, larger white diamonds, and black ebony diamonds, all tied together with short silver veneers. Together, this all creates a "jeweled" look that makes the entire cue sparkle.
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As always, he wraps this with a high quality pebbled black leather. And, again as always, he applies it the way only he can - virtually seamless.
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This is a terrific design - classy and elegant. As with many of his cues, he uses a wide ring (in this case, white) above and below the wrap. It's a technique he often uses, framing the wrap, the nose and the butt sleeve.
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As with most of his sticks, it is filled with some of the best silver work in the business. Fine, delicate, gently flowing silver veneers that are flawlessly inlaid, framing the long ovals and points, and extending on up into the nose, finally ending in delicate white diamonds.
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At the base, he uses a black phenolic ring and just above engraves his name/logo and numbers the specific cue.
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It comes with a custom joint protector for the butt with matching rings. The shafts have generic black phenolic protectors.
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It's interesting to me that Jerry's cues are simple while being complex and understated while at the same time elegant. This cue is a perfect example. He never varies his ring pattern at the joint. It is always a simple double silver ring, both on the butt and the ring collars of the shafts. From a functional perspective, this allows his shafts to all be interchangeable.
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| He always builds his cues with a 3/8X10 stainless steel pin in a flat-faced configuration. He never varies from this construction, which is one of the reasons for the great consistency of his cues - they all hit the same. And need I say, they are known for their great feel, balance and hit.
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It comes with two of Jerry's 13mm premium quality maple shafts, and because this is an older cue, it is particularly well-aged. Each shaft has a nice long, creamy white ivory ferrule. It weighs 18.9 ounces.
I always think there is a lot of value in Jerry's cues. Quite simply, there is a ton of work in them for what they cost. This one exemplifies this value. It's priced at SOLD. (Remember, finding one of these in ivory, in new condition, is very difficult.)
(Custom extensions made by Jerry for his cues are available here for $200 extra.)
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