jbcases.com

I have to get into the habit of blogging.  I have a lot to say but I usually say it AZ Billiards when I have a few minutes to spare.  This month has been busy as well closing out several projects and developing new alliances.

As you all are aware my studio is a collection of talent.  To this end I have brought four new leather tooling studios into the fold who will each be working with me on various projects.  These guys are GOOD.  They can do just about anything in leather including some very nice Sheridan Carving.

Sheridan Carving is a type of deep carving designs in leather using mostly floral patterns that weave and interlock between the flowers.  Here is a picture of something done by our artists to give you an idea of the sort of tooling you will see on my cases coming up.

Now we can do almost anything - any design, any name, any pattern.  You won’t find any sewn on patches with laser engraved names on my cases - unless that’s what you want.  I don’t have anything against laser engraving but if you can get artistry like this done by hand then wouldn’t you want that?

So that’s the exciting news on the ornamental design front.  The next step is to improve the inlay techniques.  My aim is to be able to inlay seamlessly into leather.  Leather inlays and wood inlays.  This is one area where the laser and cnc cutters might come in handy.  I will keep you all updated on that front.

And pictures of cases - soon is all I can tell you right now.  As of this moment I have not finished one single custom case.  Mostly because I have been swamped with other stuff and partly because I am not happy yet with where we are in the shop and I am still waiting on some custom equipment that is being built to make my life easier.  I could do the work by hand but I am not going to put out anything that is less than the aboslute best it can be.

Billy Stroud of JossWest cues once asked me why I thought his cues cost so much.  I said I don’t know and he said “it’s so I don’t have to stand in front of my customers at shows and make excuses why something isn’t right.”  So I have that same attitude.  I don’t want to send out anything that isn’t right so all you have is a good experience.  So please forgive the wait, it’ll be worth it.

It’s been a busy month.  I have been at the computer each day for a little while but haven’t found the time to update the blog. This month I went to a large leather market and picked out many nice pieces for the orders I have.  As well I got lots of samples of nice interesting leather types for possible use later.

I will be scanning or photographing this leather to see if I can put it up on the website in some way that gives a good representation of color and texture.  I hope that this will help folks choose what they like a little easier.

A lot of you have emailed me about pictures.  Very soon I will be putting up a batch of pictures which show off several styles of cases.  Since I want to really emphasize the fact that I am a true custom casemaker I feel it is better to put up pictures that reflect the many styles I can do.  I would hate for someone to see only a few styles and conclude that this is all we can make.

This month we have been working on orders and prototypes for production.  During that time I have created a new style of interior that is flexible, lightweight and secure.  I will be unveiling that very soon after I apply for the patent on it.  Now that probably seems silly to apply for a patent on the interior of a cue case.  But having seen my competition in the mass production side of the case making business take my ideas for years I think that this time I should take the precaution to protect the brain power investment on this.

I have also invented another type of case that brings on-the-spot customization to a new level.  Within the next 2-3 months this case should be on the market and it will (hopefully) quickly become a leader in the off-the-shelf cases.  This case features the new interior and has a lot of neat features.  As with the interior it is being patented as well and as soon as that process is well underway the unveiling will commence.

So that is what I have been up to.  Thank you all for the kind emails and I promise pics soon of the new work.

My cat Sundance was recently killed by a vicious attack from a wandering dog. I always dreaded that he would meet a violent end as I let him roam as he wished. He was under the care of my good friends Sarah and JC Chapman and they are quite torn up about it. Sundance had settled in well at their home and they had become quite attached to him. I couldn’t have left him with two better people. Unfortunately they also lost another cat to the same fate a few weeks earlier. Salem, a cat that Sarah had brought from England.

I want to share my memories of Sundance and give a biography and eulogy to a soul who was a comfort and amusement during our time together.

Shortly after I came back to the United States from Germany I opened a workshop in Greeley, Colorado. One day I had the idea that it would be nice to have a cat for the workshop. So I went to the pound and Sundance was the first cat who came right up to me. So I took him in the meeting room and he was cautious but curious and unafraid. He warmed up to me right away so that was that. The pound estimated that he was at least three years old.

When I got him back to the workshop I let him loose and he bolted right away. I let him go as he needed time to explore his surroundings. But then I didn’t see him all day and I began to get worried. I searched the whole place and still didn’t find him. I set some food out and figured he’d come out when ready. The next morning there was still no cat. So I looked around again and saw on small hole and decided to shine a flashlight and sure enough there he was. I had no way to get him so I left him there content that he would come out eventually. My wife suggested that we name him Sundance because he found the one hole in the wall to hide in. The reference came Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. If you remember the movie then you may remember that their gang was called “The Hole in the Wall Gang”.

So that’s how he earned his name. Once he figured out the warehouse it became his and he liked nothing more than to find the highest spot and sit there for hours observing everyone. Legend has it that cats are the reincarnation of kings and pharaohs. Sundance definitely had a regal bearing. But he was also very friendly and playful. And he loved to sleep with me and always curled up just right.

And he was smart. If I didn’t want him on the counters or the pool table I only had to tell him once and that was that. Although he did love to use the counter to get to the top of the cabinets. He was quite a jumper and he loved high places so I allowed him the top of the cabinets. In some ways Sundance was more like a puppy than a cat. He would come when called and he would follow us on walks around the neighborhood.

He wasn’t afraid of dogs either. We had three and he tolerated them without hostility. Once in a while he would let them know they were being bothersome. But when he came in the house he would go right up to them all and touch noses to say hi.

When we moved to Arkansas he came with us and really got to be king of his domain. We had about an acre and he moved about it with the surety of a lion. He always waited for me to come home and when I pulled into the driveway he would jump on to the hood and look me straight in the eye and touch his nose to the windshield. Then if I rolled down the window he would put his face around the mirror for me to scratch his ears and chin. Then we would go in the house together.

When I moved to North Carolina my roommate had a little Yorkie. Rupert was smaller than Sundance and quite a pest sometimes but Sundance took it all and only mildly swatted at Rupert once in a while. They became pretty good friends and Rupert would bark when Sundance wanted in. It was all very cute. The next door neighbor had about four cats and Sundance just walked into her house as if he lived there and would sometimes spend all day hanging out with the neighbors and all his cat buddies. But no matter what time I came home he was always there waiting for me.

I didn’t want to leave him when I came to China. But I didn’t want the hassle of whatever paperwork would have been needed and as well I had to establish myself here. So I left him with Sarah and J.C. who are animal lovers all the way through. After a few days of adjustment to a new household he settled right in. He bonded with JC more than Sarah. Probably because of his attachment to me he felt more comfortable with a guy.

Sundance was with me for about six years. That would have made him about 9 or 10. I am sure someone would have adopted him but I feel pretty good about the life he had with me. He became a traveler, going to Vegas, Arkansas, and North Carolina. He had free reign wherever we were and seemed genuinely happy. Although the end was brutal and undeserved I am sure that he died with memories of all the happy times in his life. Wherever heaven is Sundance is sitting on the highest spot placidly watching us all.

I made my first case today.  Not a customer order but just a case to try a few techniques I have been working on.  It’s a first draft of a prototype line I am working on for Sterling Gaming.  So I can’t describe it just yet because the “competition” might be reading this.

I’ll say this much.  I used canvas to prototype with because it’s lighter and easier to sew and manipulate. I used two contrasting shades and although I don’t intend to use this cloth for production it did come out looking pretty sporty in a khaki, going on Safari sort of way.

I just wanted to describe the feeling of getting back to case making.  The “I did this” proud feeling when the heap of material, collection of zippers, tubes, and foam rubber gets shaped into something useful and good looking.  That’s what it comes down to for me.  Hefting something in my hands that I made.

Now I didn’t actually “make” this case all by myself.  I have a great team that knows far more than me about making patterns, woodworking, working leather and tailoring.  I provide the design, I create the case in my mind and they are the tools I use to sculpt. Without them I couldn’t get anywhere in this venture because I don’t have the patience to learn to sew, tool, or dovetail.

But I dream, and it feels good to have an outlet where your dreams can take physical shape.  — and I do get my hands dirty as well, the interiors are all me, every protective inch of them.

For the case giveaway these were our winners - all members of one of the forums I participate in - AZ Billiards

Grand Prize - 1 Custom Case from JB Cases www.jbcases.com
AZ - Member TWOFORPOOL
1. is a Fury NR Series cue www.fury-cues.com
POOLFIRE
2. is a Blaze Swirlz Series Cue www.blaze-cues.com
FASTANDLOOSE
3. is a Sterling Artistic Series cue www.sterling-cues.com
BUGZ

These folks and everyone else will be contacted soon. Thank you and I will keep the blog updated on the progress of the AZ Case.

Thanks again everyone.

The numbers were chosen using this website http://andrew.hedges.name/experiments/random/

Some stats: We had 295 entries - 128 said they never owned an Instroke case. (No problem - look for the NEW line coming out soon at Sterling, they will be better than Instroke I promise) Most of the folks who do or did own an Instroke had multiple one. (I like repeat buyers)

I got several orders - THANKS!!!! you know who you are - and several who are thinking about what they want. That takes a great leap of faith to put the money up without even seeing my new work.

My girlfriend gets props for doing all the manual entries and double checking of everyone’s names and nicknames and email addys.

Lastly, I could use some link love so if you have a website and you think I or we are worthy then give us a link to any or all of our websites (yeah I am begging)

Thank you I look forward to this project a lot!

John Barton - Casemaker
www.jbcases.com

Like a spurned lover I put away all the old pictures of me and Instroke. I have them in albums and archived on cd somewhere but it’s all in storage. But I did find one old grainy picture from back in the day.

This one is vintage 1995 and was done for a local newspaper article in Germany. I was trying to portray myself as the case guru.

To honor all those who supported me back when I had Instroke and to get the new workshop started I have decided to raffle off a free custom case. The winner will be the first person besides me to get a case from my new workshop.

Send me an email to jbcaseraffle@jbideas.com to enter. The drawing will be on Friday May, 4th. If you own or have owned an Instroke case please describe it briefly. If not no biggie. Owners of Instroke cases get two entries and we are on the honor system.

The only limitation to the case you receive will be your imagination and my ability to procure materials.

I am totally stoked about this and the volume of emails with well wishes and stories of folks and their cases has been wonderful. It’s a good way to get me more pumped up for this.

Hope to see you in the raffle.

When I first got started making cases I couldn’t pass by a fabric shop or a sewing machine shop without looking in to see what kind of interesting things were there. On a field trip to Istanbul, Turkey to check out the possibilities of getting production work done my hosts took me to the grand bazaar to shop for leather. I felt as though I were transported back a thousand years as we sat there and drank tea and haggled over the price of leather.

That was nearly 15 years ago. Today I went to the local fabric market and wandered among the many sellers looking for just the right fabric to encase the cues. While I didn’t quite get the same thrill I did back then in Turkey I was elated to be running fabric through my fingers, judging it by the weight, the elasticity, the softness. As I contemplated the many variations I could envison cues cradled in the velvet smoothness.

I saw suitcase style cases with faux tiger fur lining. Interiors of tube cases in tourquoise and purple. Once again I imagined all the possibilities or at least an endless stream danced in my head while choosing samples.

So, in the words of the immortal Fast Eddie Felson, “I’m back!”