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Milt Hyman was drawn to working with wood as a youngster. By age seven, he had built his first model airplane, one of many to come. Even before junior high school, he was taking woodshop classes where he made a model sailboat and a bow and arrow set. Much later, after joining the Navy and flying combat missions in Korea, Milt graduated from the Art Center School for professional artists, designers, and photographers in Los Angeles, which led to a successful career in commercial photography. During this time, Milt fell in love with the game of pool. He moved to SanDiego County, upon retirement from his photography career. He bought a house and a pool table. He wanted to buy a cue but could not find one to his liking, so he looked at a large billiard supply showroom and was disappointed that nothing appealed to him. Given Milt's love of pool, his experience with tools and woodworking, and his formal art training, he decided to try his hand at making his own cue. In 1990, Milt started building custom machines for cuemaking, and he made his first cues under the name "Miltonio." The first four Miltonio cues were entered in a woodworking contest at the San Diego County Fair, and each one won a blue ribbon. Milt has since taken some furniture making classes to help hone his woodworking skills. He now makes between 15 and 25 cues per year. All of his work is done by hand. Milt does not do inlay work. Instead, his fancier Miltonio cues rely on a variety of complicated splices and joints. He decided to use only normal woodworking tools, plus jigs and fixtures that he could make himself. Milt makes cues which are quite unique. "Saturn Rings" and "Super points" are names he uses to describe some of his original design elements. Milt sometimes uses butterfly points to add color to a cue. The "Saturn Rings" are parallel layers of exotic woods, placed at an angle to the long axis, to creat elliptical rings. He sees no limits to creating unique designs, using different woods, splices, points, and rings. Milt personally likes an unwrapped handle, because it gives him more room to be creative. But when a wrapped cue is called for, he sometimes uses a double strand of two complementary colors of Irish linen. This gives him many more wrap colors to play with. Milt prefers not to use ivory for environmental reasons and because he believes there are plenty of alternative materials that offer superior playability. He hand-selects every piece of wood he will use to make a cue. Every Miltonio cue is a one-of-a-kind original. It is both an object of art and a tool that works well. Style is important, but playability is paramount. Miltonio cues are well known for their solid hitting quality. Milt enjoys customizing a cue to the individual taste of the client, whenever practical. Clients are encouraged to talk about their likes and dislikes, concerning construction and design, before the cue is made. Each cue can be easily identified by the "Miltonio" signature, followed by the month and year of completion. Milt specializes in custom orders for longer cues over 58 in. Although he is not tall, Milt plays with a 61 in. cue himself. He has also made a 64 in. cue, with a joint below the wrap, for those tall players with an extra long wingspan. Since such a cue is prone to hitting obstructions behind the shooter, the butt sleeve on long cues can be removed, if necessary, shortening the cue to 58 in. and making it lighter by only an ounce or so. Miltonio custom cues are guaranteed for life against manufacturing defects that are not the result of warpage or abuse. |
