Talisman versus Instroke leather cases

[Nick T.]

Can anybody give me some direct comparisons of the Talisman Original leather case and the Instroke Buffalo Cowboy leather case?

I’ve never seen either of these cases in person, but careful reading of Seybert’s, Talisman, and Instroke sites leads me to believe that the Talisman is somewhat better for only about $20 more. Agree? Disagree? Why?

The Justis case looks to be better than either of these, but is quite pricey and there is a long wait for delivery.

[Tanar]

In my experience of owning a Talisman case, I would say you couldn't go wrong. One of my buddies owns the Instroke cowboy case and it is a nice case as well. The dfferences I see are, the Talisman case looks to have better craftmanship, it has buckles instead of a clasp (which people have been having trouble with as they break), and it has more room in the case. Plus, you can't go wrong with a case that is hand-crafted and comes with a certificate stating the crafters name and the case #, telling you which number case you have. Tony Jones, the owner of Talisman, has been excellent in his e-mails with me and seems to take major pride in everything he does. Just my opinion.

[audiopro]

I would say 60% of my Monday night APA league players have the cowboy, equating to about 40 people or so. Now, I own a Giuseppe, and I absolutely LOVE it. But I am not one for the look of the Cowboy or Widowmaker type cases. They are just ugly to me, and make me think "Hmm, what kinda of gun does this here Tex got in that there case?" So I opted for the Giuseppe with Ortona finished leather in black. Plain, simple, and holds everything securely. The leather workmanship is decent, I used to do custom upholstery when building show cars, so I am very picky. Else I would say the leather workmanship is excellent.

That said, EVERYONE I know who has a Cowboy case, loves it.. Where I play we have nothing but very serious players on Monday night league. These players I would venture to say, that 60% of them own one or more Nitti custom cues (www.nitticues.com) And these go for generally 2000 and up. So in seeing these people have the seriousness to spend that much on a cue, price would not be such an object when buying a case. And they ALL buy Cowboys.

So in short, I honestly dont have first hand experience, but everyone I know loves their Instroke case.

[dags_lax]

I recently purchased a Talisman case. I was torn between the Instroke Buffalo and the Talisman. I was somewhat concerned with the quality of the Talisman, having never seen one in person. I needn't have worried. The Talisman is a quality case. For me the buckles were the reason for going with the Talisman. I was willing to forgo the convenience of the clasp in favor of the durability of straps and buckles. At times I can be a klutz and I could just see myself dropping the case and breaking the clasp. Although it wasn't a factor in my purchase the Talisman is quite a bit lighter than the Instroke.

P.S. I cut and pasted this from another of my postings. I have had my Talisman case about six months now and I have been very satisfied with my choice.

[audiopro]

In thinking it makes sense what others have said concerning the twist clips on the Instrokes. That could become an issue in time.

[Nick T.]

Thanks guys. Your replies and an email from Tony Jones of Talisman gave me enough confidence to place my Talisman order with Seybert's a little while ago.

[Tanar]

Tony is a great guy, he sponsored my tournament coming up at the end of the month.

[instroke]

This is John Barton, the former owner of Instroke and the designer of the Instroke cases.

While I am clearly biased I do give everyone fair reviews. I just recently received a Talisman case for comparison purposes.

Before I get into what I think let me reassure everyone that the latches on the new Instroke cases are virtually indestructable. They are truly exclusive to the industry as Instroke spent over 10,000 dollars on the development of this latch. You will not find an easier latch to use.

Now here are my thoughts on how the Talisman case stacks up against the Instroke. To put this in proper context Talisman's brochure has certain "points' that are aimed at "supposed" deficencies with Instroke cases, otherwise I wouldn't even bother with a comparison. Keep in mind that I only had one case to look at and I don't make a claim that the case I am reviewing is indicative of all Talisman cases. Even Instroke ocassionally has a case come off the line that is less than ideal.

Overall, the Talisman is a very good looking case in my opinion. It makes a nice presentation.

Here are the things that I found:

Quality - the lid did not fit the case very well. With the buckle completely closed it was possible for me to lift the lid on either side so that the cue was revealed. The rubber feet on the bottom were easily pulled out with very little effort which makes me think that they won't last long. The buckle area seemed to be a little weak which indicates that it won't be long before it begins to wear out. (I did not take the case apart so I do not know what kind of reinforcement is underneath the buckle strap) Otherwise the rest of the case was fairly acceptable in the fit and finish.

Weight and size - The Talisman 2x4 case that I had was larger than the Instroke 3x7 in circumfrence and weighed 1 pound more than the Instroke 2x4. The case is absolutely massive in comparsion to the Instroke 2x4.

Ease of Use - Much is made of the Talisman buckle. I showed this case to several players and asked them whether they would prefer the Instroke latch or the buckle. The conclusion is that the buckle is cumbersome and takes two hands to work while the Instroke only takes only takes one hand to open and close and is preferred. I felt as though the buckle apparatus was facing the wrong direction which makes it harder to use.

Interior protection: The Instroke provides PVC tubing surrounding each individual part. The Talisman is a foam core unit. It is my belief that the Instroke provides better protection all the way around. The Talisman has a piece of leather to cap the foam core unit and this piece of leather has an edge to it that can come up and expose the cue to hard glue. There is nothing inside an Instroke tube that can ever possibly harm a cue.

Conclusion: In my biased, but expert opinion, in a side by side comparison of Talisman and Instroke cases the Instroke is the better case overall. It is my belief, based on what I know of casemaking, that the Instroke will provide better protection on a daily basis, is easier to use and will last much longer than the Talisman case.

Lastly, the 2004 Buffalo leather just ROCKS. It is probably the best that Instroke has ever used and it screams LEATHER. Several people have told me that they think the new Buffalo models are the nicest cases Instroke has ever done.

So I hope you choose an Instroke. If you do go with the Talisman you are still getting a great case, much better than most of the others out there.

Sincerely,

John Barton

[instroke]

The Justis case looks to be better than either of these, but is quite pricey and there is a long wait for delivery.

Actually the Justis is inferior to the Instroke in construction and protection. But artistically you are going to get a stunning case with Justis.

From what I understand the prices are not to much different than the upper end Instrokes and Jack can ususally get you a case within about a month.

John

[DZ314]

John is a good man from what I can tell. He stands behind his product and has the kind of quality customer service that one would expect when purchasing a top notch case. From the people I have seen comment on how John has treated them after the sale with problems, etc I am going to soon be the proud owner of an Instroke Geo 2x4 case!