BRAC, Rail Banking calculators and phone apps

brentinps

brentinps

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Anyone find anything "special" in the new phone apps for banking and related kick shots??

The bank calculator program apps are about 5$ to download and the Drill Instructor has a relatively expensive $30 visual aid pkge called the BRAC (Bank Rail Angle Calculator) that he sells to make "banking easy." But as compared to the apps it is 5x more expensive.

Any reviews of the BRAC system or phone apps for ease.

Anything of value here

I am pretty good at seeing and banking by feel.... until I miss by a lot!!!

Is there a best and simplest pool aid??????
 
brentinps

brentinps

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
LINKS TO THE various BANKING rail products

Bank and rail shooting apps: THE COMPETITORS:

1. Clyde Ellis' banks shot calculator program info for IPhone info is:

http://bankshotcalculator.com/ is $4.99 and

https://appadvice.com/app/bank-shot-calculator/408036469

and the download link is:
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/bank-shot-calculator/id408036469?mt=8

Clyde ellis also has a you tube vid showing how to use it
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tIkYwjR68Qs

2. The other app is:

Biliard Aiming Calc PRO for Android:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.billard&hl=en

3. The competing "manual" version of a bank shot rail calculator is BRAC and does not require or use a phone at:

http://thedrillinstructor.us/the-b-r-a-c-bank-rail-angle-calculator.html at $34.95 it is approx 6 to 7x the cost of the phone apps!!!


WHICH IS superior and easiest to use?
 
S

Skippy27

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Why use an app or a clear card to try to help you?

Watch some good videos and read some good books from good teachers (Tor being one of them) and then use that knowledge to train your own mind to calculate those things in real time instead of trying to rely on something to show you how to do it, which wouldn't be legal outside of just playing around.
 
brentinps

brentinps

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Good point. I'm unclear as to whether using a clear card BRAC or app is legal or not in BCA or APA play.

I am pretty good at seeing the banks... can sometimes be an inch or more off. I spend about 16 or more hours a week playing on a barbox in leagues or etc and am always watching the action off the rails in every game I play, but I do not have a table at home to practice on... but any aid would be great. Such banks multiple banks can take many hours and years to train in the brain to recognize exactly where to hit, and how english affects it.

I do have Tor's new book, but its several mathematical banking models are just too complex as compared to more modern methods and tech.

With respect to APA rules it is legal to place a piece of chalk on a rail (not on the felt) and use it as an Aid or marker of where to shoot. Perhaps a card can be used to visualize as well as long as you do not touch the table or balls?

I am interested in technology that continues to move the game, or make learning aspects of it easier (i.e. LD shafts, you tube) and etc.... It would be great to know which of these products people have found to work???

Just wondering if anyone has found a great , easy, and accurate method, amongst new ideas and tech?
 
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HawaiianEye

HawaiianEye

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I made my own BRAC that is identical to the one you buy. Mine isn't as well constructed but it was my prototype and it cost me free.99 to make.

Some people are MacGyver and other people buy stuff before they try it. :wink:
 
O

one stroke

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Skippy27 said:
Why use an app or a clear card to try to help you?

Watch some good videos and read some good books from good teachers (Tor being one of them) and then use that knowledge to train your own mind to calculate those things in real time instead of trying to rely on something to show you how to do it, which wouldn't be legal outside of just playing around.
Click to expand...

I'm pretty sure not this yr but last pro's were using a banking app's at the DCC , it was posted here I didn't here anything about that this yr ,


1
 
brentinps

brentinps

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
HawaiianEye: How well does your card work in making multiple banks??

And did you make it out of some type of clear plastic from Home Depot?
 
brentinps

brentinps

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Well if you guys didn't hear about it on here... then is must not work well. AZ'ers like to share what is good.. and what is bad.
 
HawaiianEye

HawaiianEye

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
brentinps said:
HawaiianEye: How well does your card work in making multiple banks??

And did you make it out of some type of clear plastic from Home Depot?
Click to expand...

It will give you a general reference, but ball speed, spin, etc. must be factored in. I can pretty much figure out the angles from playing for so many years and can get along without it. I made it just to see if it worked or not. I made two of them and gave one to a man and his wife who are in the APA and practice sometimes when I am in the pool hall playing on Sundays. I have loaned them several books also.

They are simple to make. Just look at the one online and draw it out with a ruler where you have it at a 2 to 1 ratio...like 3' X 6" on a piece of cardstock. The lines are simple angles, just like they are on the real one. Then I used an Exacto knife to cut it out like a skeleton and placed it between two sheets of lamination plastic that had adhesive backing.

I would post a picture here, but I don't want the "trademark" and "patent" police to chase me down.
 
336Robin

336Robin

Multiverse Operative
Silver Member
Bank Shots

On a bank shot all youre trying to find is the geometric center of the bank.

Once you find that if you know how it doesnt mean that youre going to be able to hit the magic speed for that angle to hold it perfectly on line.

First you have to find the center of the bank line then you have to calculate based on having shot that type of bank before what you can do to cinch that bank from that angle.

There isnt a bank calculator that can do that for you nor are those calculators going to be allowed in a game other than just poking around.

Find yourself a way to find the center of the bank from whatever angle you are dealing with then go from there for a common solution for that type of angle as banks come in groups or families with similar solutions.
 
JB Cases

JB Cases

www.jbcases.com
Silver Member
brentinps said:
Bank and rail shooting apps: THE COMPETITORS:

1. Clyde Ellis' banks shot calculator program info for IPhone info is:

http://bankshotcalculator.com/ is $4.99 and

https://appadvice.com/app/bank-shot-calculator/408036469

and the download link is:
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/bank-shot-calculator/id408036469?mt=8

Clyde ellis also has a you tube vid showing how to use it
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tIkYwjR68Qs

2. The other app is:

Biliard Aiming Calc PRO for Android:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.billard&hl=en

3. The competing "manual" version of a bank shot rail calculator is BRAC and does not require or use a phone at:

http://thedrillinstructor.us/the-b-r-a-c-bank-rail-angle-calculator.html at $34.95 it is approx 6 to 7x the cost of the phone apps!!!


WHICH IS superior and easiest to use?
Click to expand...

My opinion. The BRAC is the easiest to use in game situations. It would get very tiresome to plot out the positions on the apps during actual games in order to find out the shot line.

That said I would definitely look into learning the kicking and banking systems. I also don't like the ones where you have to count out the rail positions and do math. They are accurate but I find them hard to remember personally. I know friends who have some of them down cold and they are super accurate.

But simple ones like Double the Distance work great to estimate the banking and kicking for one rail shots and also can be used for two rail shots.

And even though it will likely cause a flamewar....aiming systems like 90/90 and CTE/ProOne work great for banking as well.

I also would encourage anyone to make their own devices and guides and templates to help themselves. I made a little portable stand where a pool ball can sit at rail height and be moved into the Double the Distance position so as to be accurately positioned for the purpose of training myself to be able to "bounce" my cue to estimate it.

This video is titled Precision Aiming for Safety Play but it's based on the DTD system. It works for bank and kicks. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gbjl_8wtcS8
 
brentinps

brentinps

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I understand what you are saying and the centerpoint is a normal way to approach a shot... but with multiple rails it is more difficult. If these systems such as BRAC are able to show the way (given center ball hit, as was in the BRAC video) then that would be most helpful. Natually once you know how a center ball rali hit goes, then you can obviously change the final angles through opening or closing the line of the shot with spin, etc.

The Apps may even show where to hit the cue ball/with english tohit the desired end point of a several rail shot.

Hopefully someone will reveal which systems is the best.
 
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