Glen, I am grateful for the things that I have learned from you. However, you are an asshole. To be fair: in no way am I saying that I dislike you.. I may not care for the way that you handle yourself on this forum, but to each his own.
You fail to understand that there are other people in this world who are capable of thinking. There may even be some of us who have gone to school for mechanical engineering. There may even be some of us who have made a career out of mechanical design, and work on pool tables as a hobby/side-gig.
We are talking about pool tables: wood, rubber, and stone.. We are not sending them to the moon. The design is not nearly as complicated as you would like to believe. Sure, there are aspects of a table that make them play different. Of course, not everyone understands what those aspects may be, or the slight difference that affect play.
The beauty of pool tables: there is no perfect! There are no standards. Some tables definitely play better than others, and many people may not understand why. The fact that you modified the nose height on Stan Shuffett's table, simply for him to play a different game, is wrong. In a perfect world, all tables would play exactly the same, regardless of size, manufacturer, or the game being played on it.
To say that one table plays better than another is very subjective. There is no way to quantify it. Sure, you may notice a difference, but it's all feel, and it is all a matter of perspective. People's opinions vary greatly. What one person feels is a great playing table, another person may not care for. Case in point: For as many people that love the way a Diamond table plays, I would guess that there are just as many people who dislike it. They are a wonderful product, are very well built, and look very nice. However, they bank short and springy, and many people don't like that.
You perform great work. There is no disputing that. Though, to insist that you and Mark are the only ones capable of performing great work is quite foolish. You act as though you are artists, creating fine masterpieces that no one else could recreate or understand. When considering the finished product, that may be completely true. Many of the tables have been fine works of art.
However, when considering rail design, there should be no artistry. Rail design is science. You modify the variables to achieve a specific outcome. Understanding those variables is the key. To be clear, this is where you feel that you excel beyond the rest of the people in this business. You hold the belief that no one else could ever understand these variables in the way that you do. Now, maybe there are some in this business who don't consider all of the variables, or maybe they don't put the same emphasis on the variables, or maybe they just don't care.. Though, you cannot lump everyone together, and insist that no one else could ever figure these things out.
I understand your position. You have used this forum as a platform to establish dominance. I get it. The vast majority of business that you get, has been as a result of this forum. You have to do whatever it takes, to ensure that everyone who visits this forum will view you as the most knowledgeable pool table guru on the face of the earth. That's cool.. Whatever you have to do to make it through life.. I, on the other hand, have chosen to take a different approach. I treat everyone with respect, and understand that I can learn something from everyone.
All differences aside, I wish you the best, buddy.
Happy holidays!
