By leaving all the rail bolts out? What kind of table?
Smaller Than Regulation Pool Balls
- Thread starter Get_A_Grip
- Start date
By leaving all the rail bolts out? What kind of table?
Does that mean that the center slate has pocket cuts that are also off? Are there two or three different lengths of side rail sections?
Pictures would be great if it's still like that.
The strangest table I've seen (that was meant to be a regular table) is a carom table with eight diamonds down the long rail. That may sound right at first, but there are usually seven diamond markers on that rail to divide the rail into eight equal sections. The eight diamonds divided the rail into nine sections. There was no diamond halfway down the rail.
No, the rails were not loose, just off on one side. I don't remember the table brand, we have not played in the league for a bit, but I can ask someone to send me some pictures.
So now that you mention it, yes the slate hole seems to have been in the right place by the pocket, so that would mean the slate was cut out off. Hm...
I don't play in that area anymore but I can ask someone to take a few pictures for me.
One side rail is longer than the other, but I don't know if that is the same on both sides.
Really outside of just laughing at the setup I did not do a lot of digging into it.
On any table that the rail bolts pass through the slate to bolt the rails down on, the most the rails can be off centered on the side pockets is based on the size of the rail bolt hole drilled through the slate, in which there would only be the opportunity to shift the rails by a 1/2" in one direction or the other. Now a bar table slate can be out of center based on how much room the slate has to site inside of the cabinet, which again is only about a 1/2" variable side to side at the most.
Hundreds of thousands of hours of use? At 40 hours per week that would be 96 years.
I think at least one player dogs his shots, so in dog years, it seems totally reasonable. :groucho:
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I have a friend who had an antique pool table (over 100 years old) and the pockets and balls were smaller (probably 2 1/8 inch diameter but I never measured them). It was a pool table, not snooker. Also, I bring my set of Aramith Tournament pool balls to play 9 ball pickup games to the pool hall where I play 8 ball in a league. The house balls are Brunswick Centennials (I believe made by Aramith) but are over 30 years old and some players claim mine are "heavy" and larger but I think the age of the Centennials cause them to be somewhat lighter and smaller. Mine are almost perfectly matched at 170 grams each but a couple are 169 (6 ounces x 28.3 grams/ ounce = 169.8 grams. I have not measured mine but they are probably 2 1/4 inches in diameter.
Speaking of bringing your own balls. A friend and teammate of mine bought a used set of Aramith Tournament balls that are nicely polished and a case, so he does bring them when we are playing at home, to switch with the crappy bar balls.
So last night I'm playing at a new bar that I will be playing leagues for in the fall. Their balls were extremely dirty and just all around a terrible set. So we switch them out when my friend gets there.
Eventually the owner comes in, and my friend is trying to convince him to get a newer Valley table, new cloth, and new balls before leagues start. And he says that he has a good set of balls in back that they use for leagues. I realize that a ball banger might abuse the equipment, but to keep terrible, filthy balls on the table for "normal" customers really rubbed me the wrong way. But it is his bar...
People also like to steal the balls from places, I'm sure you have seen many sets where the 8 or 9 ball have been replaced. Leave a good set of balls out for everyone to use, and not only will they be smashed around and on the floor but within months you will have a ball or two missing.
I would be careful when using your own set of balls, some tables have nails or the pocket metal exposed in the pockets. Especially the leather lined pockets, the leather gets ripped and not replaced, so when the balls hit there, you are hitting the metal bar and dinging the balls. Had that happen a few times and I stopped doing this.