Interesting shots from Russia

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Bad geopolitical timing, but let's not take it out on an author from 30 years ago!

I came across a Russian billiards book and was having a look at the pictures. A couple of them in particular caught my eye.

These shots are similar to ones we would be familiar with, but look somewhat different - possibly exaggerated for clarity in the picture, maybe the Russian equipment plays a bit different too. Sadly, I can't read any of the words!

What do you think, could you make these shots work?
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They appear to be "scratch" shots for pyramid. The first two go off the solid ball into the nearest pocket. The third one might be a trick one that pockets the ball in the corner and bends back to scratch in the other corner.
 
straightline said:
They appear to be "scratch" shots for pyramid. The first two go off the solid ball into the nearest pocket. The third one might be a trick one that pockets the ball in the corner and bends back to scratch in the other corner.
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I think the first shot pockets the object ball too. If you look closely it shows a double-kiss. I've seen this in pool with the OB very close to a pocket, but nothing like the distances shown here. It's hard to be sure what the author has in mind without being able to read the words!

But on the other hand, you could be right.


The second shot, again, the distances look implausible (unless maybe at the start of the shot the CB gets squeezed against the jaw to let him generate a lot of spin and slow forward motion?) If the OB is really on the edge of the pocket, it seems like the CB would have to do a lot of work.
 
Pin said:
I think the first shot pockets the object ball too. If you look closely it shows a double-kiss. I've seen this in pool with the OB very close to a pocket, but nothing like the distances shown here. It's hard to be sure what the author has in mind without being able to read the words!

But on the other hand, you could be right.


The second shot, again, the distances look implausible (unless maybe at the start of the shot the CB gets squeezed against the jaw to let him generate a lot of spin and slow forward motion?) If the OB is really on the edge of the pocket, it seems like the CB would have to do a lot of work.
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I see what you mean. The X ball - if it is a ball, seems out of spec; in the wrong place for that shot. The line drawn from the "10" ball to the pocket is about right for the cue ball to travel squarely through the pocket. Same for the side pocket shot. The object ball rebounds make sense with the cue ball going into the pockets.
 
I hadn't thought of Google Translator. I guess I'd need some software that would read the text from the image, as I wouldn't know how to type it in Cyrillic.

That said, I don't really know where to begin with the software approach either!

The X-ball seems to be the cueball in all diagrams. The book generally seemed to mix simple and complex shots, so context doesn't really help.
 
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Okay, text extraction was easy. Google translation still leaves something to the imagination, however!

First pic:

"...and gift
Rice. 35. Counter-toile in the corner and konartula in the middle
dir Adamozhen when
Is imtou to board lus
and such a ball, some
May cue from cue ball, vol.
the ball in the hole
takes to the belly
and the lack of jewelry technology easily lead to a stand, and at a crucial moment, IR loses.
The "massho" strike is performed by hitting the cue ball at the top of the cue ball at a steep angle - almost perpendicular to the surface of the billiards. Refers to difficult strikes and is used mainly by foreign players in carom games. We rarely practice this Blow due to the fact that its execution largely depends on the size and quality of the balls.
in Western countries they usually use small balls (5862 mm in diameter), dry, mi, absolutely verified. On domestic
for example, having a diameter of 69 to 73 mm, it is very difficult to perform a high-quality impact to the mass,
Forbidden strikes
billiard game
The most common illegal shots in the billiard room are propio and na..."
 
Second pic:

"...sha
Rice. 34. "Abricol" due to the "lip" of the pocket
A n3 bom 'abrica
noy pa grokovi ace and
rice. 34
prom ster mu
demonstrate your skill in all its brilliance by hitting the cue ball with a sharp right “effe”. The cue ball, having been reflected from the board with the "Screw", will go to the right and put the ball.
Another version of "abricol" involves playing into the pocket of "one's" ball, reflected first from the board and only then from the ball or balls.
The counter punch is a difficult punch, especially for those who don't practice it consistently in training.
The essence of this blow is that after the first collision of the cue ball and the ball being played, the latter, having reflected from the board, hits the cue ball for the second time, after which it falls into the pocket net (Fig. 35).
This shot is practiced when the cue ball and target ball are close to the boards and pockets. At the same time, they hit not directly “on the forehead” of the object ball, but in its side part, counting on an intermediate couplet and, in a secondary collision, on hitting the pocket, and the cue ball from the blow must be directed further from the pocket, taking it far back
ontrtouch "is fraught with the fact that the slightest mistake made because of the desire to flaunt this blow..."
 
So to save you deciphering, it looks like the first photo (double kiss shot) is to make the object ball, and should be close to the pocket and rail. Pretty sure this is also in the Byrne books.

And the second one seems to be a straightforward English off the rail shot, although the layout still seems unusual.
 
Pyramid is a game where you make a point by pocketing object ball or cue ball from carom. It is easier to make carom shots than pocketing on 12 feet table plus tight pockets. Best Russian Pyramid players have inhuman powerful strokes and eye for all kind scratches.
Maybe this video could make you guys understand better diagrams.
It is Stalev shooting all kind pyramid carom shots. Mostly are trickshots but some of those are 80 percent + to him.
 
Poolmanis said:
Pyramid is a game where you make a point by pocketing object ball or cue ball from carom. It is easier to make carom shots than pocketing on 12 feet table plus tight pockets. Best Russian Pyramid players have inhuman powerful strokes and eye for all kind scratches.
Maybe this video could make you guys understand better diagrams.
It is Stalev shooting all kind pyramid carom shots. Mostly are trickshots but some of those are 80 percent + to him.
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Great video!

Even though I appreciate how hard the shots are and how small those pockets are, his reactions remind me of the saying "When you get to the end zone, you're allowed to celebrate, but try to act like you've been there before." 😆
(Actually, I might have read that in someone's signature on here...)

That shot at 10:10 is interesting. The first of the two object balls looks like it should lose all its speed when it hits the second object ball. Is it being driven forward by rotation transferred from the cue ball's above center contact? If so, it's acquired a *lot* of drive...
 
Pin said:
I came across a Russian billiards book and was having a look at the pictures. A couple of them in particular caught my eye.

View attachment 640868View attachment 640874View attachment 640875
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I used to own this book. It is the first ever out of many more I acquired on my quest in the world of cue games. Back then I didn't even play myself, still something drew my attention to the book, I feel that was my inner interest and drive towards balls in motion on cloth-covered rectangle :) Actually it was the first book in many years released in the Soviet Union on the game of billiards, as for a long time the game was associated with criminals and anti-social bums. There were periods when it was even banned. The title says "A poem about the game of billiards". And many diagrams with descriptions, as I learnt later, are from an older book by other author, printed in 1947.

You guessed the content correct. The X ball is the cueball, it was traditionally marked like that within old ball sets (usually engraved, the way it is presented on the book's cover). And the shots pictured are double-kiss examples. The last one is seen as a possible solution of a hooked-behind-the-jaw situation. I don't think it is plausible though. Also I've never seen a double-kiss played intentionally (unintentional, there were plenty). So overall most of the shots pictured are not very much useful nowadays. Back then the equipment was different, so they might have been played then. Unfortunately, there is no footage of how the game was played, again, due to its low-par status.
 
Vahmurka said:
I used to own this book. It is the first ever out of many more I acquired on my quest in the world of cue games. Back then I didn't even play myself, still something drew my attention to the book, I feel that was my inner interest and drive towards balls in motion on cloth-covered rectangle :) Actually it was the first book in many years released in the Soviet Union on the game of billiards, as for a long time the game was associated with criminals and anti-social bums. There were periods when it was even banned. The title says "A poem about the game of billiards". And many diagrams with descriptions, as I learnt later, are from an older book by other author, printed in 1947.

You guessed the content correct. The X ball is the cueball, it was traditionally marked like that within old ball sets (usually engraved, the way it is presented on the book's cover). And the shots pictured are double-kiss examples. The last one is seen as a possible solution of a hooked-behind-the-jaw situation. I don't think it is plausible though. Also I've never seen a double-kiss played intentionally (unintentional, there were plenty). So overall most of the shots pictured are not very much useful nowadays. Back then the equipment was different, so they might have been played then. Unfortunately, there is no footage of how the game was played, again, due to its low-par status.
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Vam spaseeba! Is Pyramids your main game? It looks tough!
 
Pin said:
Vam spaseeba! Is Pyramids your main game? It looks tough!
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Nope, I got that pool bug straight away. And for the good if it. I got acquainted with Russian Pyramid later, and in reality it is not as hard as it looks (provided one has proper fundamentals and eyesight). Yes the pockets are pretty tight but even that can be overridden at times by a hard hit on the ball (the pocket does not have eny reinforsements, so it is soft, and a hard impact just opens up the pocket slightly). I can enjoy Pyramid but not for a long time, as it gets boring much faster than other games which offer better variety of shots and position plays.
 
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I spent some time working on force follow double kiss shots, which is what I think this is showing, before my health went south. I got pretty good at being able to judge where the object ball was going , if the object ball was frozen and if the object ball and cueball were nearly dead straight on . Then you basically eliminate everything, except the english you have put on the cueball as far as hit. You can get the double kiss if they are not straight on , but it was very uncontrolled for me. Granted I am not a great player, but it is a pretty simple concept. If I remember correctly , I was never striking the cueball more than a tip and a half from center, or it also got uncontrollable. Hope this helps someone. What I did learn to do really accurately, was kissing back in a direction to pocket a hanging ball , or play safe. That is much easier to learn.
 
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book collector said:
I spent some time working on force follow double kiss shots, which is what I think this is showing, before my health went south. I got pretty good at being able to judge where the object ball was going , if the object ball was frozen and if the object ball and cueball were nearly dead straight on . Then you basically eliminate everything, except the english you have put on the cueball as far as hit.
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Was there a book or youtube video you used at the time that would show what you mean in more detail?
 
Pin said:
Was there a book or youtube video you used at the time that would show what you mean in more detail?
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It was a diagram similar to the ones you have in the russian book, possibly even the same ones lol. There were no hints on making the shot that I remember. Sorry I can't be of more help.
This is Dr Dave, I don't know if what we are looking for exactly is there , but there will be a ton of great info no matter what it is.
There are several force follow you tube videos.maybe something in those will help.
 
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