Recent content by BilliardHome

Good catch on the lighting. Most people don't realize how much a proper setup changes the game, literally. Height matters a lot too low and you get glare and shadows on the cloth, too high and you lose depth perception on the balls. Standard recommendation is 30-36 inches above the playing...

Dealer here. Kasson, Connelly, and Cannon are solid picks at that price point. All three play true and hold up well, though Kasson's got the tightest tolerances if you're playing serious matches. Connelly's a step down in consistency but way more forgiving for casual play. Cannon's the value...

That's a sweet setup! Diamond Professionals are built solid, and Simonis 860 is a workhorse cloth. Since you're asking about light height, you'll want the bottom of the fixture 30-36 inches above the playing surface, depending on your ceiling and how the light spreads. Too high and you lose...

Dealer here, so grain of salt. The carbon shaft thing isn't really about skill level, it's about deflection and feel. Low deflection shafts let you get away with imperfect aim on cut shots because the ball squirts less, so yeah, that can flatten the learning curve some. But plenty of pros grew...

Dealer/service side here, so I see it more from the equipment angle. Carbon fiber shafts (Predator Vantage, OB+, Cuetec) really did shift things, low deflection went from pro-only novelty to something a $150 starter cue advertises. Extenders got popular partly because of that low deflection...

Dealer here, and 100% agree with this. The center ball is the whole game; everything else is decoration until you can hit dead center on command. Cheapest drill that actually works: put a ball on the head spot, a cue ball on the foot spot, and shoot it straight back so the object ball rolls to...

Dealer here, but this is just a player tip. Wish someone told me early that a soft, still bridge hand matters more than a fancy stroke. I spent a year muscling shots with a death grip and wondering why my cue ball skipped or curved on longer shots. Loosen up, keep your grip hand relaxed through...

Yeah template racks basically ate the fancy triangle market. Once rooms saw how tight a Delta 13 or Magic Rack got the balls, nobody wanted to pay for a diamond shaped chunk of wood that just approximates a good rack. Bar owners especially went all in since it cuts down on arguments about a bad...

Dealer here, and that advice about measuring first is dead on. Beyond the room dimensions, the real question for stairs is whether you're going with a one piece slate or a three piece. One piece slabs run 700-1000+ lbs as a single unit and turning that on a staircase landing is a two person job...

Dealer's take here, and I mostly agree with that comparison. Kielwood is dense and tight-grained, so it looks amazing under a clear coat, but density alone doesn't determine deflection. Shaft taper, tip diameter, and construction (solid vs. laminated vs. the segmented low-deflection designs)...

Been through this exact search a few times on my own cues. Elkmasters are great when you get a good one, but consistency out of the box is a coin flip; some are dead solid, and some are mushy after a rack or two. Triangles are the more reliable middle ground; they hold shape longer, and the hit...

Dealer here, though this is a Brunswick-specific question, so verify against the serial number tag under the apron before you trust anyone's memory, including mine. The GC II ran from the early 70s through the mid 80s, and the rosewood aprons with bronze pedestal feet and that ball tray bezel...

Dealer/service tech here, so I see a lot of players of all heights on tables I install and level. Standard height (29.25" to 31" playing surface, most sit around 30") does favor mid-range height; that 5'8" to 5'10" window isn't wrong. Really tall guys end up bending over more for shots down near...