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Where I grew up, the ‘rack boy’ also held down the cigar store/magazine stand’s front counter/cash register, and thus got a lot of exercise. The shout of “RACK” soon brought him running! He wore a change apron, and the winner of our five & nine ring game would throw him a dime as he racked.

What would happen if he followed both balls into the pocket with the CB?

Bob’s recommendation makes sense. I have a bad habit of targeting merely an ‘area’ (‘you can’t get there if you don’t know where you’re going‘). ‘Area only’ position often leaves you on the wrong side of the ball. Always aiming for a specific spot makes it easier to get good position on all the...

Likely, the most abrasive chalk is also the cheapest (?). No excuse then for grinding such a deep pit in every cube, that the ferrel gets gouged. When he finally learns the right way to chalk, he’ll probably start tossing worn/pitted cubes more often.

Typically, there is just so much mental acuity that can be mustered. I often must concentrate so intensely on pocketing a complicated combo, I just completely forget about the CB. I guess it must be a subconscious ‘precedence’ issue, since after all, if the shot is missed, serendipitously bad CB...

My early 90s Diamond Pro (larger pockets/bronze label) played much like a standard GC. I made the mistake 30 yrs. later of replacing the cushions when it was finally recovered (repeat 760), along with thicker facings. Now, it bank progressively longer with increasing angles, and distant...

Those that qualify (‘strangers to reason’) typically interrupt the conversation of others, regularly, and with seemingly no regret.

I’ve had younger guys (dressed like homeless bums) come up to me in night clubs & fancy restaurants, and hostly inform me that I was overdressed (wearing sport shirt & slacks). Very Kafkaesque. I actually got that same lecture from a guy in t-shirt, shorts & sandals, because I was wearing a...

Beats me. The Bludworth container has no ingredient list (likely proprietary).

Shades of bygone Maxwell St. days 😁. I bought a few great cheap guitars back then.

Typically, I just use the spray cleaner sold by the polish machine retailer. Rarely, when balls pickup black marks, I’ll use a popular ball cleaning cream, but some residue from that remains in the machine felt and seems to have a lasting effect. Polishing these days is seldom anyway since my...

It may have something to do with my playing 14.1 exclusively. The corner shots are starting to bobble, but the rails don’t get much wear. Polished balls seem to spread the pack better, and cut at the correct angle without using any outside. I assumed banks were supposed to follow a geometric...

Go figure. My new Artemus cushions with 760 still bank progressively overlong as the angle widens, after nearly 5 years of use, and polished CB with inside english typically refuses to come off short. I wonder if there is a practical way to speed up wear on the rail cloth (?).

First time I ever saw the balls racked with the center one missing. Is there any legitimate game where that is the rule? If you WERE actually playing rotation for more than 120 points, how should it go?

Also, (IMHO), the all too common double-elimination 8 ball tournament (replacing ‘action’) hasn’t helped. Coin toss/break & run play can be discouraging, and is not the way to determine the better player. Mosconi stayed the champion so long by winning grueling round-robin 14.1 matches.

I agree. Back when poolrooms were more common, so was action. And thus, honorable (non-hustling) amateurs could often threaten the pros.

P.S. In retrospect, had I been more intuitive in those days, I should probably have offered to buy the ball machine myself, as he was likely having financial difficulty getting the new restaurant/club business off the ground. It was only because I was so taken aback, and couldn’t perceive the...

I have recurring dreams about stumbling across a local poolroom with quality pro equipment that is still open. It usually involves my entry into a strange/unrelated building, and then I hear the unmistakable sound of clicking billiard balls in an adjoining room 😁.

Yes, but I did have a falling out with Jim back in the 90s. After traveling regularly a very long distance as a personal favor to him (filling out his handicapped 14.1 tournament roll), he suddenly demanded I pay him a large membership fee. I said I would (even though I would never likely drive...

Back in the day, no proper room operator would let the worst players hog the best tables. You might recall, at ‘Ames’, the table Gleason & Newman initially played on had been kept covered.