How to get more Power in my 8 ball Break

PoolFan101

PoolFan101

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Hello ,

I , after 19 or so years have been trying to get my game back. I have been actively playing about 3 times a week now and we play 8 ball mostly . I had been breaking from the side and do pretty well that way but wanted to improve the power of my break and after watching the match Between Mosconi and Fats in the great pool shootout it seem's Mosconi always broke from the same place and got a scatter on the balls and seem to keep the Cue ball were he had a shot. I have since been breaking from that spot and does seem I get a good scatter but would like to break with some more speed. I line the cue ball with the 1 spot on the side rail and 1st spot on head rail and I make my bridge on the headrail and then break. What drills or methods or tricks can I use to maybe add a little more power in my breaks , Thanks
 
HawaiianEye

HawaiianEye

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I put the cue ball on the head string. I want to be as close to the rack as I can.

I find that "timing" can be just as important as break speed.

I can hit the balls HARD, but I don't usually hit them as hard as I can.

I try to hit the head ball SOLID. I don't go for the second ball, like a lot of people do.

You can find a lot of better breakers to watch on Youtube than Mosconi and Fats. There is no comparison in their breaks and the pros playing today.
 
M

megatron69

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
RiverCity said:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xW1tsONEI_U
Click to expand...

The quality of that video is terrible. Good tips though. Something I feel he didn't stress enough, that noobs often misunderstand. The idea isn't to hit the ball HARD. The idea is to make the cue stroke as fast as possible. Often noobs buy the heaviest cue they can find to break with, and still don't break well. My break cue is 17.5 oz.

I figured out the longer lever thing on my own, a friend taught me the bit about gripping farther forward for breaking, and if you're any kind of athlete, you get the "eccentric" thing, which I'd call "momentum loading."

But the key is to hit the cue ball with as much speed as possible, not try to hit as hard as you can. You can hit the cue ball very fast and still hit it in exactly the spot you intended; but if you try to hit it with every muscle in your body, I guarantee you'll miss hit the thing a lot.
 
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megatron69

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
RiverCity said:
Well, luckily its the information that is important, not the video quality. :welcome:
Click to expand...

Agreed. However, the quality is so bad it's distracting. I was somewhat hoping that it was just my computer and not the video itself.

One other thing about that break. You don't have to jump up like that. You can develop plenty of power just rolling forward onto the balls of your feet as you drive the stroke. Leaving the ground is not required, and probably increases the difficulty exponentially.
 
Tin Man

Tin Man

AzB Gold Member
Gold Member
Silver Member
There was one breaking skill so difficult it took me 15 years to really get good at, and I still struggle sometimes. It is very critical. That skill is taking speed off the break.

It really is about timing. When you think 'hard' what happens is many muscles tense and tighten that restrict fluid cue movement. The result is way more body movement, far less accuracy, and a lack luster impact.

Through years of work I've learned to back off on the power. Really. I mean, I thought I was doing it, but it was the break shot, and my brain just couldn't come to grips with the idea of shooting it without trying to explode the rack. I saw the videos of SVB and other big breakers and just wanted that so much.

But timing and accuracy are the answer. Yes, you need to let your cue swing, but you don't need to force it to swing. The right swing involves smooth, accurate acceleration. Not a choked thrust. Don't try to add muscle to it. Just swing your cue stick and let the cue do the work. Look at James Aranas's break. He doesn't look like he's tensing a muscle in his body, loose as a goose, but plenty of action.

Also, if you are serious, get the Break-Rak. You can really put in a lot of work in a hurry!
 
S

Scott Lee

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Demi...Thank you for posting your terrific explaination, as it was the crux of our conversation about how to improve anyone's break...even a "pro-level" player like yourself! This is why I disagree with videos like Colin Colenso's... which are all about power, and driving the cuestick through the CB. But that's why there's no one way to do anything pool...and many choices in how to deliver the cue accurately. For me, and my students, we have better success with working on timing and accuracy, with a relaxed cradle, and a perfect transition from backswing to forward stroke!

Scott Lee
2019 PBIA Instructor of the Year
Director, SPF National Pool School Tour

Tin Man said:
There was one breaking skill so difficult it took me 15 years to really get good at, and I still struggle sometimes. It is very critical. That skill is taking speed off the break.

It really is about timing. When you think 'hard' what happens is many muscles tense and tighten that restrict fluid cue movement. The result is way more body movement, far less accuracy, and a lack luster impact.

Through years of work I've learned to back off on the power. Really. I mean, I thought I was doing it, but it was the break shot, and my brain just couldn't come to grips with the idea of shooting it without trying to explode the rack. I saw the videos of SVB and other big breakers and just wanted that so much.

But timing and accuracy are the answer. Yes, you need to let your cue swing, but you don't need to force it to swing. The right swing involves smooth, accurate acceleration. Not a choked thrust. Don't try to add muscle to it. Just swing your cue stick and let the cue do the work. Look at James Aranas's break. He doesn't look like he's tensing a muscle in his body, loose as a goose, but plenty of action.

Also, if you are serious, get the Break-Rak. You can really put in a lot of work in a hurry!
Click to expand...
 
Nullus

Nullus

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
For power, center ball hit, with good follow through. Most people err on one or the other.
 
jay helfert

jay helfert

Shoot Pool, not people
Gold Member
Silver Member
PoolFan101 said:
Hello ,

I , after 19 or so years have been trying to get my game back. I have been actively playing about 3 times a week now and we play 8 ball mostly . I had been breaking from the side and do pretty well that way but wanted to improve the power of my break and after watching the match Between Mosconi and Fats in the great pool shootout it seem's Mosconi always broke from the same place and got a scatter on the balls and seem to keep the Cue ball were he had a shot. I have since been breaking from that spot and does seem I get a good scatter but would like to break with some more speed. I line the cue ball with the 1 spot on the side rail and 1st spot on head rail and I make my bridge on the headrail and then break. What drills or methods or tricks can I use to maybe add a little more power in my breaks , Thanks
Click to expand...

Speed kills! In other words you don't need it to have an effective break. What you do need is the ability to "read" the rack and hit it in the right place with a strong, smooth stroke.

Scott in post #8 above says it far more eloquently than me. Tin Man in #7 mentions it to. I hadn't read their posts until after I posted.
 
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Tin Man

Tin Man

AzB Gold Member
Gold Member
Silver Member
elbow

Scott Lee said:
Demi...Thank you for posting your terrific explaination, as it was the crux of our conversation about how to improve anyone's break...even a "pro-level" player like yourself! This is why I disagree with videos like Colin Colenso's... which are all about power, and driving the cuestick through the CB. But that's why there's no one way to do anything pool...and many choices in how to deliver the cue accurately. For me, and my students, we have better success with working on timing and accuracy, with a relaxed cradle, and a perfect transition from backswing to forward stroke!

Scott Lee
2019 PBIA Instructor of the Year
Director, SPF National Pool School Tour
Click to expand...

Thank you Scott! Yes, our conversation about the break made a difference, in particular one thing you said. You were talking about not dropping the elbow, but rather just letting the pendulum swing from the elbow down.

Well, that was it. When I used to try lunging my entire body and extending my arm forward like I was thrusting a spear, nothing good ever happened. Once I focused on keeping my elbow high and just trusting my swing it was all over. Playing 10 ball I've had a lot of 2s and 3s and my first 4, so I have been flat out raining racks. It feels great! I appreciate the help!
 
Black-Balled

Black-Balled

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
And something else to remember: a more powerful break doesn't only come from knowledge, one needs to practice it and continually progress to that more powerful place.
 
hang-the-9

hang-the-9

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
PoolFan101 said:
Hello ,

I , after 19 or so years have been trying to get my game back. I have been actively playing about 3 times a week now and we play 8 ball mostly . I had been breaking from the side and do pretty well that way but wanted to improve the power of my break and after watching the match Between Mosconi and Fats in the great pool shootout it seem's Mosconi always broke from the same place and got a scatter on the balls and seem to keep the Cue ball were he had a shot. I have since been breaking from that spot and does seem I get a good scatter but would like to break with some more speed. I line the cue ball with the 1 spot on the side rail and 1st spot on head rail and I make my bridge on the headrail and then break. What drills or methods or tricks can I use to maybe add a little more power in my breaks , Thanks
Click to expand...

Hit harder.

No secrets to playing pool.

You need to practice to develop timing to the break, you don't want to put too much power into the body and arm if you are doing it at the wrong time. I know some people that lunge forward, but they do it either too early or too late basically just throwing off their hit accuracy without adding to the speed.

The break also depends on how well it's racked and the table. You get a tight rack on a properly setup table with good rails and you get a good spread. That is as important as to the speed of the break when it comes to opening up the rack.
 
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Mustardeer

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I’d say for starters get to a 9’ table line up a long straight-in diagonally, hit it in as hard as you can without moving your body. If it goes in heart of pocket add a little more speed/power if it rattles take off power, keep practicing till you find out how much power you can hit it with while CONSISTENTLY pocketing that object ball. Your break is only as good as your stroke, if you’re not able to do this work on your stroke not your break. Once you figured out your speed rack the balls. Instead of trying your power break put the cb center of headstring, and shoot the 1 ball into an imaginary pocket located at the center of the short end rail you’re facing. Apply the exact same power/speed/precision you used when swishing your straigh-ins. You’re still not moving your body yet. You’ll be surprised by how well you’ll be spreading the balls without “power breaking”. That’s your foundation. Build from there. Take all the weight bolts out of your break cue. Experiment with cue ball placement and all the fancy body theatrics. At the end of the day a good break is a lot like a good power draw shot, there’s a lot of feel involved you gotta practice for hours to get the timing right.
 
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