Ball uniformity in the pool room.

DrClean

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
How common is it to get your set of balls and have there be 3 different sizes in there? It makes racking a challenge sometimes. Is this something that happens at every pool hall or is it more of a low-rent thing?
 

Black-Balled

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
That is why I stay home and play with myself...why would I leave my house to pay money to play on inferior tables with worse balls and crappy racks and chalk that shoulda been thrown away long ago while I listen to awful music and pay too much for a drink or 9?

And then I have to fade all you humans too?

Brutal.
 

Chopdoc

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
That is why I stay home and play with myself...


:eek::eek::eek:


OK....Um......but are your balls the same size?



Let's stay on topic.....






Many times I have had several different type pool balls in a set at a room. Very frustrating.




.
 

weakfingers

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
It happens all the time. In my college poolroom the cue balls are tiny because they get replacement balls and they're never the same size... I always bring my own Aramith pro cup cue ball.

The 8 balls are also bigger than the rest of the house balls and the racks are NEVER tight. When I bring my own set of balls they're almost always frozen, so I know it's definitely an issue with the balls.

When I'm not at school I shoot at Steinway Billiards and Astoria Billiards Club in Queens, NY and occasionally there'll be a mix of Centennial balls and some random replacement (probably a Chinese replacement)...
 

Icon of Sin

I can't fold, I need gold. I re-up and reload...
Silver Member
Ive been to places where i get a rack and it will have like some aramith balls some centenial balls and some chinese balls all in one rack lol

Same... I try to avoid those players for the most part... It can be impossible to get a tight rack.
 

CreeDo

Fargo Rating 597
Silver Member
Super common, basically pool halls seem to fall into two categories... "the owner shoots and gives a shit" or "the owner is not a player and just doesn't care". The first type has uniform sets, the second type will usually have several bad sets mixed with barbox balls or another brand.

Our league hall is the 2nd type and one set has a barbox cue ball mixed with the regular balls. I absolutely hate that.
 

cjr3559

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
That is why I stay home and play with myself...why would I leave my house to pay money to play on inferior tables with worse balls and crappy racks and chalk that shoulda been thrown away long ago while I listen to awful music and pay too much for a drink or 9?

And then I have to fade all you humans too?

Brutal.

I laughed out loud when I read this post, but it's entirely true. For the most part Friday and Saturday nights are amateur nights at pool halls, even the good ones.

Makes me want to stay home and play with myself. Ha!
 

ctyhntr

RIP Kelly
Silver Member
Right now there are some good deals. For the price of 3-5 pieces of Kamui chalk, you can have a choice of aramith or brunswick centennisls.
 

Tramp Steamer

One Pocket enthusiast.
Silver Member
Ball uniformity in the poolroom? I think that's a bit personal, don't you.
I've never asked, and there isn't a locker room where you can see for yourself when the guys come out of the showers, but... what? He was asking about billiard balls?
Sorry. My mistake. :smile:
 
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Donny Lutz

Ferrule Cat
Silver Member
Agree with Creedo

Super common, basically pool halls seem to fall into two categories... "the owner shoots and gives a shit" or "the owner is not a player and just doesn't care". The first type has uniform sets, the second type will usually have several bad sets mixed with barbox balls or another brand.

Our league hall is the 2nd type and one set has a barbox cue ball mixed with the regular balls. I absolutely hate that.

Yes, that's the case pretty much on every pool table in Gainesville. Fortunately, it looks like we're going to have a new billiard center in town, being created by a POOL PLAYER, so I'm expecting great things...
 

RRfireblade

Grammer Are For Stupids
Silver Member
The odds of having an identically sized set is actually the long shot.

Don't EVER bring a set of calipers to the pool room....that's all I'm saying.
 

Bob Jewett

AZB Osmium Member
Staff member
Gold Member
Silver Member
Ever consider bringing your own set?
This can work, but....

So I was practicing for a tournament and I had a nearly new set of Aramith Pro balls so I polished them up and took them down to the PH. They played really nicely. Before my next trip, I polished them again. What's the little thing on the 5 ball? A small gouge. Next polish cycle, another one or two gouges. Somewhere there is a little nail head sticking out. I'm not sure which table was the culprit since I played on more than one.

In some pool halls, the trays of balls are numbered to match the tables. I think that would allow the owner -- assuming he's playing attention -- to find out which tables need to have their nails pounded back into the wood.
 

ignomirello

Tony IGGY
Silver Member
That is why I stay home and play with myself...why would I leave my house to pay money to play on inferior tables with worse balls and crappy racks and chalk that shoulda been thrown away long ago while I listen to awful music and pay too much for a drink or 9?

And then I have to fade all you humans too?

Brutal.

When you play pocket pool You don't deserve big racks! lol
 

Txstang1

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
It's my understanding that the balls being repeatedly slammed into like the one are usually the first ones to wear down and get smaller in size. A local place I play has centenial balls that are at least 20 years olds and so worn out you cant get a tight rack for shit.
 

TheBook

Ret Professional Goof Off
Silver Member
At Valley Forge 2 years ago we seen a fork lift bring in a pallet of balls across the parking lot and the pallet fell off. Balls went rolling across the lot. The area where the Pro Am was being played had Arimith Pro and Duramith all mixed together. We were laughing as we seen that knowing that it was probably the result of the dropped pallet.
 

Bob Jewett

AZB Osmium Member
Staff member
Gold Member
Silver Member
It's my understanding that the balls being repeatedly slammed into like the one are usually the first ones to wear down and get smaller in size. A local place I play has centenial balls that are at least 20 years olds and so worn out you cant get a tight rack for shit.
I think the cloth is much more the culprit than the ball being struck. As chalk goes into the cloth, it becomes like sand paper (chalk is mostly ground-up sand). Between when a ball is hit and when it starts rolling smoothly on the cloth, it is sliding. That means its surface is rubbing against the sand-paper-cloth.
 
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