12 Rail Challenge

[Colin Colenso]

I wonder if anyone has the power, persistence and perhaps fast enough table to make this 12 Rail Shot.

The 1 ball travels 7 rails and the CB hits 5 rails.

And, can anyone devise a realistic shot where the CB and OB collide with more rails on a successful pot?

Colin

N.B. If someone can video a successful attempt of this challenge, their name will go down in history via my semi-regular promotion of said achievement. :grin-square:

 

[Colin Colenso]

My US table is covered with Snooker table parts at the moment, so this is the best I could do on my UK 7 foot table. Similar to the above diagram but the OB travels only 5 rails, not 7.

With the CB traveling 5 rails, this makes it a 10 Rail Shot.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n_BhOk_IFY0

 

[Bob Jewett]

On a carom table with new cloth, it's possible to shoot an 11-cushion lag shot. That's along roughly the same line as your object ball but it goes longer into the 8th (end) cushion and continues along one more diagonal to end on the right end rail in your diagram. In carom it's never shot as a drive shot.

 

[Patrick Johnson]

In carom ... a drive shot.

What's that?

pj
chgo

 

[Bob Jewett]

(drive) What's that?

pj
chgo

At straight rail (and other "small" games) it's where the first object ball hits one or more cushions for the gather (rejoining the other balls). There is a standard fancy shot where the OB1 is driven 6 cushions while the cue ball is drawn only a couple of feet to leave all 3 balls in a corner. See also Shot A-1 (the first one) in http://www.sfbilliards.com/Misc/ArtisticBilliards1987.pdf which is a "9-cushion" shot. (See page 45 for the "6-cushion" shot.)

 

[macguy]

I wonder if anyone has the power, persistence and perhaps fast enough table to make this 12 Rail Shot.

The 1 ball travels 7 rails and the CB hits 5 rails.

And, can anyone devise a realistic shot where the CB and OB collide with more rails on a successful pot?

Colin

N.B. If someone can video a successful attempt of this challenge, their name will go down in history via my semi-regular promotion of said achievement. :grin-square:

On most any 9 foot table I can drive a cueball 9 rails. I can't really see a pattern where I can reach 11 or 12 rails. Can you show the rail pattern?

 

[Colin Colenso]

On most any 9 foot table I can drive a cueball 9 rails. I can't really see a pattern where I can reach 11 or 12 rails. Can you show the rail pattern?

If I recall correctly, Fast Larry used to play an 11 rail CB only shot, and perhaps he made a 12th, though by this stage, a ball had to hit a rail with reverse. Part of that recollection is that he said getting airborne was required of the first rail, or something like that, to conserve the angle such that he could go beyond 9 rails before the CB hit a rail with reverse.

It maybe possible that a 9 rail then pot could occur with CB going 5 rails on a very fast and elastic rail table.

Just a curiosity for those of us that get a little buzz about records

I'll try this 11rail shot tomorrow to see if it's possible on my table. It requires the OB to travel 6 rails and the CB to travel 5. The CB travel will be the challenge I suspect. I've already made the 6 rail pot when fooling around.

Colin

 

[gunzby]

When I worked in a pool hall in Ohio one of the regulars was Carey Cook who wrote a kicking book called Take Your Diamonds to the Bank. This was the last shot in the book.

He could make the shot, but it would take a few tries just because of lack of speed

Edit
I might be remembering wrong. It might have been 9 rails. Wish I had a copy of that book

 

[Patrick Johnson]

At straight rail (and other "small" games) it's where the first object ball hits one or more cushions for the gather (rejoining the other balls). There is a standard fancy shot where the OB1 is driven 6 cushions while the cue ball is drawn only a couple of feet to leave all 3 balls in a corner. See also Shot A-1 (the first one) in http://www.sfbilliards.com/Misc/ArtisticBilliards1987.pdf which is a "9-cushion" shot. (See page 45 for the "6-cushion" shot.)

Thx,

pj
chgo

 

[SilverCue]

I can make a 3 rail kick shot without using hands or cue stick and keep both feet on the floor

 

[Patrick Johnson]

...perhaps he made a 12th, though by this stage, a ball had to hit a rail with reverse.

There must be a theoretical limit on the number of rails possible before hitting with reverse...?

pj
chgo

 

[Colin Colenso]

There must be a theoretical limit on the number of rails possible before hitting with reverse...?

pj
chgo

Rail friction will always impart running so the travel pattern will always widen until the ball eventually hits a rail with reverse. I guess whether you get to 5, 7 or 9 or 11 rails before this happens depends on the rail characteristics and the initial line of shot.

 

[Bob Jewett]

Rail friction will always impart running so the travel pattern will always widen until the ball eventually hits a rail with reverse. I guess whether you get to 5, 7 or 9 or 11 rails before this happens depends on the rail characteristics and the initial line of shot.

9 "natural" rails is the most I've seen and it's been on carom tables with new cloth (or waxed balls). Snooker tables seem not to widen the angles as much as pool tables so that might be a possibility.