3D Printed One Pocket Ball Rack

iusedtoberich said:
I don't think I'll print any more of these. (unless he wants more). They just take way too long, and I was sweating the print failing the whole time. I also don't know how well they will hold up. I designed them thicker than most plastic parts, and the parts were oriented for the most possible strength in the printer, but time will tell.

I might come up with a more universal design, perhaps out of sheetmetal, with plastic only where the balls touch. That way the plastic can be oriented to print quickly, and would not be relied on for strength. It would screw to a flat wall, rather to the underside of an existing shelf as these do. And/or could be carried around like a tray and put on a table or shelf during a match. I doubt there would be much demand, but if a room owner said he wanted one for each table I'd probably do it.

That's all, enjoy:)
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What a nerdy thing to do! I love it. If you wanted to and found easier ways of doing this. You could sell these to all the rooms in the US, where 1-pocket is played.
 
Update: I played a long one pocket session on this table yesterday. I was my first time actually using the ball holders in a real match. I loved it! First, they still looked new. I was really happy about that, as they've been installed exactly 30 days, and that table has one pocket matches on it all day every day.

The function was awesome. It was easy to place the balls in, they rolled to the end with no issues, and it was easy to take them back to the table. We were playing a 9-8 spot, so the second row of balls didn't need to be used.

There was a crowd watching our game, and everyone could easily see the score from across the room.

My favorite part was actually the numbers. I go brain dead often while playing pool, and have a hard time counting the balls. This was so easy, I just looked at the number. I know that sounds nuts, but sometimes I just get stupid when in the heat of battle and a little thing like that makes it easier.
 
I'm working on a more general purpose ball rack. Maybe 2 types. One that screws to the Dimaond table somewhere, and a second that sits on a shelf and can be moved wherever needed. My printer can only print 4 balls wide in one row. I'm thinking holding 8 total balls (2 rows) is enough for 99% of the games ever played. I made a handicap chart of all the games I've played over the years, and it seems only 10-6 and 13-5 would end up with a ball or 2 without a home, that might end up on the floor, or potentially stacked on top, but not too stable. Do you one hole players think 8 balls in the holder is enough? For the games that go to 9 (with no coin on the rail), such as 9-7, 8 would be enough because that 9th pocketed ball never actually goes inside the rack.

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I printed this one last night that I had designed a couple years ago (but never printed). I'm going to take it to the pool room tonight to see how it fits on the diamond table in the black flat area between the ball return and the leg. It also sits on a shelf, but it wasn't intended that way. I'll see how stable it is in real use. The shelf version I'd intend to have a wider base.
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This is one idea I'm sketching up, by pencil still, for a shelf version.
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For both types, if I can get it to fit 8 balls total instead of 12, it will make it a lot easier to fit and print.
 
I took the quick print to the pool room and put it on a shelf. It was surprisingly stable, even though it was only as wide as the balls.


On the table (where it was intended), it sticks out less than the Diamond wire metal rack, and doesn't get in the player's leg's way. My leg/shin bangs into the diamond wire rack sometimes. As seen in the picture, it can be optimized to fit into that space better.
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iusedtoberich said:
I took the quick print to the pool room and put it on a shelf. It was surprisingly stable, even though it was only as wide as the balls.


On the table (where it was intended), it sticks out less than the Diamond wire metal rack, and doesn't get in the player's leg's way. My leg/shin bangs into the diamond wire rack sometimes. As seen in the picture, it can be optimized to fit into that space better.
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That looks great! I like your ideas for improvement. Printed in black it would pretty much disappear. I'm assuming you would want one on each side for 1P... I guess they would also be useful for keeping the high balls out of a game of 9B or 10B too. Please let me know if you end up wanting to sell a few of these, I'd love to own a pair.
 
boogieman said:
That looks great! I like your ideas for improvement. Printed in black it would pretty much disappear. I'm assuming you would want one on each side for 1P... I guess they would also be useful for keeping the high balls out of a game of 9B or 10B too. Please let me know if you end up wanting to sell a few of these, I'd love to own a pair.
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Yeah I def want to sell them when ready. The first ones I made were too difficult to print and assemble. I wouldn’t want to sell those, even though they turned out great.

I used white as that’s what I had in the printer. But prob a black or dark grey for whatever the final version will be.
 
iusedtoberich said:
No, I don't believe I have. I have seen 10 or 15 years ago on onepocket.org a rack then screwed into the legs on a Diamond and wrapped around. I forgot exactly how it looked.
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Ball tray on the bottom to watch the ball count, then there are pucks that go on a nail on the vertically displayed numbers for the game count. They have these on most of the tables in the main room if I'm recalling correctly.
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I am in a “diamond pool table owners” group on Facebook. A guy on there has this design which seems to be what you’re looking for. I’m sure it wouldn’t be hard to replicate.
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Goody04 said:
I am in a “diamond pool table owners” group on Facebook. A guy on there has this design which seems to be what you’re looking for. I’m sure it wouldn’t be hard to replicate.
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Yes, those are the ones I remember seeing. They look well designed from the pictures. I've never seen one in person. The ad does a good job in showing why they are better than the diamond wire rack also, which are the same things I ran into using them. They hit your legs, and there is no separation between the two opponent's balls.
 
Badpenguin said:
$100, sheesh, really proud of those things. You can take a plastic ball holder and make your own with a saw and a drill.
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No one is making anything nice with a plastic ball rack and saw and drill. It will look like crap, jagged edges, won't fit well, and will still need a way to attach to the legs. $100 for a set of 2 that is well made of powder coated steel, plastic inserts, and a perfect fit is a good price, imo.
 
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