8' table dimensions throw your game off?

3andstop said:
I suppose I've never had the opportunity to play on a good 8' table. Every 8' table that I've played on were non-framed slate, glued down cloth, funny cut pockets with crappy rails where the CB boinged up in the air and garbage balls that thudded rather than clicked.

So, my perception of an 8' table comes from my experience with them, and that is I hated playing on them so much I had no desire to make any balls.

Not to mention it was usually at someone's house where there was a party or something and half the people playing were chalking the rubber bumper on the butt of the cue stick.

So, yeah, for me it's not only hard to make a ball on an 8' table, it's hard to call it a pool table.

If a real 8' table exists, perhaps if I get to experience it, my view would change.
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Geez man, what Third World country are you livin' in ??? :grin::grin::grin:

Maniac
 
There is a possibility that the table size could be a factor if you use any absolute distances along a rail as a point of reference. All of the table dimensions are proportional, so the cut angle for a shot 1x1 diamonds away from the corner pocket is the same on any size table. However, the cut angle for a ball 2 feet up the rail and one diamond out is different on each table. The bank angle for a ball 2 feet from the side pocket is also different on each table.

I don't know anyone that thinks about shots this way, and I think our brain does a pretty good job of scaling proportionally, especially with all of the visual cues provided by the diamonds, so I don't think this is an issue for most shots. I could see it being a factor on shots like blind cuts or banks if someone had developed sort of a mental shortcut based on absolute dimensions.
 
If you use absolutes cutting angles will change per table. I don't see cutting angles as an issue at ALL. An aiming (bad choice of words...lol) angle is just that, the size of a table does not matter. Determine the aiming point, however you want, from OB to pocket and hit it correctly and the OB goes in.

"The bank angle for a ball 2 feet from the side pocket is also different on each table." This statement is an absolute statement and not proportional. Just for argument sake a ball 2' from the rail from the side pocket on an 8' table may be 2.25' on a 9' table. Now proportionally what's the difference?
 
The answer for me is that "no" an 8' table doesn't throw my game off. Rolling the CB 2' on an 8' table is the same as rolling the CB 2' on a 9' table, or even a 7' table for that matter. Angles are the same whether you use the diamond system, mirror system, or whatever system you utilize. Your position play does have to be more precise though. The smaller table that you play on the more congested the balls are after the break.
 
bearsafety said:
Ive always heard the legend that shooting on an 8' table will throw your angles off when you shoot on a 7' or 9' table because they are different somehow... Is this true? I found an 8' table I want but want to know if this is true or a myth?
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Not really angles per se, but speed/distance adjustment will definitely be required. Also, a certain shot that might not scratch on a 7 or 9 foot table may scratch on an 8 foot table (and vice versa).

What it comes down to is that tables are different because of size, cloth, pocket size or even humidity in the room and you have to learn how to adjust .
 
The dimensions of all tables might be proportional (2x1) but the other important factor that DOESN'T change is the size of the balls. A 7-footer is 22% smaller than a 9-footer, but the balls are still 2-1/4" (a proportionally sized ball would be 1-7/8").

This would make a difference when avoiding cue ball scratches, although the difference is probably significantly smaller than your avoidance technique.
 
The table I have in my basement is an 8 footer. My local pool room has mostly 9 foot tables. When I go there I play on them and I can't say that I shoot terrible. Most times I end up shooting a little better. But I think that has more to do with having other people around and watching which makes me try harder and play better. Nothing to do with the table in my eyes.

Myth.
 
bflgvs said:
If you use absolutes cutting angles will change per table. I don't see cutting angles as an issue at ALL. An aiming (bad choice of words...lol) angle is just that, the size of a table does not matter. Determine the aiming point, however you want, from OB to pocket and hit it correctly and the OB goes in.

"The bank angle for a ball 2 feet from the side pocket is also different on each table." This statement is an absolute statement and not proportional. Just for argument sake a ball 2' from the rail from the side pocket on an 8' table may be 2.25' on a 9' table. Now proportionally what's the difference?
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I think we're in agreement here. Proportionally, the angles are the same.
 
bflgvs said:
Notice something here? The length is twice the width on a regulation table. Thus the tables are proportionally the same and so are the angles.

Other factors come into play that affect the angles coming up short or whatever. Consider the cushions: are they new, old, height, angle, etc. The cloth also can come into play: new, old, clean, dirty, material of cloth.

But the angles being different...hogwash.
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Other factors come into play that affect the angles coming up short or whatever. Consider the cushions: are they new, old, height, angle, etc. The cloth also can come into play: new, old, clean, dirty, material of cloth.


Think one of these would be the reason why , and also the wear on the balls themselves .Something else that could be a problem is that people tend to drink more beer on seven footers than nines :wink: .
 
4x8 is the way to go imo.... You go to a bar box and its lights out. You got to a 4x9 your in stroke and the extra couple of inches dont matter... Its all in your head.
 
I have an oversize 8' Brunswick Anniversary at home, just fits the space availabe. Love it, have no trouble going up to a 9' or down to a 7'. Also you use the bridge on more shots than a standard 8' so you get some practice with it. Wish I was playing on it now instead of the terrible 9' Olhausens we have at our local rec center.
 
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