Ball marker, what and where?

M

Modsat

Registered
Hi folks

So, I was wondering: what do you call the metal thingies that refs use to mark a ball position when cleaning/moving said ball? I have searched and looked on stores but it eludes me... Normally I just lift the balls a bit and remove the magic rack fx. But I'd like something to help mark the position when I clean the cueball. I'm thinking that there must be a ton of easy DIY solutions. Many things can surely be used to easily mark the ball, but I'm just drawing blanks here. Do you know of a place to buy such a ball marker (preferably in Europe)? or do you have an idea for what to use instead? :)

Cheers,

Rasmus
 
Modsat said:
Hi folks

So, I was wondering: what do you call the metal thingies that refs use to mark a ball position when cleaning/moving said ball? I have searched and looked on stores but it eludes me... Normally I just lift the balls a bit and remove the magic rack fx. But I'd like something to help mark the position when I clean the cueball. I'm thinking that there must be a ton of easy DIY solutions. Many things can surely be used to easily mark the ball, but I'm just drawing blanks here. Do you know of a place to buy such a ball marker (preferably in Europe)? or do you have an idea for what to use instead? :)

Cheers,

Rasmus
Click to expand...

amazon.com

.
 
Modsat said:
Hi folks

So, I was wondering: what do you call the metal thingies that refs use to mark a ball position when cleaning/moving said ball? I have searched and looked on stores but it eludes me... Normally I just lift the balls a bit and remove the magic rack fx. But I'd like something to help mark the position when I clean the cueball. I'm thinking that there must be a ton of easy DIY solutions. Many things can surely be used to easily mark the ball, but I'm just drawing blanks here. Do you know of a place to buy such a ball marker (preferably in Europe)? or do you have an idea for what to use instead? :)

Cheers,

Rasmus
Click to expand...
When dealing with template racks, you need a marker that can reach over the template to get to the ball, sometimes. People have built something that looks like a Y with a long leg that is held horizontal by a base. I don't know of a source.

Many vendors sell objects like this on Ebay/Amazon/etc.:

CropperCapture[544].jpg
For snooker, the ideal is a wide as a ball (52.5mm) with the other dimension half of that. Those dimensions are required for some of the determinations a snooker referee has to make.

I had some of these made for pool out of brass. The legs are 1.125 inches long which is the radius of a ball and that is important for some of the determinations at pool. In addition the design allows you mark where a ball was resting (or determine that resting spot) if you need to by nesting two of the markers and then looking to see where the 3/4 hole is on the second marker.

CropperCapture[543].png

19.06.19 picture-02 for SP19IB011-002.JPG

If you don't want to do a good job as a referee, two pieces of chalk should be fine for marking a ball.
 
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Modsat said:
... I'm thinking that there must be a ton of easy DIY solutions. ...
Click to expand...

If you have access to a machine shop, I have plans for a simple but versatile marker that you can make easily from angle iron (a bar of metal with an L-shaped cross-section). Basically, you just cut off sections of the L with the right dimensions. The dimensions are important.
 
Modsat said:
Hi folks,
..... I'd like something to help mark the position when I clean the cueball. . . . Do you know of a place to buy such a ball marker (preferably in Europe)? or do you have an idea for what to use instead? :)
Rasmus
Click to expand...
Yo Ras:
This one works beautifully and accurately and is a steal at $4.73 US dollars and also includes with free shipping:

https://tinyurl.com/y8e2tuhs

Mine arrived from China less than a week after ordering and I'm certain that would also easily be the case for Denmark arrival. It's not only beautiful, flawlessly clear acrylic, but it's dead-on accurate with regard to an extremely perfect fit against the standard 2 1/4 cue ball. Not a whisker of a gap.

You'll be very pleased with it

Arnaldo
Ball position marker.JPG
 
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arnaldo said:
Yo Ras:
This one works beautifully and accurately and is a steal at $4.73 US dollars and also includes with free shipping:

https://tinyurl.com/y8e2tuhs

Mine arrived from China less than a week after ordering and I'm certain that would also easily be the case for Denmark arrival. It's not only beautiful, flawlessly clear acrylic, but it's dead-on accurate with regard to an extremely perfect fit against the standard 2 1/4 cue ball. Not a whisker of a gap.

You'll be very pleased with it

Arnaldo
View attachment 551074
Click to expand...

I've been using this marker for several years now. The key to using it correctly is making sure that you have anchored the marked ball to the table with your fingers prior to trying to get the marker in place. Otherwise you will almost always nudge the ball in attempting to properly get the marker in place. Size wise it is a little cumbersome, but it does the job.
 
arcstats said:
I've been using this marker for several years now. The key to using it correctly is making sure that you have anchored the marked ball to the table with your fingers prior to trying to get the marker in place. Otherwise you will almost always nudge the ball in attempting to properly get the marker in place. Size wise it is a little cumbersome, but it does the job.
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You'd have to anchor the ball with any marker (and anchor the marker when replacing the ball). And you don't need a cutout the shape of a ball - all you need is something that contacts the ball at two separate points, like Garczar said:
Just buy a little 90deg angle L-bracket at Home Depot ... Set it down so both ends touch ball.
Click to expand...

pj
chgo
 
IMG_3711.JPGFound both of these online a few years back. The blue one is for snooker but works fine on 2.25 balls. The smaller size makes it nice to carry in your case.


Sent from my iPhone using AzBilliards Forums
 
Thanks for the tips. I will look into it.

To those rolling their eyes. I never said it was a big and complex problem. I said I knew there would be a lot of ways to mark it. I'm just interested in hearing what people use. I like gear, and having something at hand that is dedicated to marking positions seems convenient and neat imo. I guess I could just place a few coins in the bag, but where's the fun in that :grin:
 
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