Bucket list

Stew boo

Stew boo

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
The only thing on my bucket list is to play a game of straight pool on an old Brunswick table with ivory pool balls, using a Balabushka or Szamboti cue. The game is a race to 100. I just loved reading about the old days of pool and think it would be really cool to experience how the game used to be played.
 
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whaddya mean low on the cue ball? no draw shots? do you mean low on the cue (as opposed to upright stance)?

that's an oddly specific bucket list, mine includes the playboy mansion
 
Stew boo said:
The only thing on my bucket list is to play a game of straight pool on an old Brunswick table with ivory pool balls, using a Balabushka or Szamboti cue. The game is a race to 100, and neither player is allowed to get low on the cue ball before a shot. I just loved reading about the old days of pool and think it would be really cool to experience how the game used to be played.
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I don’t believe pool (with pockets) was ever played with ivory balls, only billiards.

And you have to play it on a 10 foot table with thick, slow cloth.
 
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You can substitute a Brunswick Willie Hoppe Titilist cue for the GB or Szamboti- would bring you back to the era at a lot less cost -
 
Stew boo said:
The only thing on my bucket list is to play a game of straight pool on an old Brunswick table with ivory pool balls, using a Balabushka or Szamboti cue. The game is a race to 100, and neither player is allowed to get low on the cue ball before a shot. I just loved reading about the old days of pool and think it would be really cool to experience how the game used to be played.
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I would not want to use ivory balls….they would drive me crazy. Makes the table at least a length faster….and reactions are unreliable.
Modern balls are a way better.
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ChrisinNC said:
I don’t believe pool (with pockets) was ever played with ivory balls, only billiards.

And you have to play it on a 10 foot table with thick, slow cloth.
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Nope there are full 15-ball ivory sets, the most valuable were the Burt Ivory sets

IvoryBurtDoubleStripePoolBallSet.jpg
 
ChrisinNC said:
I don’t believe pool (with pockets) was ever played with ivory balls, only billiards.

And you have to play it on a 10 foot table with thick, slow cloth.
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The story I was told many years ago from a man of the ivory era was, when carom balls had to be trued, they of course got a little smaller.
Eventually they became too small and got converted to Pool balls, and eventually Snooker balls. Recycling/Repurposing since ivory even in the day were very expensive.
Note: I have no proof of this. The man was 86 in 1973.
 
skogstokig said:
whaddya mean low on the cue ball? no draw shots? do you mean low on the cue (as opposed to upright stance)?

that's an oddly specific bucket list, mine includes the playboy mansion
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Sorry, I meant not being allowed to have a low stance where your chin is close to the felt.
 
3kushn said:
The story I was told many years ago from a man of the ivory era was, when carom balls had to be trued, they of course got a little smaller.
Eventually they became too small and got converted to Pool balls, and eventually Snooker balls. Recycling/Repurposing since ivory even in the day were very expensive.
Note: I have no proof of this. The man was 86 in 1973.
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Makes perfect sense. I mean, why keep too small pool balls on a shelf for decoration, when you can shave em down into snooker balls and get top $ for em?
 
WobblyStroke said:
25k easy. Just don't get arrested for dealing ivory without a license ;)
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I may be out of touch since my last ivy sale about 10 years ago but no way one ivory billiard ball would sell for over $1000 - I would say $500 per ball on the ivory secondary market - cue builders, gun and knife handle makers, instrument makers - maybe My estimates are out dated now - just not sure
 
I used to play on a ten foot table in an old hall that only had ten foot tables. The owner saw me reach a hand in a corner pocket and gauge the thickness of the slate. "It is only two and a half inches thick."

The object balls were clay. Sometimes these sets had an ivory cue ball but if these ever did they were gone either to wear or theft. He kept each set of balls with one table. My favorite table had a seriously wonky seven ball and a four ball about half as bad as the seven.

Thick directional cloth on the tables and no air conditioning. A huge fan cut into one wall sucked in the air straight off of the Mississippi River, about a mile wide there. I noticed my hand didn't reach around a cue stick. Heavy cues and you still had to have a stroke. First time I played there I had some balls fail to reach a pocket.

Damn, I loved that old place!

Hu
 
mikemosconi said:
I may be out of touch since my last ivy sale about 10 years ago but no way one ivory billiard ball would sell for over $1000 - I would say $500 per ball on the ivory secondary market - cue builders, gun and knife handle makers, instrument makers - maybe My estimates are out dated now - just not sure
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One ivory ball may not sell for 1k but as part of a full set, you might get 2k a ball imo.
There was actually a thread on ivory balls cpl years ago. Bob Jewett in post 14 estimates 25-30k for a full set in good condition and lays out his reasoning.

ivory pool balls

I have a friend who thinks she has a set of ivory pool balls. She inherited a table, balls and one piece cues from her Dad who purchased these in early 1960's. She thinks the items were old when her Dad got them. Does anyone have information about history of ivory balls and the value?
forums.azbilliards.com
 
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