Cue ball size issue

[Da Poet]

I was at a sort of well known pool hall recently, (not Chris's) and they had the Aramith dotted balls with all the sets of balls. Not really a problem until I noticed that they were a little larger than the object balls. When I asked the guy working there about it, he confidently pointed out that the larger cue balls were the direction things were headed and that they were one of the first places to get these newer cue balls. He was proud to demostrate the difference in size.

Maybe the guy was full of it, it was late and I really didn't care about it that much, but I have been getting annoyed about the fact that different brands of cue balls claiming to be 2 1/4" vary easily a sixteenth of an inch or so, never mind the weight differences. I'm not talking about the 2 3/8" balls either.

I get why a barbox might have a larger cue ball, fine, but on a regular table? Why would Aramith make a cueball slightly larger than normal. Never mind the thin cut problem, but wouldn't this ball have a better chance of flying off the table on the break?

Do I have to get a friggin' caliper out before the break to check the cue ball size de jour? What is so complicated about keeping everything at 2 1/4"?

 

[ShootingArts]

my measle ball is about six months old

My measle ball is about six months old. It measures 2.252", two-thousandths over. no idea about the newer ones. Could it be an optical illusion due to the increased shine of the new cue ball?

Hu

I was at a sort of well known pool hall recently, (not Chris's) and they had the Aramith dotted balls with all the sets of balls. Not really a problem until I noticed that they were a little larger than the object balls. When I asked the guy working there about it, he confidently pointed out that the larger cue balls were the direction things were headed and that they were one of the first places to get these newer cue balls. He was proud to demostrate the difference in size.

Maybe the guy was full of it, it was late and I really didn't care about it that much, but I have getting annoyed about the fact that different brands of cue balls claiming to be 2 1/4" vary easily a sixteenth of an inch or so, never mind the weight differences. I'm not talking about the 2 3/8" balls either.

I get why a barbox might have a larger cue ball, fine, but on a regular table? Why would Aramith make a cueball slightly larger than normal. Never mind the thin cut problem, but wouldn't this ball have a better chance of flying off the table on the break?

Do I have to get a friggin' caliper out before the break to check the cue ball size de jour? What is so complicated about keeping everything at 2 1/4"?

 

[Bob Jewett]

I was at a sort of well known pool hall recently, (not Chris's) and they had the Aramith dotted balls with all the sets of balls. Not really a problem until I noticed that they were a little larger than the object balls. When I asked the guy working there about it, he confidently pointed out that the larger cue balls were the direction things were headed and that they were one of the first places to get these newer cue balls. He was proud to demostrate the difference in size.

Maybe the guy was full of it,...

He may not have been full of it but it sounds like he was confused.

Pool balls wear down significantly. They wear down fast enough under typical pool hall conditions that nearly all pool balls is commercial use are smaller than regulation. Regulation is 2.250 +- 0.005 inches in diameter. When I have measured new Aramith balls, they have been within one or two thousandths rather than the permitted 5. The new measles balls in that room are almost certainly the correct, required size. The object balls are almost certainly smaller than the specifications.

Here is an article about how you can easily measure the mis-match between the cue ball and the object balls. The test takes about 10 seconds and does not require any special equipment. It can measure cue balls that are either larger than the object balls or smaller. The latter situation is far more common since the cue ball wears down maybe 10 times faster than the object balls.
See: 2005-12 Wrong Size, Wrong Shape -- the balls are not quite right at http://www.sfbilliards.com/articles/BD_articles.html

 

[Jude Rosenstock]

Well, balls wear in time. That's going to add to the discrepancy. What's more, the cue ball will wear at a faster rate than any other ball on the table. In fact, Centennial cue balls (blue dot) will lose its dot over time and will be noticeably lighter than brand new cue balls.

When I worked at a poolroom, I had to routinely change out cue balls to keep the regulars at bay.

 

[Maniac]

I just put the calipers to my balls....

.... ....my Super Aramiths that is . All 16 of them. They measured anywhere from 2.248" to the correct 2.250". My Aramith "measles" ball measured 2.251". I gotta admit though, it always appeared to be a tad larger than the others. Must be an optical illusion.

Maniac

 

[Da Poet]

When I have measured new Aramith balls, they have been within one or two thousandths rather than the permitted 5. The new measles balls in that room are almost certainly the correct, required size. The object balls are almost certainly smaller than the specifications.

Yeah, the other possibility is that it might not be an aramith measle ball like he was saying.

What the guy did was simply put three balls up on the rail with the measel ball in the center and with the butt of a cue, kind of see-sawed back and forth a little. It was like he was showing off the fact that there was a difference. My estimate is that this cue ball was just under a sixteenth larger in diameter than the object balls. It's easy enough to see without a gauge anyways, but it was just one of those weird things. The guy seemed sincere about what he was saying.

I'm gonna pick up a gauge and throw it in the bag. This is not over!

 

[jay helfert]

The way I've always done this measurement, is by using the flat edge of the Triangle on three balls along the rail. It works and is pretty darn accurate at finding balls that are slightly smaller or larger. Put the flat edge on the top of the balls, and roll it back and forth. Surprise!

I just did it on my table with the Measles cue ball and two object balls (Aramith Super Pros). The Measles ball is slightly larger, perhaps a few thousandths. Most pros will tell you the Measles ball is slightly heavier than a Red Circle. For that reason they like it.

I had this Measles ball for a couple of years before putting it on my table. Now, it is the only cue ball we use. The Red Circle is in mothballs.