Does anyone have experience with both tables? All I play on is Valley/Cougars at the bars but have heard the Diamond's are by far nicer quality. My only concern is when I buy one to put in the house do the Diamonds simulate the same playing conditions as the valley/cougars? I've heard the rails are different and pockets are deeper, but thats it. To be safe would you guys suggest going with a Valley/Cougar over a Diamond if I'm looking to play in a lot of bars, since thats what all the places have around here and most pool halls too. I own an eight foot table now but looking to trade it out because of room size. I'm curious on which will be the better buy.
Diamond 7FT vs Valley/Cougar
- Thread starter recanizegame
- Start date
TY sir, thats what I was looking for. Valley/Cougar are a cheaper option anyway.
If you play all of your competitive matches on a Valley, then that's what you should put in your house, IMO. I play quite a bit on Diamond bar tables. They do hve tighter pockets, so you would think that going from a Diamond to a Valley would make you play better on the Valley. It's not the case. I run out and play much better on a Diamond than I do on a Valley, I think simply because that is what I play on and that's what I'm comfortable playing on. They just play so much differently. To me, the Diamond is the much better quality table, but if all of my competetion was on the Valley, that's what I would go with.
Mike
Mike
Oddly enough, I actually have one of each. They are both a whole lot of fun to play on. I'd have to agree with the posters who suggest that if you always play on a Valley Cougar, you should get a Valley Cougar. There are shots that you can make on that table that you can't make on a Diamond, and I feel that the kick angles are a little different between the two, but then I'm no kicking expert either. If you normally play on a larger table, but only have room for a 7', then the Diamond would probably be a better choice.recanizegame said:
Like any tool buy the best the first time and you will never regret it...Diamond high quality....Valley very low quality. It is a no brainer. IMHO....
From the back ground of having to work on Valley tables for the last 25 years, I can tell you this for sure. If you loosen up the 12 rail bolts that bolt down the rails on a Diamond 7ft ProAm, then it'll play more like a Valley, because that's how a Valley plays compared to a Diamond. As far as pockets go, Diamonds leather pockets are the nuts compared to Valleys plastic pocket liners. And if you're comparing 7ft to 7ft, the Diamond has a 1" thick slate, wereas the Valley is only 3/4" thick. The rails bold through the frame/slate then into the rails on a Diamond. Valley bolts their rails on with 3ea 1/4" bolts per cushion to the top rail cap, which is glued and stapled to the side panels, and held together in the corners by the corner pocket castings. The Diamond also has a much faster ball return than a Valley. All in all, the Diamond is a much better table than Valley as ever been, in the past or future. You may not have many Diamond where you live to play on right now, but I assure you that sooner or later you will.recanizegame said:
PS. When I use to play pool, with my stroke it didn't matter what tables I played on, or how the pockets were, 7ft, 8ft or 9ft. I took MY game with me to ANY table I played on, so as far as having the SAME table at home that you play on in your area, is BS...if you can play, you can play! If you want an excellent table to play on and own, get the Diamond, period, it's a no brainer!
Glen
Are you talking about the Diamond Smart tables? or the Diamond Professionals?Neil said:
Glen
Glen I'm not sure which they are either.realkingcobra said:
They are a coin-op 7 footer with the very very deep shelf. If you recall the thread about these tables that I started some time back, the photos showed that a ball deep in the pocket was only 20% visible when sighting down the rail. Greg Sullivan said in that thread that these tables were some the very first to be made and the shelf depth was reduced on later tables.
Steve
The Smart tables are coin-operated, the ProAms look like the smart table but are not coin-operated, and the Professionals look like a home table. The Professionals are much slower with a ball return than the Smart tables/ProAms and Valleys.Neil said:
Glen
That is correct, and the ball return system on them tables were not as fast as the system used on the tables from the mid 2001 and newer. I didn't have the newer tracks at the time when I first designed the ball return system in the earlier Smart tables, that was something Diamond changed to after the first ones got out the door.sde said:
Glen
The ProAms are faster getting the balls to the foot of the table than the coin-op version because the balls don't have to travel through the coin-op system.sde said:
Glen
:grin-square:
In my opinion just cant beat a cougar... grrrrrrr
In my opinion just cant beat a cougar... grrrrrrr
Diamonds love to spit while Valleys love to swallow ! :thumbup: :thumbup:
I am also in the market for a 7' but I was looking at Brunswick or Olhausen. How do they compare to the Diamond?
B
B