Do You Think It's Time to tighten up BB's?

Johnnyt

Burn all jump cues
Silver Member
Now that just about all the pros want and get 4 1/2" or tighter on the 9' tables they play on for action, don't you think it's time to start tighting some of the Diamond, Valley, and other bar boxes up to about 4"? They make 8, 9, and 10 ball a lot more of a challenge on the BB. Diamond rails are OK the way they are, but Valley and the other brands would need Ridgeback rails added.
 
I would like to address the other side of the coin: Bar Boxes are, by and large, for fun. New players shold have the experience of fun and tight pockets are a drag on the fun quotient of people who; a) have never played, b) never played in a while, c) just looking to have some fun playing pool, d) can't see straight, e) are looped,...

If the overriding problem with pool is that there are not enough players playing, making the tables one first encounters harder is not going to swell the masses playing pool.
 
I don't think "what the pros want" on their tables should have anything to do with the rest of the tables out there. Can you imagine the average bar customer enjoying a game of pool if the table was built to pro specs? I love a good and tough table, but I don't think they should all be like that.
 
I would like to address the other side of the coin: Bar Boxes are, by and large, for fun. New players shold have the experience of fun and tight pockets are a drag on the fun quotient of people who; a) have never played, b) never played in a while, c) just looking to have some fun playing pool, d) can't see straight, e) are looped,...

If the overriding problem with pool is that there are not enough players playing, making the tables one first encounters harder is not going to swell the masses playing pool.

↑↑↑↑ +++What he said:groucho: Don't make it any harder to learn the game at an entry level.
 
I think bar tables should be 4 7/8" buckets. The fun of bar table pool is about precision with the cue ball. If you want the kiddy table to play like the big box, go get on a big box.

Bar table pool is zero fun without packages.
 
BB Pockets.

Tightening BB pockets is the wrong direction for pool. The better we are at something the more we enjoy it. The more we enjoy it the more we do it.

Head, heart and hands are all tied together when we do physical things. All three have to be successful for us as humans to enjoy it. The more successful the general public is at it, the more players we will have.

This is true for most people. I recognize that there are those of us who enjoy the challenge of more difficult things, but they are in the minority.
 
Now that just about all the pros want and get 4 1/2" or tighter on the 9' tables they play on for action, don't you think it's time to start tighting some of the Diamond, Valley, and other bar boxes up to about 4"? They make 8, 9, and 10 ball a lot more of a challenge on the BB. Diamond rails are OK the way they are, but Valley and the other brands would need Ridgeback rails added.

Diamond BB are have tight enough pockets... any tighter and I won't even be able to scratch :) I don't think they need to do anything to their tables...
 
You can't tighten all the bar tables - it would kill off the league players.
I do think they need to figure out a way where you can quickly swap out the rails. If the rails could be changed out in under 5 minutes it would be the best of both worlds.

I'm sure somebody will figure this out sooner or later. I'm not that somebody.
 
You can't tighten all the bar tables - it would kill off the league players.
I do think they need to figure out a way where you can quickly swap out the rails. If the rails could be changed out in under 5 minutes it would be the best of both worlds.

I'm sure somebody will figure this out sooner or later. I'm not that somebody.

I like this idea, if it's even possible.

You want to switch out the rails for a challenge match or a pro tourney, fine, but you will not attract more players to pool with tighter pockets. Period.
 
Now that just about all the pros want and get 4 1/2" or tighter on the 9' tables they play on for action, don't you think it's time to start tighting some of the Diamond, Valley, and other bar boxes up to about 4"? They make 8, 9, and 10 ball a lot more of a challenge on the BB. Diamond rails are OK the way they are, but Valley and the other brands would need Ridgeback rails added.

Do you always golf from the Pro tees?

Hasn't pool suffered enough without chasing away the average players. Many people play pool for fun, not for an income!
 
Business owners like huge pockets because they equate to faster games and more quarters. Good luck trying to get business owners to do something detrimental to their business plan.
 
Business owners like huge pockets because they equate to faster games and more quarters. Good luck trying to get business owners to do something detrimental to their business plan.

yep,,,,,,they are set up as money machines,,,,huge pockets, no shelves= fast games, more quarters

a necessary evil I think
 
Do you always golf from the Pro tees?

Hasn't pool suffered enough without chasing away the average players. Many people play pool for fun, not for an income!

I do...... not because I want to make it tougher on myself. I'm cheap and I want to get my moneys worth out of a golf course. I actually don't believe in having different Tee boxes for different skill levels.

That being said, I am not in favor of tightening up bar boxes for a number of the reasons stated in previous posts. The most important being, keeping the beginners playing.

If you make it too hard, people at the bar won't play, then owners will take the tables out and put fuseball in or some other crap and there will be less places to play.

Not the direction we want to be heading at this point in time.
 
I think it's time to make them 2 feet longer and 1 foot wider first... then tighten them up :)
 
i think the general point of the OP is being missed. BB should be tightened up for tourneys, and national events. BB in the bar should have backhoe bucket sized pockets so people can have fun and owners can make money.

I for one don't want to watch great players on far too easy equipment.....I like to see them scratch their head after a ball jars:thumbup:

I also think the golf hole should be twice as big for weekend players and an inch smaller then it is now for the pros....again, I want to see their friggin head explode......right before they cash a $50,000 check for finishing 25th!


G.
 
i think the general point of the OP is being missed. BB should be tightened up for tourneys, and national events. BB in the bar should have backhoe bucket sized pockets so people can have fun and owners can make money.

I for one don't want to watch great players on far too easy equipment.....I like to see them scratch their head after a ball jars:thumbup:

I also think the golf hole should be twice as big for weekend players and an inch smaller then it is now for the pros....again, I want to see their friggin head explode......right before they cash a $50,000 check for finishing 25th!


G.
Thank you. Just like a few 9' tables are tight in a room I think they should also have some on their 7' tables tight. Johnnyt
 
Now that just about all the pros want and get 4 1/2" or tighter on the 9' tables they play on for action, don't you think it's time to start tighting some of the Diamond, Valley, and other bar boxes up to about 4"? They make 8, 9, and 10 ball a lot more of a challenge on the BB. Diamond rails are OK the way they are, but Valley and the other brands would need Ridgeback rails added.



Think the Diamond pro cut is 4.5 . RKC mentioned in another thread that Valley's have 4.5 corners from the factory. Tighter pockets than that on anything other than a practice table will make a lot of people look bad , even pros.
 
Whats more fun to watch , a pro running 6-7 racks or 6-7 balls and hanging one up ?...Leave the pockets alone ....
 
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