Does chalk get dried out over time?

Corwyn_8

Energy Curmudgeon
Silver Member
Don't you want dry chalk? Mine sometimes gets damp, and is useless.

Thank you kindly.
 

pdcue

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Don't you want dry chalk? Mine sometimes gets damp, and is useless.

Thank you kindly.

+1 - the drier the better. There are a few things worse than damp chalk - but I don't want to think about them.

Dale
 

DavidMNienow

Glamour Dave
Silver Member
Chalk will dry out over time. A certain level of dryness may be ok with pool chalk. But eventually it can get so dry that the chalk becomes worthless. The pro shop I worked at often ordered in tweeten Masters chalk in all the different colors that they made. So that when a customer ordered a pool table with an off colored cloth, we could match the cloth and chalk together. And I found that all the colors of Master chalk that was NOT blue was almost always dryer in touch/feel than the Masters Blue that came in the store at the same time. And I could only surmise that it was due to the other colors of chalk not being as popular - used - and distributed as the Masters Blue chalk.
 

jalapus logan

be all. and supports it to
Silver Member
I've got a cube of clik chalk from the 60's. It's good chalk and I've used it. Stopped using it just to keep it around like an artifact lol. So its 50 years old or so and still usable. Seems like chalk has some longevity, lol.
 

Colonel

Raised by Wolves in a Pool Hall
Silver Member
I've got a cube of clik chalk from the 60's. It's good chalk and I've used it. Stopped using it just to keep it around like an artifact lol. So its 50 years old or so and still usable. Seems like chalk has some longevity, lol.


Just like twinkies, or McDonalds hamburgers
 

Corwyn_8

Energy Curmudgeon
Silver Member
Seems like chalk has some longevity, lol.

This piece is doing ok.
6a00d8357a52bc69e2010536a6327c970c-800wi
 

Black-Balled

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Just like twinkies, or McDonalds hamburgers

Heard a comedian the other day:

Man wtf? I aint had mcdonalds in years, been longer since i cleaned my car though. I cleaned my car the other day, found a mcdonalds french fry in it. That fryl looked the same as the day i bought it.., so tell me, how nasty does food have to be for bacteria to say ' naw, i dont eat that shit'.
 

pdcue

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Chalk will dry out over time. A certain level of dryness may be ok with pool chalk. But eventually it can get so dry that the chalk becomes worthless. The pro shop I worked at often ordered in tweeten Masters chalk in all the different colors that they made. So that when a customer ordered a pool table with an off colored cloth, we could match the cloth and chalk together. And I found that all the colors of Master chalk that was NOT blue was almost always dryer in touch/feel than the Masters Blue that came in the store at the same time. And I could only surmise that it was due to the other colors of chalk not being as popular - used - and distributed as the Masters Blue chalk.

"But eventually it can get so dry that the chalk becomes worthless"
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Not even a slight chance...

Dale
 

DavidMNienow

Glamour Dave
Silver Member
"But eventually it can get so dry that the chalk becomes worthless"
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Not even a slight chance...

Dale

Ok. U may very well be right. But I have seen alot of chalk, particularly among the other color chalks that were not green or blue, and found that alot of those chalks were not of a consistent quality, and consistency in feel when applying and using those chalks to be chalks that I would never care to use. And I certainly would never recommend to any other players.
 

RiverCity

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Heard a comedian the other day:

Man wtf? I aint had mcdonalds in years, been longer since i cleaned my car though. I cleaned my car the other day, found a mcdonalds french fry in it. That fryl looked the same as the day i bought it.., so tell me, how nasty does food have to be for bacteria to say ' naw, i dont eat that shit'.

Just like twinkies, or McDonalds hamburgers

http://www.foxnews.com/leisure/2016/02/09/shocking-images-show-6-year-old-mcdonald-happy-meal/
 

Cardigan Kid

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member

I also remember a thread, where it was mentioned to set chalk on sink when you take a shower to let it absorb some moisture so it's not too dry. Sang Lee chalk comes in a sealed container with a package of desiccant so it doesn't get too wet.

We are going to have to enlist RJ and Renfro to come here and settle this with their Chalk mega knowledge.
 

BrianaBrown13

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I remember Dave Piona putting a cubes of chalk in the microwave at the Great American. He'd nuke'm for 45 sec. to a minute.
 

pdcue

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Ok. U may very well be right. But I have seen alot of chalk, particularly among the other color chalks that were not green or blue, and found that alot of those chalks were not of a consistent quality, and consistency in feel when applying and using those chalks to be chalks that I would never care to use. And I certainly would never recommend to any other players.

Alright then, my assumption was we were talking about chalk that was worth using in the first place.

If someone wants to use Flamingo Pink chalk - and it degrades over time - they get no sympathy - IMHO.

Dale
 

KRJ

Support UKRAINE
Silver Member
I've got MC that is several years old and is fine. I also have some Silver Cup in the basement when I bought my table 14 years ago, and it's still fine.

I give away the Silver Cup when I give lessons at Senior Centers or other large places that usually don't even half chalk or if they do, they have really crappy stuff that you never heard of. Or worse yet, they have red chalk on a green table ???

Silver Cup is a step up from what they have, and in some cases, what they didn't have. No, I don't give out free Magic Chalk to seniors ;)

I bought a large supply of Silver Cup and have not given it all out yet. Granted, my basement is humidity controlled, but is still more damp than the rest of the house (you can only get it so good)

With that being said, I have my own personal "stash" of MC in a sealed Tupperware container. 50 boxes just in case they ever stop making it ?? My private reserve. I used the Tupperware not so much to keep it dry or not exposed to the elements, just it was there and seemed like it would fit 50 boxes. Being a sealed lid was just a bonus, don't know if it's good or bad that it's sealed away? Just wanted a lifetime supply just in case !!

Im sure Renfro can answer better on the particulars of the chalk and how it reacts over time or in different climates.
 

JasBy

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
I think what you are referring to when you say the chalk is degrading is not drying out, but actually the opposite has happened, and the chalk got too moist at one point. This would cause the chalk to 'brick' (my technical term) :smile: Basically causing the individual chalk molecules to bond together tighter to form a harder mass once it was dried back out. Sort of like turning clay into bricks, but without the firing process.
 

fastone371

Certifiable
Silver Member
Chalk will dry out over time. A certain level of dryness may be ok with pool chalk. But eventually it can get so dry that the chalk becomes worthless. The pro shop I worked at often ordered in tweeten Masters chalk in all the different colors that they made. So that when a customer ordered a pool table with an off colored cloth, we could match the cloth and chalk together. And I found that all the colors of Master chalk that was NOT blue was almost always dryer in touch/feel than the Masters Blue that came in the store at the same time. And I could only surmise that it was due to the other colors of chalk not being as popular - used - and distributed as the Masters Blue chalk.

I use blue Masters now but before I recovered my table I used Masters green chalk, light green I think, but it always went on like it was soft or not real dry, almost like Kamui. I actually liked it quite a bit, I still have a box but it makes a mess on my dark green cloth.
 
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