How do you Measure Break Speed
- Thread starter poolfoole
- Start date
poolfoole
Banned
Would you have to have someone else clock you with the radar gun when you're breaking? Is that the only way to do it? I'd like to be able to do it when I'm practicing on my own.
you have to have someone do it. i have a radar gun. its pretty fun. u can get one at a sporting goods store that they use for baseball. u have to have the cue ball coming at you so someone needs to be a little ballsy and stand behind the rack with the cue coming straight at the gun. the can be 6ft back or so but its still scary when someone is trying to crush them.
heres what ive learned. ANY sidespin drastically reduces the mph. the more controlled the break was the faster it usually was. most bad breaks were lower mph than the control breaks with a center ball hit. I also do not break faster from the side rail. i would have bet my life i do, but i actually break faster from the corner of "the box" but the side helps pocket balls so........and the fat kid had the fastest break in the room the day i brought it.
heres what ive learned. ANY sidespin drastically reduces the mph. the more controlled the break was the faster it usually was. most bad breaks were lower mph than the control breaks with a center ball hit. I also do not break faster from the side rail. i would have bet my life i do, but i actually break faster from the corner of "the box" but the side helps pocket balls so........and the fat kid had the fastest break in the room the day i brought it.
i measure myself with other pool players by height 
This comes up regularly...
Radar guns are a good way to go, but you don't need one. If you have a laptop or PC with a microphone you can do it really easily. Here's a link to a thread where I describe how...
http://forums.azbilliards.com/showthread.php?t=75417
More than accurate enough for most folks.
Good Luck!
Radar guns are a good way to go, but you don't need one. If you have a laptop or PC with a microphone you can do it really easily. Here's a link to a thread where I describe how...
http://forums.azbilliards.com/showthread.php?t=75417
More than accurate enough for most folks.
Good Luck!
Radar gun is the only way to do it easily. However, I had recorded myself on a digital camera. I took the sound file and basically "looked" at the peaks of the sound of the tip hitting the cue ball and then the cueball hitting the rack. I could see the exact time between these peaks. I measured the distance and calculated and it was quite accurate.
Anyway, some info you should know about a radar gun:
1) I have the "Sports Radar" gun pictured above. It works well. It will not give you more accuracy than 1mph, but that should be fine.
2) Flourescent lights mess with radar guns. You will have a much easier time using one near incandescent bulbs, unless the flourescents are far away from the table.
3) Different radar guns have different "target aquisition speeds". The Sports Radar on is ok. If you really want a nice one and have the money to spend, the Stalker brand guns are far superior (but like $800 minimum)
4) You do not need someone else to operate the gun. The gun has a trigger mode, and a "continuous" mode. Also, it comes with a base to mount it to a tripod. You can get one at a camera store for under $50. Then you just set it on continuous and it will record each new break speed. obviously it will erase the old one, so you have to walk over and look at what the speed is.
5) They make a display device for this and other radar guns. Basically, it attaches to the gun and gives a big display, say 5" tall numbers on a led screen. You could point the screen towards where you stand so you could immediately see the speed without having to walk over to the gun.
6) For accurate readings, you need to be shooting the cueball directly at the gun. It cannot be to the side or anything. Also, you don't want the gun up high, pointing down at an angle. You need to have it just higher than the rack of balls, so that you can "aim" it at a point on the cloth in front of the rack. You always see those guys in the booth standing with the gun like 3 feet above the table. This will reduce the speed reading.
If you get youself set up with something, there are some fun things to try that might even be more useful than seeing what your max speed is:
1) Try to pick a speed in the middle of your range and see how repeatably you can hit that exact speed.
2) See what the max speed is without letting the cue ball touch a rail.
3) Find out the softest speed you can hit and still drive 4 balls to a rail.
4) Have a friend suggest a speed to you and see if you can hit it.
I think being able to be accurate about what speed you are hitting can greatly help your ability to consistently pocket balls on fussy tables.
Just my $0.02
KMRUNOUT
Anyway, some info you should know about a radar gun:
1) I have the "Sports Radar" gun pictured above. It works well. It will not give you more accuracy than 1mph, but that should be fine.
2) Flourescent lights mess with radar guns. You will have a much easier time using one near incandescent bulbs, unless the flourescents are far away from the table.
3) Different radar guns have different "target aquisition speeds". The Sports Radar on is ok. If you really want a nice one and have the money to spend, the Stalker brand guns are far superior (but like $800 minimum)
4) You do not need someone else to operate the gun. The gun has a trigger mode, and a "continuous" mode. Also, it comes with a base to mount it to a tripod. You can get one at a camera store for under $50. Then you just set it on continuous and it will record each new break speed. obviously it will erase the old one, so you have to walk over and look at what the speed is.
5) They make a display device for this and other radar guns. Basically, it attaches to the gun and gives a big display, say 5" tall numbers on a led screen. You could point the screen towards where you stand so you could immediately see the speed without having to walk over to the gun.
6) For accurate readings, you need to be shooting the cueball directly at the gun. It cannot be to the side or anything. Also, you don't want the gun up high, pointing down at an angle. You need to have it just higher than the rack of balls, so that you can "aim" it at a point on the cloth in front of the rack. You always see those guys in the booth standing with the gun like 3 feet above the table. This will reduce the speed reading.
If you get youself set up with something, there are some fun things to try that might even be more useful than seeing what your max speed is:
1) Try to pick a speed in the middle of your range and see how repeatably you can hit that exact speed.
2) See what the max speed is without letting the cue ball touch a rail.
3) Find out the softest speed you can hit and still drive 4 balls to a rail.
4) Have a friend suggest a speed to you and see if you can hit it.
I think being able to be accurate about what speed you are hitting can greatly help your ability to consistently pocket balls on fussy tables.
Just my $0.02
KMRUNOUT
Radar guns are so passe! 
We've created a new mobile phone app called "Break Speed". It uses audio similar to the post suggestions above, but it is completely automated and fits in your pocket.
Just push a button to start recording your break. When you finish your shot, push the button again to see your Break Speed. You can even view the audio waveform and see what it did.
We were featured in the 2010 US Open 10-Ball Championships - Break Speed was integrated into the live broadcast and provided the first-ever live break speeds for a professional match.
There are other forums here discussing it, so check them out to see what people are saying about it.
Check it out: www.MyBreakSpeed.com
We've created a new mobile phone app called "Break Speed". It uses audio similar to the post suggestions above, but it is completely automated and fits in your pocket.
Just push a button to start recording your break. When you finish your shot, push the button again to see your Break Speed. You can even view the audio waveform and see what it did.
We were featured in the 2010 US Open 10-Ball Championships - Break Speed was integrated into the live broadcast and provided the first-ever live break speeds for a professional match.
There are other forums here discussing it, so check them out to see what people are saying about it.
Check it out: www.MyBreakSpeed.com
Somesone really digging pretty deep to spam his Radar huh......
Another 3/4 year old thread?
Another 3/4 year old thread?
HA! Both "speed" guys did it in this thread and another. lol
high school physics
a measuring tape, two stopwatches, and two people with killer reflexes.
or if you want to be more accurate, basic math skills, some cardboard, black paint, white tape, measuring tape, and a high speed camera.
way more accurate than radar.
a measuring tape, two stopwatches, and two people with killer reflexes.
or if you want to be more accurate, basic math skills, some cardboard, black paint, white tape, measuring tape, and a high speed camera.
way more accurate than radar.