If the tip gets smaller, doesn't the cue ball?

[twilight]

I was thinking about why a tip gets smaller the more you play and I realized that chalk is the main culprit besides overshaping. Then I began to wonder, in time, wouldn't the cue ball get smaller from the tip constantly scratching it with chalk, colliding with other balls, spining on a chalky dirty cloth and so on? It would be slower than a tip but if tons of people in a pool hall play with the same cue ball wouldn't it be smaller and lighter than the other balls in time? I then started to wonder why it was harder for me to get as much follow action than draw. A slightly lighter ball would stop easier after collision and have a hard time spinning forward. Likewise, it would come back easier as well wouldn't it? This would finally explain to me why I just can't get as much follow. (other than my own ineptitude of course)

Sorry if this is common knowledge, but I haven't seen anything on the forum about this before. Anyone know if this is true? I don't have any means to test, but it sounds plausible.

 

[MacGyver]

Yes... the means of test are just any pool room...

The cue ball wears down the fastest, then the one(headball of break by most bangers) then eight(last ball in 8, more than either group).

Goto any pool room that doesnt regularly change their balls and you'll notice those balls are much smaller than they normally are..... sometimes you'll find a whole set of balls that have worn down together and fit into a normal rack with an inch or two extra room to spare.

I believe though, that for the most part the wear&tear comes from breaking and hard shots, rather than the tip... the other balls are alot harder than the tip, compress less and also the balls have a lot more friction from the cloth than your tip..

Your tip compressses upon impact so the initial force is a lot less than how hard you are hitting as much of the speed also comes from the tip pushing back against the ball once already in contact... unlike a ball to ball collision.

So anyway... the short answer is yes the balls definatly get smaller over time, but usually due to other balls+cloth than the tips imho.

 

[MVPCues]

Yes... the means of test are just any pool room...

The cue ball wears down the fastest, then the one(headball of break by most bangers) then eight(last ball in 8, more than either group).

Goto any pool room that doesnt regularly change their balls and you'll notice those balls are much smaller than they normally are..... sometimes you'll find a whole set of balls that have worn down together and fit into a normal rack with an inch or two extra room to spare.

I believe though, that for the most part the wear&tear comes from breaking and hard shots, rather than the tip... the other balls are alot harder than the tip, compress less and also the balls have a lot more friction from the cloth than your tip..

Your tip compressses upon impact so the initial force is a lot less than how hard you are hitting as much of the speed also comes from the tip pushing back against the ball once already in contact... unlike a ball to ball collision.

So anyway... the short answer is yes the balls definatly get smaller over time, but usually due to other balls+cloth than the tips imho.

Your point that the cue ball wears down the fastest is a good one and is reason to have a better quality cue ball than the rest of the balls (or at least change it more often). High quality balls help reduce the amount of wear from cloth friction a little.

Kelly

 

[pete lafond]

High quality balls help reduce the amount of wear from cloth friction a little.

Kelly

and also slows cloth wear.

Also as an (pool hall) experiment you can take one set of balls and wash by hand only. The other set use the automatic ball washers. After 3 to 4 months compare the balls in both sets for wear.

The newer Aramith balls do seem to wear much slower, but they also play a little differently; different contact sound and higher occurrence of skids (though the skids might be due more to the polishers used).

 

[Craig Fales]

*sigh* I'm gonna hate the day my balls get worn out....
________

 

[Gregg]

Goto any pool room that doesnt regularly change their balls and you'll notice those balls are much smaller than they normally are..... sometimes you'll find a whole set of balls that have worn down together and fit into a normal rack with an inch or two extra room to spare.

It's true! I seen a local tavern in a seedy area, where they can only afford to replace the balls every ten years or so.

Needless to say the ball set is the size of marbles.