Pocket Size

The TAR table was 4 1/4" and anytime the "not quite top of the heap" players contested on it, there were countless misses. Anyone see Dominguez vs Hundal?

I'd say 4 1/4" is plenty tight enough. It was for guys like Shane, Dennis and Alex.
 
Stress

Crap! All this tight pocket, shallow and deep shelf and pocket rail angle talk is making me a nervous wreck. I am really hoping the guys I am getting the Rebco table from can closely match the Diamond 4.25 corner pockets. I live 150 miles from Anchorage and it is an extra $200.00 for them to come to Kenai and set my table up. With my skill level I should use 5" corner pockets or numbered snooker balls. LOL
 
I went with 4" pockets on my Brunswick Medalist Table. Extended the rails with a pocket angle of 141 degrees, down angle of 14 degree, and 1/8" neoprene facings. Can hit a ball down the rail with speed and pocket it no problem. Can still cheat the pocket a little to slide the cue ball over. You'll like the 4" pockets so long as you have the right pocket angle cut and don't just add more facings to achieve the reduced size.
 
peppersauce said:
Based on the experience of all you readers out there, whats a good pocket size for a table that you will play all games on? That is, if you're a freak like me and enjoy playing on super tough equipment.

I'm asking because I just bought a Gold Crown for my house and it's shimmed to 4 1/4. I want the table tighter, but not so tight that it becomes unfair. What I mean by that is, if I have to punch the ball at a shallow angle for position or shoot a ball down the rail at speed, I want the ball to go in as long as I hit the center of the pocket opening.

The plan right now is to do away with the shims and and have extended rails put on and make the pockets 4". I would like to go tighter, but not to the point that the pockets won't accept well struck balls at speed.

What do you think? Any suggestions?
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i had my pocket at 4in and it was just too tight for rotation. I had them widened to 4 1/4 i think that's perfect. tight enough to where if you dont hit it real close to perfect, it won't go, but still fair.

now it's great for every game, imo. funny thing though, when people come to my house to play 9 ball, they never come back. weird
 
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3.5 inches??? Are you kidding me? How could anybody ever miss a ball on such a slop-bucketed table? Straight pool runs would go on for weeks at a time -- No thank you.

Any table with pockets larger than 2.5 inches is a total joke and those gargantuan pockets should only be used for mixing your favorite Mr. Clean solution. For the record, I prefer the New Zealand Springs and the Hawaiian Aloha scents, with Febreze of course. My wife approves of both of these scents too. She says it makes her laundry table smell so fresh.
 
Bite the bullet and get a 10ft table with 4.5" pockets.:cool:
It's heaven on earth.
 
bdorman said:
Let me be the one who speaks on behalf of the masses, huddled at their keyboards afraid to chime in:

We like big pockets! 4-3/4" is plenty tight...7/8" is better. :grin:
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I had my GCII done a couple years ago. My pockets are 4 1/4'- 4 3/8", they came out a little tighter than I wanted, I expected 4 1/2". I think your home table should match whatever you compete on the most. I give up too much position play on my table just pocketing the ball sometimes. My table will be at least 4 1/2" when I have it recovered, it will still play slightly tougher because its a 9' and all the tables we play on here are 7' tables. When you are used to a 9', there are no long shots on a BB:grin-square:
 
My home table has very tight pockets, cut to frustrate the devil. I don't know enough to describe the cut properly but they are not very forgiving.

They are 4 1/4 to 4 3/8. deep enough shelf that a ball can sit in there with no exposure save for a direct shot.

When I bought the table the guy I bought it from was retiring from the game, and he told me he had this table cut tight for practice.

One side of my brain says, it will make me a better player. The other says it is frustrating to the point of giving up sometimes.

I do feel like I play better on normal sized tables (bar Valleys feel like basketball hoop sized pockets) but sometimes I just get frustrated at the many times I rattle balls that likely would have gone in on a more forgiving table.

Have to decide whether to loosen it up at some point.
 
mantis99 said:
In my opinion 4" is too tight to play the game correctly. It eliminates too many shots and the ability to cheat the pocket at all for position from the game to a point that dimishes the game. I personally think 4.5" pockets are the right size to play competitively on. It allows all reasonable cuts and a chance to cheat the pockets, but is by no means easy, especially, if your shelf is configured correctly. For tighter pockets to practice with, pocket reducers can be used. I put them in to drill with, but generally take them out ok for game play.
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Exactly. Once you go too small it changes your shot selection, position play, and strategy. IOW, it stops being pool.

Lou Figueroa
 
You're absolutely correct about your shelf depth. It makes a huge difference. I have a 9' Brunswick with 4 1/8" pockets. This is a Mark Gregory rail job with Artemis cushions. The shelf does get shorter as the pocket gets smaller. 4 1/8 is a great size on my table. I can cheat pockets and fire willy-nilly at the hole. If it was a Diamond or any other deep shelf table, It might be a tad tight. So, please don't compare the Brunswick with the Diamond, it is not the same.

Good luck with your choice. Remember, you can make them larger next time without a cushion change. But, once you replace the cushions and make the pockets too large, it will take a cushion change to make it right again.
 
If I had to play on that english table, I would quit and play checkers!
Playing on super tight pkts will kill ur game. All you can do is cinch balls , thus taking away position play. 4 1/2 pkts cut loose or tight, is the way to go.
Good luck
 
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