Pocket Size

Tighter than 4?

Wow you are a glutton for punishment.

My question is who will play on it? If it is just you then go with your plan of pitching the shims and extending the rails to whatever you want. But you may frustrate yourself on an off shooting day.

Now if you plan to have friends over to play and practice, will they come back to play on a demonized table? I play on a Diamond Pro and I think I wouldn't want to play on anything much tighter.

Good luck.
 
If you want to play all games i think 4 1/8 is ideal. tight enough for good one pocket but not so tight they force you out of your element playing rotation games. trying to play 8/9/10-ball on 4 inches or less you really have to start sacrificing some positional options just to make balls
 
Have you thought about removable shims? I use them for a couple hours before a tourney or big game. You can buy different sizes then you can have your proverbial cake and eat it too. Buddy's come over you can take them out, when you're getting dialed in slap them in.

Just my $.02

Mattie
 
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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As you know, I like to play 1pocket and 14.1 and if it were my table I would opt for 4.5" pockets. If they are straight cut, that will offer all the challenge you need.

Over the years in my travels I've had the opportunity to play on a number of tight tables that were supposedly set up for 1pocket. The table to the left of the counter at the late, great Comet Billiards in NJ comes to mind, probably 4" pockets. Pockets at that size not only prevent you from shooting (learning/knowing) the full compliment of pool shots, it changes the game so much that it becomes something other than pool. Personally, I wouldn't go to that extreme.

Just me two cents. Congrats again on the table.

Lou Figueroa
 
All pool/billiards organizations have accepted 4.5" as the standard. Why not set your table for the standard? Who are you trying to impress?
 
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?
Click to expand...

Properly cut 4 1/4" corners and 5" sides are about perfect. My home table is 4" with very little taper and a shallow shelf and I think that is as tight as you want. Sides less than 5" are bad for play.

I would go with 4 1/4", Diamond pro cut style tapers. If you really want to be challenged, go with 4". No matter what size, make sure your mechanic can make pockets that take a ball fired hard down the rail.
 
4.25 is great for the serious player. Just make sure the pockets are done perfectly. When you play on anything over 4.5 they are buckets.
 
peppersauce said:
All the tables at my previous room were gold crowns with 4.5" pockets. They had two that were 4" and all the rest were buckets until they had a big pro tournament and decided to make all the pockets in the room a standard 4.5 inch "pro cut." Truth be told though, I always liked the 4" pockets and tried to talk them into tightening at least one table back up but they wouldn't.

How do straight cut pocket facings affect difficulty? I'm measuring the pockets at the tips, so it seems straight cut facings would actually help the ball go in easier if two pockets were the same width at the tips--one with a standard cut and the other straight cut facings.

Thanks for the input, Lou. It's always appreciated!
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IME, straight cut pockets have the facings a touch more parallel to each other. In practical terms it means the pocket target is smaller but they will accept a shot shot at speed down the rail, as opposed to many pockets with a wider spread, that look larger, but will rattle a hard hit ball down the rail. I am not stating this as fact, just my personal observation and experience.

Lou Figueroa
 
peppersauce said:
Has nothing to do with impressing anyone. I like tight pockets...
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I also like tight pockets
I have made comments about world class players running mega balls on (Big Pockets )
Pocket size changes the game period
If I had my way all games would be played on 4 inch pockets with the exception of one pocket if you want them a little smaller IMHO
 
The TAR table in vegas was 4 1/8. Only the super top players could play on it. R hundal * a very good player ) could not get out on that table....way too tight. 4 1/2 pockets are good for sll gsmes, plus, a good table mech can cut the pockets for loose 4 1/2 or tight 4 1/2. The angle the pocket is cut in more important than the size. Find a good table mech.
 
I just placed my order for a custom table since I just destroyed my bar box.
I went with 4 inch pockets as I felt it would sharpen up my game a lot.
Besides if I can't make the balls it will piss me off enough to the point where I'll keep practicing until I can run out :D
 
4.25?

I am having a used 9' Rebco set up at my place in a week or 2. It currently has corner pockets that are about 4.5 inches and I want the 4.25 width which is close to the pocket size on the Diamond tables I some time play on. Then I started getting information on whether the pocket has a deep or shallow shelf and how it relates to pocket size and rattling balls in the pocket. So tomorrow I will be back in Anchorage trying to sort it out with the business that sold me the table. I don't want to end up with a pocket that is prone to rattling a ball when it's not my fault. It never ends.
 
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?
Click to expand...
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.
 
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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