Pool Ball Collecting.

Mulambo said:
I have a question about identifying balls. How does one know, if balls have higher quality? Is this even doable? At least for an amateur or someone who has no bigger knowledge of the world of billiard balls…

I got this set and the spare balls second hand:

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I am pretty certain, they are just some cheap Chinese balls. At least to 95%. But not fully, and that’s the point of my question. How do you decide if something is worth keeping, if space is not that big of an issue? As far as I am concerned, the single balls might not be. They are not even a complete set. But I have none looking like the other set. Is it worth keeping them, just for the sake of being different? Or just selling them of for 10,- second hand again?

And they look way cleaner than they really are, even though I used ball restorer and ball cleaner from Aramith. Is it even possible, to make old balls look nicer again, or is it a discoloration of the balls itself already? I am not speaking of completely white, but they still look dirty after cleaning.
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I would guess you might have a little mix of aramith premier and super-pro . But it's hard to tell from the pictures and It does look like there's some other random crap balls mixed in. If You decide to get rid of them Let me know. I might be interested in picking them up to see if they complete any random incomplete ball sets that I have.
 
The set I was thinking of keeping, though I was not sure. That’s why I started this conversation here about them. I would certainly, if they happen to be Aramith. Do you think the set is at least all from one manufacturer? I put it together from some cheaper lots I bought, and they looked the same to me.

The single balls are of no interest to me, so i have no problem with parting with them…
I am from Austria/EU though, so bear this in mind if anybody wants to message me about them 🙃
 
Mulambo said:
The set I was thinking of keeping, though I was not sure. That’s why I started this conversation here about them. I would certainly, if they happen to be Aramith. Do you think the set is at least all from one manufacturer? I put it together from some cheaper lots I bought, and they looked the same to me.

The single balls are of no interest to me, so i have no problem with parting with them…
I am from Austria/EU though, so bear this in mind if anybody wants to message me about them 🙃
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In order to get an idea if they're from the same manufacturer would be to weigh them. Find out if they're all within a couple grams of each other.

Yes, shipping for me would make it unfeasible as I am in the USA
 
Broken wheel logo balls are perhaps the rarest and most desirable Jack Daniels pool memorabilia singles. They’re becoming increasingly tough to find.

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Secretive Collectors.

Good afternoon, gentlemen. I trust you are all in rude health and fine spirits. I’ve opened the whiskey.

As I grow older and with rather too much time to ponder such things, the subject of secretive pool ball hoarders often crosses my mind. Through this wonderful thread, my role at the Billiard Ball Museum, and one or two personal acquaintances in the United Kingdom, I am in sporadic contact with about seventy like-minded collectors across the globe.

These esteemed fellows, for they are all men, harbour varying degrees of obsession… from the occasional buyer of billiard-related tchotchkes at local yard sales, to passionate fanatics who voraciously haunt obscure corners of cyberspace in mortal fear of missing out on a pristine Romanique or unknown Raschig. We are a broad church.

But, dear reader, what about elusive pool ball collectors… those clandestine magpies who furtively gather the rarest of spherical gems but never share anything with the wider world? How many shadowy figures like that exist and, moreover, what are they hiding?
 
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Rubik's Cube said:
Secretive Collectors.

Good afternoon, gentlemen. I trust you are all in rude health and fine spirits. I’ve opened the whiskey.

As I grow older and with rather too much time to ponder such things, the subject of secretive pool ball hoarders often crosses my mind. Through this wonderful thread, my role at the Billiard Ball Museum, and one or two personal acquaintances in the United Kingdom, I am in sporadic contact with about seventy like-minded collectors across the globe.

These esteemed fellows, for they are all men, harbour varying degrees of obsession… from the occasional buyer of billiard-related tchotchkes at local yard sales, to passionate fanatics who voraciously haunt obscure corners of cyberspace in mortal fear of missing out on a pristine Romanique or unknown Raschig. We are a broad church.

But, dear reader, what about elusive pool ball collectors… those clandestine magpies who furtively gather the rarest of spherical gems but never share anything with the wider world? How many shadowy figures like that exist and, moreover, what are they hiding?
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I think you have more examples of "Secretive Ball Collector" in the antique world than us modern types.

There hobby is almost entirely relationship driven with very few if any of the desirable sets coming up at auction or showing up on an online site.

They tend to hide their collections like a Tolkien dragon hording gold. And will out right lie about what they have when directly questioned.

I guess this is both a reaction to the fact that a majority of the sets are ivory. But for the most part it's driven from some strange fear of identifying what's in your collection without knowing fully what's in the other person's.

Personally I find it all dreadfully boring and as a direct result of this behavior have completely shunned the antique billiards collectors as pariahs for the most part.

While I admit this is a broad generalization and I am very good friends with ONE antique collector. I have found their community more often than not is exactly as described above.

As for modern collectors it's kind of hard to lie about what we have when we spend so much time actually playing with them!
 
Rubik's Cube said:
Secretive Collectors.

Good afternoon, gentlemen. I trust you are all in rude health and fine spirits. I’ve opened the whiskey.

As I grow older and with rather too much time to ponder such things, the subject of secretive pool ball hoarders often crosses my mind. Through this wonderful thread, my role at the Billiard Ball Museum, and one or two personal acquaintances in the United Kingdom, I am in sporadic contact with about seventy like-minded collectors across the globe.

These esteemed fellows, for they are all men, harbour varying degrees of obsession… from the occasional buyer of billiard-related tchotchkes at local yard sales, to passionate fanatics who voraciously haunt obscure corners of cyberspace in mortal fear of missing out on a pristine Romanique or unknown Raschig. We are a broad church.

But, dear reader, what about elusive pool ball collectors… those clandestine magpies who furtively gather the rarest of spherical gems but never share anything with the wider world? How many shadowy figures like that exist and, moreover, what are they hiding?
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I can only say the thing most secretive about my ball collection is how much my wife knows! 😉

I don't hide and even bring some sets to pool night to try to play some different games. It's funny how some players aren't into it, trying different looking balls is just not right!!!

I have lots of different sets and learned I don't need multiples, but I do try to get better sets and then resell the lower quality sets like any collector.

I do realize it's an affliction\addiction\A problem\Not a problem, either way, there's worse things I could be doing with my time and money.

I sure do like balls though 🤓
 
Hard Knock Cues said:
I can only say the thing most secretive about my ball collection is how much my wife knows! 😉

I don't hide and even bring some sets to pool night to try to play some different games. It's funny how some players aren't into it, trying different looking balls is just not right!!!

I have lots of different sets and learned I don't need multiples, but I do try to get better sets and then resell the lower quality sets like any collector.

I do realize it's an affliction\addiction\A problem\Not a problem, either way, there's worse things I could be doing with my time and money.

I sure do like balls though 🤓
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That’s a great approach, HKC.

Thank you, sir. 🙏
 
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