Recommeded pocket size?

Here's my answer........Gold Crown I........set up by Ernesto.......

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Russ....
 
update

my friend just told me his pockets are 4 inches at the opening and 3.5 at the shelf. any comments??
 
buck15 said:
my friend just told me his pockets are 4 inches at the opening and 3.5 at the shelf. any comments??
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Yes.....If the pockets are not cut correctly, they will spit out balls that should drop. Ernesto cuts his pocket openings so that a well hit ball will drop, even if hit with speed on 4" pockets.......

Russ.....
 
Remember that you can always use pocket reducers if you want to make the table tighter for practice, and remove them to play competitively. I see no real reason to play on pockets tighter than 4.5"
 
midnightpulp said:
Gonna be having my table redone soon and I'm wondering what's a good size pocket for a home table.

Right now, they're too forgiving. I just played on one of the tightest tables in a local room here and would like to be prepared for such conditions. However, I'm under the belief that super tight pockets should only be employed if you can keep the rest of the table pristine, Pro tourney conditions. This table was anything but and magnified every mistake. If you hit the jaws, the ball bounced out.

A home table usually undergoes similar wear.

Any opinions?
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My home table has deep shelves on the pockets. It forces you to change your game and some shots you don't try unless you absolutely have to because the pockets will reject the ball unless you play pocket speed.
 
mantis99 said:
Remember that you can always use pocket reducers if you want to make the table tighter for practice, and remove them to play competitively. I see no real reason to play on pockets tighter than 4.5"
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I do........

I play in local tourneys that use GC tables with 4" pockets !!

It all boils down to what you want from the game.

Russ.....
 
Buckets. And yes, that is duct tape, a dog tag style chain I found in the garage, and other random "poor man's" tricks in hopes of the Centennials remaining off the concrete floor. :D (My table is in the garage.)

Whatta you guys think?

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poolhustler said:
I do........

I play in local tourneys that use GC tables with 4" pockets !!

It all boils down to what you want from the game.

Russ.....
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Well...as long as the pockets are more than 2.25 then a game can be played. (-:

I have not done any formal survey, but I would GUESS that no more than 10-20% of all pro matches are played on tables with 4 inch pockets.

I don't see small holes on the practice greens at golf courses,,,or smaller rims in basketball practice. So I guess what I want is to practice with pockets that are the size of the vast majority of pockets I will play on competitively.

In the amateur world, that would be 4.5-4.75 in the majority of cases.

In the pro world I ASSUME that pocket sizes would be greater than 4 in. in most cases and I would want to know what SPEED will work on cuts where the point is obscuring a portion of the "actual pocket."

Regards,
Jim
 
I understand what you are saying Jim. A few places that I play have tournament tables with 4" pockets. It's what we play on and also gamble on. So, it only makes sense that I practice on my table with 4" pockets. It is also just what I prefer.

Regardless what other sports have in the way of practice regallia, I firmly believe that if a player pratices on a table with tighter pockets, It will absolutely make you a better, more accurate shot maker.

:)

Sincerely,

Russ.....
 
these are pretty good sized pockets... every now and then it'll spit one out when i drill it down the rail.


Russian_billiards_ball_at_a_corner_.jpg
 
well....

av84fun said:
What is his speed...say on the APA scale?
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how high does the scale go?? i am not familier with the scale but he is an open type player. very good player.
 
Question for Mosconiac.....How are the pockets cut on your kim steele (parallel/angled? The local place a play at (the green pocket in lions illinois) has kim steeles with parallel cut pockets and well hit balls drop. They are cut at about 2 balls wide and have a little bit of a wider mouth.
 
I say 4.5 for standard cut pockets are about as tight as you will ever want to go. They just spit out well hit balls. Its very frustrating to have your run end early on a shot that should have fell... My table (4.5 standard cut) will spit out balls that hit th facing clean if you hit them too hard or give them non-helper english. And that is just not right... If a ball hits the facing clean, it should fall no matter what... When pocket facing start to get deformed, they get MUCH worse...


For straight cut, 4.5" may be a bit too big... 4" may also be too small for a shot running down the rail... Thats a tough call since I rarely, if ever, see a straight cut table that tight...


Pocket geometry is very important for the playability of a table...



Braunpureza - that must be photoshopped :)
 
buck15 said:
how high does the scale go?? i am not familier with the scale but he is an open type player. very good player.
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10 I think. But your posted told me what I wanted to know. Some of the top players like to practice on unusually small pockets but others don't.

I know a Champion who had a GC with 4.25 pockets and sold it for 4.5s for pretty much the reason I cited...to practice on what they compete on.

And one fairly critical skill...cheating the pocket...can't be practiced nearly as much on, say 4 inch tables because there isn't much to cheat!

To each his own though.

Regards,
Jim
 
I'd say on a 9ft Diamond PRo the pockets are good as is! because of the deep shelf.

All other tables unless they have a deep shelf, need to go 4.5 or smaller, but not smaller than 4"

I did play on a 9ft GC that was triple shim and yea making a ball in the corner pockets were tough, but it was easy to scratch in the corner pockets lol.
 
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