Table Shelf Depth on a 10 Footer

[StraightPoolIU]

In the 10 ft table thread the other day I brought up that I frequently practice on a 10 foot converted snooker table. This table has the deepest pocket shelves of any table I've ever played on including Diamonds. Here are a couple of pictures showing the pockets with a regulation 2 1/4" red circle cue ball for comparison. Are the deep shelves the result of the conversion? Anyone ever play on a table set up like this?

 

[RiverCity]

Its the way it was converted causing it. Notice the clean areas underneath the new rubber, they show what the old pocket shape looked like.
Chuck

 

[ROB.M]

Table

Those pockets are huge....but the issue you show is common when converting snooker to pool. Whoever did the conversion must of not known how to go about it properly....





Rob.M

 

[StraightPoolIU]

Its the way it was converted causing it. Notice the clean areas underneath the new rubber, they show what the old pocket shape looked like.
Chuck

I assumed so. It's not my table, but the poolroom's. I'm not sure when the conversion was done, but I suspect it was many moons ago. I know at the very least it has been a pool table since I played there back in 2005 when I was in college and most likely long before that. The pockets are big, but the table plays tougher than it would appear due to the tendency for balls to hang up even on what you would normally think was a pretty good shot. With broken in cloth touching the rail means the ball gets hung up most of the time. Despite that I think the table plays pretty damn good. It rolls true and the rails play great.

 

[ddadams]

The pocket size is deceptive as hell.


I play on this same table and the problem is that these pockets spit EVERYTHING out.

I'm not sure why, maybe the angle of the balls or the excess shelfs or???????


I'm not exaggerating, they really spit anything with any speed out. It's frustrating at times but you just gotta hit em extra good to make the balls. No cheating allowed here.

 

[RiverCity]

The pocket size is deceptive as hell.


I play on this same table and the problem is that these pockets spit EVERYTHING out.

I'm not sure why, maybe the angle of the balls or the excess shelfs or???????


I'm not exaggerating, they really spit anything with any speed out. It's frustrating at times but you just gotta hit em extra good to make the balls. No cheating allowed here.

Its the excess slate/shelf. The base of a ball traveling straight down the rail looks like it never touches the "drop" of the pocket, only the facing of the far point, so it banks into the near point with pretty much any speed other than a trickle. In other words, it probably still plays like a snooker table, even though it has pool cut pockets.
Chuck

 

[seven_7days]

Holy crap! It looks like if you hung a ball deep enough you could actually snooker your opponent with nothing but rail.

 

[DAVE_M]

Holy crap! It looks like if you hung a ball deep enough you could actually snooker your opponent with nothing but rail.

This would probably be a fun rotation or straight pool table, but looks horrible for one pocket lol.

 

[realkingcobra]

Its the excess slate/shelf. The base of a ball traveling straight down the rail looks like it never touches the "drop" of the pocket, only the facing of the far point, so it banks into the near point with pretty much any speed other than a trickle. In other words, it probably still plays like a snooker table, even though it has pool cut pockets.
Chuck

The bigger the pocket opening, the more it exposes the slate shelf, giving more room for a ball to sit.

 

[Straightpool_99]

The slate "cutout" is clearly made for snooker balls and pockets. If the conversion was to be done 100% properly, you would probably have to cut the slate. Either that or make the pockets slightly smaller (to expose less slate) and having a "custom" pocket cut angle to work with this non-standard slate.

The funny thing is that the table (with the slate being unchanged) might have played easier with the original snooker rails (raised up a bit and the pockets widened slightly). I actually practice straight pool on a 6' by 12 ' snooker table sometimes, and the pockets play better than you'd expect, even if it is a fairly tight club table and I use pool size balls. It is the size of the table and slowness of the cloth that kills most runs for me. And of course balls along the rails are impossibly difficult, so there is that problem, wich could be solved with wider pockets.

 

[Renegade_56]

The bigger the pocket opening, the more it exposes the slate shelf, giving more room for a ball to sit.

So in this case Glen, what would be a proper shelf depth from the points, and what is the radius of the shelf edge supposed to be. I am getting ready to change my snooker table to pool and surely will run in to this. I am thinking about 4 5/8 or 4 3/4 inch pockets.

 

[realkingcobra]

So in this case Glen, what would be a proper shelf depth from the points, and what is the radius of the shelf edge supposed to be. I am getting ready to change my snooker table to pool and surely will run in to this. I am thinking about 4 5/8 or 4 3/4 inch pockets.

Unless you're planning on cutting the pocket shelf back, you're better off with 4 1/2" pockets with 141 miters and 15 degrees down angle. Another thing about converting snooker rails to pool rails that most people are not aware of is that snooker rails are thinner than pocket rails, so unless you're having someone do this conversion that knows what they're doing, it's going to be a learning experience for both you and the person doing the work, only you're the one paying for it.

 

[StraightPoolIU]

Holy crap! It looks like if you hung a ball deep enough you could actually snooker your opponent with nothing but rail.

Sometimes when a ball gets deep enough it can be hanging, but hard to make because you may not be able to make it by going rail first without missing the ball entirely. We all know how tough it can be to try to draw out when shooting a ball hanging deep in the pocket.

 

[realkingcobra]

What that table really represents, is the fact that most so called table mechanics in this country have no idea what they're doing, other than getting paid to do a job. And the customer has no idea the difference between what's right, or wrong with a pool table.

Like Mark says all the time, just because the balls bounce off the rails, and go in the pockets, that don't mean the table plays right!!

 

[Renegade_56]

So in this case Glen, what would be a proper shelf depth from the points, and what is the radius of the shelf edge supposed to be. I am getting ready to change my snooker table to pool and surely will run in to this. I am thinking about 4 5/8 or 4 3/4 inch pockets.

Unless you're planning on cutting the pocket shelf back, you're better off with 4 1/2" pockets with 141 miters and 15 degrees down angle. Another thing about converting snooker rails to pool rails that most people are not aware of is that snooker rails are thinner than pocket rails, so unless you're having someone do this conversion that knows what they're doing, it's going to be a learning experience for both you and the person doing the work, only you're the one paying for it.

I am thinking I will probably have to cut the shelf back, which is why I asked for a distance. The nose height on the K66 cushion currently is at pretty much 1.400" so I think that should work. I play on Diamonds at my local room with 4 5/8 pockets and deep shelves and everyone has trouble rattling balls on them, so that is why I'm thinking 4 5/8 on my 10 footer, with similar miters, but I don't want the deep shelf rattle. I've been told about 1 inch is a good depth.