What I don't understand about the "Magic Rack"

stevelomako

stevelomako

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Everyone says it doesn't matter about the magic rack being on the table after the break if there are balls on it and you cant remove it, because its so thin and wont affect any balls rolling across it.


If its so thin and doesn't affect balls rolling across it why would you need to remove it from the table at all anyway?




Also, if the above is true, why do they make 3 different kinds (8, 9 and 10 ball racks)?

All you would need to cover all games is an 8 ball rack correct?






Just questions I have, I'm not one way or another about it yet.
 
It does affect balls rolling over it, espescially from certain angles and speeds
where the ball just barely grazes the MBR.

The 8-Ball version is cut like a normal triangle, it is only holding the outer
balls in place. Therefore it won't support several balls of the 9 and 10-ball rack.

The rack has some very small drawbacks when compared to a normal triangle (mainly
the affecting rolling balls part) but the ultra solid rack outweighs that by far IMO.

gr. Dave
 
I have been using it for about 2 months in practice games with a friend about 9 hrs/week. I have only noticed it affect balls that are moving at extremely slow speeds and acute angles to the rack. I have never seen it change the final location of a ball by enough to change a shot but I think it could.
Once you see that it can change ball movement (no matterhow little) you want it off the table as soon as the break is done. It is very rare not to be able to pick it up immediately after the break . On the rare occasion that it cannot be removed, I have never felt uncomfortable shooting across it but have not liked it if it was under or too close to my bridge hand placement. Overall this occurs so rarely that I like it for practice. The consistency of the break really allows you to see how you hit the balls instead of how they are racked.
 
Double-Dave said:
It does affect balls rolling over it, espescially from certain angles and speeds
where the ball just barely grazes the MBR.

The 8-Ball version is cut like a normal triangle, it is only holding the outer
balls in place. Therefore it won't support several balls of the 9 and 10-ball rack.

The rack has some very small drawbacks when compared to a normal triangle (mainly
the affecting rolling balls part) but the ultra solid rack outweighs that by far IMO.

gr. Dave
Click to expand...

I agree. Johnnyt
 
stevelomako said:
Everyone says it doesn't matter about the magic rack being on the table after the break if there are balls on it and you cant remove it, because its so thin and wont affect any balls rolling across it.


If its so thin and doesn't affect balls rolling across it why would you need to remove it from the table at all anyway?




Also, if the above is true, why do they make 3 different kinds (8, 9 and 10 ball racks)?

All you would need to cover all games is an 8 ball rack correct?






Just questions I have, I'm not one way or another about it yet.
Click to expand...

I prefer the rack be removed ASAP. I have seen it affect a rolling ball, however, it has to be extremely slow rolling or playing backspin on the CB over the magic rack. The hundreds of great racks and the other guy not making 9's, by far, make up for any rolls from the magic rack.

1 rack for all... No, 9 ball is diamond shape, 10 ball is a smaller triangle than 8 ball. The way the racks work is, they freeze the outer balls forcing them to contact the inner balls. The reason they make 3 different racks, I believe, is to reduce material and chance of rolls. They could make and all-in-one 8 ball, 9 and 10 ball, but that is a lot of extra rack when breaking 9 and 10 ball. I think they got it right making 3. Now, these racks are awesome and last for a really long time. Nothing at this time compares.

Only issues with the rack.
1. Different size balls don't work well
2. Breaks from the exact same spot creates a hole in the cloth under the 1 ball.
3. Really sucks when you don't have it.
 
stevelomako said:
Everyone says it doesn't matter about the magic rack being on the table after the break if there are balls on it and you cant remove it, because its so thin and wont affect any balls rolling across it.


If its so thin and doesn't affect balls rolling across it why would you need to remove it from the table at all anyway?




Also, if the above is true, why do they make 3 different kinds (8, 9 and 10 ball racks)?

All you would need to cover all games is an 8 ball rack correct?






Just questions I have, I'm not one way or another about it yet.
Click to expand...

Check out Racktight, there is no need to worry about the rack because there isn't one, they are very thin plastic spots that are permanently placed on the cloth, and the spots are thinner then the normal footspot.
 
samurai said:
Check out Racktight, there is no need to worry about the rack because there isn't one, they are very thin plastic spots that are permanently placed on the cloth, and the spots are thinner then the normal footspot.
Click to expand...

Try bridging on these "permanent" spots, you won't like it at all. That is why the MBR is the better design, just pick it up after the break.
 
The only thing about Magic Rack I don't like is that it cannot be used playing 14.1.
 
I've actually won a match as a result of my opponent dogging the 10 ball when it took a weird hop off the edge of the magic rack.
It's a really goot tool, but whenever I've used it, I will always make sure it comes off the table at the first available opportunity, even it it means working with the other opponent to re-place a ball that may be affected by removal.
dave
 
hangemhigh said:
Try bridging on these "permanent" spots, you won't like it at all. That is why the MBR is the better design, just pick it up after the break.
Click to expand...
I've been going to a pool hall that uses the permanent spots for almost 2 years now and I can say with honesty that the spots have not affected my bridge hand even one time.
 
Masayoshi said:
I've been going to a pool hall that uses the permanent spots for almost 2 years now and I can say with honesty that the spots have not affected my bridge hand even one time.
Click to expand...

I'd say your bridge hand might affect the spots rather than vice versa, but agreed what you said.
 
mjantti said:
The only thing about Magic Rack I don't like is that it cannot be used playing 14.1.
Click to expand...

I appreciate all the replies so far.


This comment would pertain to what I was originally asking....why can't you use it playing straight pool?




If it couldn't be used for straight pool then it wouldn't be good for one-pocket or 8-ball I would imagine.
 
stevelomako said:
I appreciate all the replies so far.


This comment would pertain to what I was originally asking....why can't you use it playing straight pool?

If it couldn't be used for straight pool then it wouldn't be good for one-pocket or 8-ball I would imagine.
Click to expand...


The Magic Rack could be used for 8 Ball but would not be good for 1 Hole for the same reason as 14.1, you are not busting the balls wide open.

Because of the additional balls, using it in 8 Ball would be more difficult because of the increased likelihood that several balls would end up on it after the break and because the additional balls would make fouling while removing the rack more likely. But the full break shot in 8 Ball does allow for it to be used in that game.

The MR can and does interfere with the roll of balls on occasion. On the break this is no big deal since the break is by definition largely a random event anyway. But it should not be left in place. On the occasion where a ball is actually ON the rack after the break it should be marked and then replaced after the rack is removed. No biggie, balls are marked and replaced when they need to be cleaned.

BTW, in answer to the question about using the one 8 Ball rack template for all games, this wouldn't work because the row of two behind the 9 would not be supported (in 9 Ball) nor would the entire last row in 10 Ball.

The Magic Rack is not good for 14.1 and One Hole because of the soft breaks and safety play inherent in those games. Besides, the likelihood of not being able to remove the rack immediately after racking either because of balls on it or because the large clusters make it impossible to remove it.
 
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Masayoshi said:
I've been going to a pool hall that uses the permanent spots for almost 2 years now and I can say with honesty that the spots have not affected my bridge hand even one time.
Click to expand...

It is the feel for me, and the difference of feel between them and the cloth is enough of a distraction for my dislike of the permanent spots. No such problem with the MBR.
 
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