When is a pool pocket too tight?

Also take away the rack your own BS. How can you take the words “rack em up” out of the game of pool? You will have good breaks and bad breaks no matter who is racking. No rotating breaks. 4 1/2 x 5 pockets is perfect. Should be an industry standard. FOR ALL GAMES! Excluding snooker of course. Tightening the pockets slows the game down and removes stroke.

Tuesday I get my brand new GC V tournament addition table. Something I will keep the rest of my life. As such it’s standard pocket size is 4 1/2 corners and 5” sides. Can’t wait.

Also (I think Glenn might disagree) I don’t believe in this Diamond bullshit. I don’t care what anyone says. A diamond play un-natural. No mater what the pocket sizes are. Completely changes the game of pool and not for the better.


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Also take away the rack your own BS. How can you take the words “rack em up” out of the game of pool? You will have good breaks and bad breaks no matter who is racking. No rotating breaks. 4 1/2 x 5 pockets is perfect. Should be an industry standard. FOR ALL GAMES! Excluding snooker of course. Tightening the pockets slows the game down and removes stroke.

Tuesday I get my brand new GC V tournament addition table. Something I will keep the rest of my life. As such it’s standard pocket size is 4 1/2 corners and 5” sides. Can’t wait.

Also (I think Glenn might disagree) I don’t believe in this Diamond bullshit. I don’t care what anyone says. A diamond play un-natural. No mater what the pocket sizes are. Completely changes the game of pool and not for the better.


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You want to know what has more impact on the game?...no more Gold Crown support for pool tournaments....think about it:eek:
 
I know and I don’t get that either



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Really? It's simple really, wben you have a McDonald's on every street corner, do you start building them half way down the block....or do you look for new blocks to build them on, and go after new customers. This country is bloated with used GCs, in pool rooms and storage units. If Brunswick were to offer a substantial trade-in for older GCs, new ones would be showing up everywhere....BUT, why should Brunswick offer a trade-in for hacked up pool tables they'd throw away anyway, when all they have to do is support NEW sales in NEW markets outside of the United States....like the whole rest of the world...and not even talk about trade-ins.
 
Really? It's simple really, wben you have a McDonald's on every street corner, do you start building them half way down the block....or do you look for new blocks to build them on, and go after new customers. This country is bloated with used GCs, in pool rooms and storage units. If Brunswick were to offer a substantial trade-in for older GCs, new ones would be showing up everywhere....BUT, why should Brunswick offer a trade-in for hacked up pool tables they'd throw away anyway, when all they have to do is support NEW sales in NEW markets outside of the United States....like the whole rest of the world...and not even talk about trade-ins.



Well that makes perfect sense from a short term standpoint. But, what does that have to do with tournaments?


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Really? It's simple really, wben you have a McDonald's on every street corner, do you start building them half way down the block....or do you look for new blocks to build them on, and go after new customers. This country is bloated with used GCs, in pool rooms and storage units. If Brunswick were to offer a substantial trade-in for older GCs, new ones would be showing up everywhere....BUT, why should Brunswick offer a trade-in for hacked up pool tables they'd throw away anyway, when all they have to do is support NEW sales in NEW markets outside of the United States....like the whole rest of the world...and not even talk about trade-ins.



Glen,

I do have a question that is off topic if you don’t mind.


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I know and I don’t get that either



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You wouldn't believe how many pool rooms I've been in that opened new, but with someone elses broke shit pool tables they put in storage after they were forced to close down their own pool room from lack of business. Yeah, we'll throw some new cloth on them and get another 20 years out of them....really?? And people wonder why pool rooms close down...LOL Customers care more about their money today, and what they spend it on. The days of supporting some broke-ass pool room owner to keep him in business so the pool playing bandits can rob customers gambling so they can afford to buy something to eat....are over!!! New room owners have figured out a long time ago, the money their customers lose gambling with the pool bums is money out of THEIR pockets as well, because it don't get spent in the pool room by the pool bums. They found out that if they get rid of the pool bums tbose customers spend more money in the pool room!! BUT room owners for the most part being their own worst enemy, also rob the money that needs to be reinvested into upgrading their equipment, and those very same customers find somewhere else to play where the equipment isn't so bad, and there goes another pool room out of business!!!
 
Glen,

Anything tips you can give me regarding setting up my V? I will be using the glue down method for the bed. I am more concerned with what I don’t know. Like slate to frame bolts. I am thinking if just going your suggested route and 1/20 it straight through. Do you have a recommended torque for that method? I will obviously liquid dowel the seams and end of seams. Bonde the seams (used rock hard in the past). Anything else I should consider?



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Really? It's simple really, wben you have a McDonald's on every street corner, do you start building them half way down the block....or do you look for new blocks to build them on, and go after new customers. This country is bloated with used GCs, in pool rooms and storage units. If Brunswick were to offer a substantial trade-in for older GCs, new ones would be showing up everywhere....BUT, why should Brunswick offer a trade-in for hacked up pool tables they'd throw away anyway, when all they have to do is support NEW sales in NEW markets outside of the United States....like the whole rest of the world...and not even talk about trade-ins.

The real reason is that Brunswick doesn't give a sh$t about pool, period. In their most recent quarterly report, there is literally no mention of pool/billiard activities whatsoever, with the financial results of their activities in our arena only listed under the "other activities" category. And there you go. Brunswick doesn't care about pool, it's true. My best guess is that they continue to make such items as an homage to their past.
 
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Also take away the rack your own BS. How can you take the words “rack em up” out of the game of pool? You will have good breaks and bad breaks no matter who is racking. No rotating breaks. 4 1/2 x 5 pockets is perfect. Should be an industry standard. FOR ALL GAMES! Excluding snooker of course. Tightening the pockets slows the game down and removes stroke.

Tuesday I get my brand new GC V tournament addition table. Something I will keep the rest of my life. As such it’s standard pocket size is 4 1/2 corners and 5” sides. Can’t wait.

Also (I think Glenn might disagree) I don’t believe in this Diamond bullshit. I don’t care what anyone says. A diamond play un-natural. No mater what the pocket sizes are. Completely changes the game of pool and not for the better.


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I have to agree. 4.5" corners with the correct angles on the rails, but the sides must be 5" or larger. A smaller side pocket just does not allow the standard shot angles. I have this table and everyone super enjoys it. If you hit a side rail, most likely the ball will not go in and it rattles. Makes one tighten up and hit the correct shots.
 
Final description
no need to ask King cobra or Mark or amybody

The question is "When is a pocket too tight?"

Here is the definitive answer

When I miss a shot that was close and the ball jars or hangs.

The corollary is the pockets are too big when my opponent makes any shot
that looked close

I am available for any other tough questions

No need to thank me

Happy holidays to all
 
like anything else, you start to get a sample of data and truths begin to emerge

Chinese 8 ball guys are competing in pool events with little success, there is no evidence to suggest those tables better your skill, same with Russian Billairds, arguably even tougher tables than chinese 8 ball

obviously you can't have bucket pockets, there is a sweet spot and and at some point the law of diminishing returns kicks in...like anything else

to answer the op, imo chinese 8 ball tables are just past the point of being too tight, as were those Rasson Tables in Appletons 8 ball tourney

those long rail shots are just plain nasty, I've seen guys on those tables take bih after a foul and seek to pocket another ball and bump the long rail object ball off the rail, essentially passing up a bih shot to pocket the long rail ball (probably didnt explain that well, lol)
 
Too much one sided conversation here. The reason tight pockets seem too tight sometimes isn't the pocket opening. It's the shelf depth of the slate. Tighter pockets need less shelf depth or too many balls will rattle. Not enough talk about the slate at the pocket here to be able to make any claims about pocket size. How many people have a Valley barbox that has sub 4" corner pockets? Not many because the even with their generous slate shelfs, the pockets are still too tight to run a ball down the rail and make it. And no one wants that. A 5" pocket is tight if the pocket angle is slightly off and shelf is deep. The same can be said for a 4" pocket with a medium length shelf and correct pocket angles.
 
I've said it before time after time, I'll say it again incase any of you missed it. NOTHING, not tight ass pockets, not deep shelfs, not clean or dirty balls, worn out or new cloth, not a Diamond or a Brunswick table....will IMPROVE YOUR SKILLS AT POCKETING BALLS.....more than practice time on the pool table....period!
 
Glen,

Anything tips you can give me regarding setting up my V? I will be using the glue down method for the bed. I am more concerned with what I don’t know. Like slate to frame bolts. I am thinking if just going your suggested route and 1/20 it straight through. Do you have a recommended torque for that method? I will obviously liquid dowel the seams and end of seams. Bonde the seams (used rock hard in the past). Anything else I should consider?



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Just don't beat the frame with a hammer trying to assemble it, wax the dowel pins, and use ratchet straps if you need to when pulling the frame together until you can get the frame bolts started. You'd have to call me for anything else as i can't see what you see if I'm not there at the time.
 
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