Why not use a rack?

[MattS]

I see guys racking balls without a rack or template. Just putting the balls in place with there hands. Why? We used racks for a 100 years and now no more?

 

[dr_dave]

I see guys racking balls without a rack or template. Just putting the balls in place with there hands. Why? We used racks for a 100 years and now no more?

See the "table training" info and demo here:

How to Get a Tight Rack​

It is fast and reliable. That's why.

 

[MattS]

I have my table trained and I still use a rack. Its about 2x faster then setting each ball by hand

 

[dr_dave]

I have my table trained and I still use a rack. Its about 2x faster then setting each ball by hand

I never use a rack at home on my trained table. For me, it seems faster without the rack (partly because the rack is usually on the floor or a shelf).

 

[Korsakoff]

Back when I was young, many times we did not use a rack for 9 ball, especially for practice or low stakes. Wes would just place four balls on the foot rail, with the One Ball on the Right, place three balls in front of those with the Nine Ball in the middle and finally two balls in front of those.

Then slide the group to the Foot Spot, leaving room for the One Ball. Then grab the wing balls in the back row and put the One Ball on the Foot Spot and the Left ball on the apex in back. This worked well on relatively new or well-maintained tables with reasonably tight results. Of course, it's another time now and I imagine you rarely see that anymore.

 

[freds]

...place four balls on the foot rail, with the One Ball on the Right, place three balls in front of those with the Nine Ball in the middle and finally two balls in front of those.

Then slide the group to the Foot Spot, leaving room for the One Ball. Then grab the wing balls in the back row and put the One Ball on the Foot Spot and the Left ball on the apex in back.

Elegant, thanks! Just tried it; it's fast, easy, and works great. (As you say - for practice or small stakes.)