billard/pool questions

[nightvision]

Hello all,
We just picked up a new pool table. I never played pool before so here are a couple questions.

a. Is it a bad thing to have the tip of the cue stick strike the fabric on the table? My 7 year old boy plays with me and I'm afraid he's going to put a tear in the fabric.

b. Do you need to chaulk up the cue stick before every strike?

Thanks.

 

[JB]

Re: billard/pool questions

If you chalk the cue tip before each shot you will reduce the chance of a tear.

 

[Limited-Time]

Re: billard/pool questions

Simple answers yes and yes. If I were you I'd pick up a DVD on Billiards and give it a look. As for the seven year old..............my house rules are if you do not have a drivers license you don't play. Kids can wreak havoc on a Pool Table if you let them. If you've invested in a high quality, furniture grade table its food for thought.

 

[mrmushroomman]

Re: billard/pool questions

Yes it can damage the table. I would definitly use the same color chalk as the felt on the table also. When your done playing buy a pool table brush and give it a brush after every use. Make sure when you brush it that you brush it in the direction you break the ball every time it get's brushed.

 

[aspeck]

Re: billard/pool questions

Our rule is you have to be 12 and be able to comfortably reach over the sides of the table to play. And anyone under 16 must be accompanied by an adult. A pool table is too expensive a piece of furniture to have it ruined by tearing the felt. And to refelt a table can be pricey.

As for the chaulking of the cue tips, that is up to the individual and the shots you are doing. If I am going for a shot with a lot of spin I will chaulk less than a straight or power shot. I also chaulk my fingers more than the cue stick because of my shooting style and the sweating my hands do.

 

[MrBigStuff]

Re: billard/pool questions

Kids have a tendancy to raise the back of the cue and strike downward at the base of the cue ball. Teach him to lower the back of the cue stick and use a horizontal stroke, striking the cue ball in the middle. Shooting straight should be mastered first and you really don't need any spin on the cue ball during this stage.

 

[njlarry]

Re: billard/pool questions

Chalk every shot, it will never hurt. Teach him to smoothly stroke through the ball as though throwing the tip across the table. A begginers DVD such as the one from BCA-Billard College of America?? is a must. There are lots a books too. Burnswick billards has an excellant web site with lots of links.

 

[ebry710]

Re: billard/pool questions

Although, if you leave kids to their own devices, they can damage the felt by going crazy. With that said, I have never seen a kid tear the felt when the parents are watching.

 

[waterinthefuel]

Re: billard/pool questions

We own a table and my uncle hit the table with the end of the cue and it did tear the fabric.

Chalking up the cue after each shot is not necessary and will not decrease the chances of a tear. That would only be true if there were ZERO chalk on the cue tip to begin with. I chalk up about once or twice a rack.

 

[SS MAYFLOAT]

Re: billard/pool questions

I got a new table several years back. Our first rule was if you couldn't reach, you didn't play. One day we heard the balls being slammed over and over. Went down to see what was going on. There was the 6 and 8 year old using their hands to sling the balls. I got mad and chased them out only to be cussed out by my wife and daughter for not letting them play. OK, then if the cloth gets ripped up, you pay to replace it. Of course the cloth got torn, and they both paid for a new cloth. "MY" rules now is "NO" kids under the age of 16 gets to play. The new cloth has now lasted 4X longer than the original and looks as good as when I put it on. BTW, it is not the easiest thing to replace the cloth and have it look original. Took me 3 days of re-leveling and recovering the table.
.

 

[Limited-Time]

Re: billard/pool questions

I got a new table several years back. Our first rule was if you couldn't reach, you didn't play. One day we heard the balls being slammed over and over. Went down to see what was going on. There was the 6 and 8 year old using their hands to sling the balls. I got mad and chased them out only to be cussed out by my wife and daughter for not letting them play. OK, then if the cloth gets ripped up, you pay to replace it. Of course the cloth got torn, and they both paid for a new cloth. "MY" rules now is "NO" kids under the age of 16 gets to play. The new cloth has now lasted 4X longer than the original and looks as good as when I put it on. BTW, it is not the easiest thing to replace the cloth and have it look original. Took me 3 days of re-leveling and recovering the table.
.

Bingo SS!! That's exactly why I have that same rule!! Great minds and all that.

 

[INJUN]

Re: billard/pool questions

On mine, sure the kids can play as long as the parents agree to pay for the damages. When they know the prices of repairing/replacing, they don't let them play. And these are only the family kids when visiting. Otherwise, don't ask. Never had a problem.
Chalk is used to increase the grip on the cue ball, to make it do what you need it to do.