Which Is The REAL Kind Of Pool Table

[AndyLee]

When I was small the pool tables I saw all seem to have a return feature for the pool balls.

In other words you hit a ball in pocket and it would go down a chute and wind up at the head of the table. Kind of like the return on a bowling alley.

But pool tables I’ve seen lately, seem to have pocket nets on each pocket. So you have to go into each of the six pockets and dig them out.

So which one is the REAL authentic kind of pool table?

[Baffle]

The ones that have the ball return machinery often are pay-to-play; the balls remain behind a barrier until another coin is dropped in. The cue ball, of course, is sunk and then replaced back on the table many times throughout the game; it instead travels through a different set of paths and comes out at a different hole. In order to accomplish this, the cue ball is slightly different in size from the other balls.

However, this means that the game plays a little differently, since players expect the balls to be equal size and weight.

Also, the original pool tables only had the pockets. It’s a lot less complex that way.

I found some info to back this up at wikipedia under billiard ball.

PS. The pay to play tables are usually in bars. You must have had an interesting childhood.

[lieu]

I think you’ll also find that most residences have the static pocket design, this probably for two reasons. One, as mentioned already by Baffle, all balls including the cue are, as they should be, of equal size. Two, static pockets are a heck of a lot quieter, both in not hearing each ball roll to the catch as it’s sunk and especially when the catch is released and they all roll to the front tray.

When I shopped for a table for the home, none of the high end tables even offered the ball return mechanism as an option.

[TriPolar]

Some cue returns are based on a magnet and a piece of iron inside the cue ball. These are less reliable than the the smaller cue ball method and are rare. Most of the auto-return tables I’ve seen are smaller size and wouldn’t be considered the real McCoy anyway.

[Idle_Thoughts]

Moving to The Game Room.

[jayjay]

My aunt and uncle had a return table when I was a kid (the 70s), but the ball well was open (no glass/plastic over it) and the cue ball just returned the same way the other balls did and was picked up out of the ball well.

[Stratocaster]

@Baffle

PS. The pay to play tables are usually in bars. You must have had an interesting childhood.

When I was a kid, cheap pool tables, the kind you might buy at, say, Sears, were usually (IME) ball return kinds, where the balls ran down chutes to a “gutter” that collected all the balls at the head of the table. No quarters required. These were the standard pool tables you’d find in my neighborhood’s basements, if someone had one at all.

Sometimes the balls would get jammed up in the chute, and you’d have to stoop over and break up the logjam. I was an adult before I saw a “classy” version with the leather nets that held the balls at each pocket.

[N9IWP]

@Stratocaster

When I was a kid, cheap pool tables, the kind you might buy at, say, Sears, were usually (IME) ball return kinds, where the balls ran down chutes to a “gutter” that collected all the balls at the head of the table. No quarters required. These were the standard pool tables you’d find in my neighborhood’s basements, if someone had one at all.

Sometimes the balls would get jammed up in the chute, and you’d have to stoop over and break up the logjam. I was an adult before I saw a “classy” version with the leather nets that held the balls at each pocket.

The pool table we had (definitely on the cheap side - particle board instead of slate) had 2 gutters (one on each long side) - the balls all rolled to one end

Brian

[Skywatcher]

@jayjay

My aunt and uncle had a return table when I was a kid (the 70s), but the ball well was open (no glass/plastic over it) and the cue ball just returned the same way the other balls did and was picked up out of the ball well.

@Stratocaster

When I was a kid, cheap pool tables, the kind you might buy at, say, Sears, were usually (IME) ball return kinds, where the balls ran down chutes to a “gutter” that collected all the balls at the head of the table. No quarters required. These were the standard pool tables you’d find in my neighborhood’s basements, if someone had one at all.

We had one of these in the 70s as well. Our cats loved following the balls into the gutter and continuing the chase in there. One even liked sleeping in the gutters and would get a very rude awakening.

[Glass_Joe]

When straight pool was the game predominately played, ball returns were the more common style of table. In straight pool the majority of balls are sunk in the bottom two pockets and it makes life easier not having to constantly empty out pockets.

As the popularity of rotation games increased, the amount of drop pocket tables has also increased. Drop pocket tables have some advantages, they are quieter, balls don’t get stuck in the ramps and you don’t have to fish around for the cue ball in the ball box after a scratch. Also you don’t have to bend down(on some tables the ball box is ridiculously low) to empty out the ball box at the end of a game. Drop pocket tables are also cheaper to purchase.

The two main suppliers of professional quality tables, Diamond Billiards and Brunswick still manufacture ball return tables. But, my WAG would be sales are maybe 10:1 or higher in favor of drop pockets.

Bar tables are a different story. If it’s got a coin-op mechanism it’s also got a ball return system.

So what’s the authentic table? Whichever you prefer. Myself, I’ll take the drop pockets please.