Effects of Clean vs Dirty Pool Balls

[@myblacklab7]

Interesting stuff! This game is endlessly complex - I think you could learn ten things a day for a million years, and then still learn ten new things the next day. This is really useful to know, and explains a lot about why I am inconsistent on certain shots.

[@symbiot3]

This was REALLY helpful. My buddy and I play on his outdoor table and we have noticed that over time, our shooting angles seem to cut a little tighter. We kept thinking it was the table/rails, but over MORE time, we were overly adjusting because of dirty balls + possible dust catching on the table during play. All of the examples you've shown here have highlighted my shooting errors I was having shooting on that table again, now we know we should probably clean the balls more often.

[@naonao76]

This was very well done and explained. I appreciated the topic as you covered very interesting aspects. Very informative!

[@bishopbilliards5650]

Thanks Nao for the compliment! This was my first video and another will be out in the next week or two.

[@SamLawlace]

Thanks! This is the first video I've seen addressing this topic. It would be nice to see how you built your diy ball cleaner.

[@bishopbilliards5650]

Glad you enjoyed the video Sam! I probably will not make a video about my ball cleaner because there are plenty of videos already on how to make an even better one. If you have another suggestion please let me know and thank you for the support!

[@alg.3236]

Also hope you keep making videos, this was great for the first video, keep it up !!

[@CapoXProductions]

just got recommended to me. So fascinating. Love your very scientific approach!

[@dewskih6742]

The results from the dirty balls seem favorable but apparently you have to factor the new response once you clean you “pool “ balls.😏 Definitely agree with previous posts, your delivery and comparisons are excellent and the laser line reference was a nice added touch. Keep up the good work.

[@bishopbilliards5650]

Thank you! It's been a while since I've posted but I should have a new video coming out this month.

[@andraskoleszar9759]

I really enjoy dr. Dave-esque analytical video style, I'm glad you started making educational pool content😍

[@bishopbilliards5650]

Thank you! I have love Dr Dave's videos as well and I get inspiration from his videos when making mine. This is a huge complement! I just put posted a new video today about the cue ball weight differences so you should have a look! Thanks for your support!

[@luisgonzalez-ot9mm]

Hi Adam, Luis from Malaysia. Great analysis, very useful to know when go out and play with dirty balls. After few minutes I recognised Dr Dave style which is a compliment. Keep on the great job. Thanks a lot. 🙏👌

[@bishopbilliards5650]

Thanks Luis! I am very happy that you found it useful. It's a totally different game when playing with the oversized cue ball and it's good to know how it effects the game. I learned a lot from Dr. Dave so thank you for the compliment :)

[@singhvinayak92]

Absolutely brilliant!! I am a Snooker player who started from pool. I can only wonder how huge these effects must be on a snooker table. There seem to be so many factors involving consistent play in cue sports. The factors I can think of are: Cue Stick, Tip, Cloth type, Table Type, Cloth condition, cloth cleanliness, humidity, atmosphere of the room. I also think that for most consistent play, we should even wear similar clothes and footwear. Mental health and well being also impacts hugely on consistent gameplay. Also the time at which we go to the club can have huge impacts.

[@bishopbilliards5650]

Hi Vinayak, thank you for the complement! There are so many variables in cue sports which is why it's so important to be able to know them and adapt as needed. I'm very glad you found my video interesting :) I will be replacing the felt and rails later this year so if you have idea on something you wanted tested please let me know!

[@singhvinayak92]

@@bishopbilliards5650 So this has nothing to do with rails or cloth but could you try and demonstrate the effect of the weight of the cue on the spin generated on the cue ball. Something like Lighter shaft, heavier shaft, lighter butt, heavier butt, and an overall lighter cue and heavier cue. That might turn out a bit interesting. Or maybe the effects of different types of light bulbs on the cloth.

[@markslates2154]

Hey Adam! Great video! I have been struggling with why I have more success playing with dirty balls and cannot seem to get the same level of success with clean balls. I think you provided the the answer: CIT. Many thanks!

[@bishopbilliards5650]

Hi Mark I'm glad I was able to shed some light on your issue. There isn't a lot of information on KZbin about these differences which was surprising to me. It makes a big difference during gameplay.

[@ballerbilliards]

I would argue that your “clean” balls are actually too slick/slippery due to your cleaning method. If you’re using straight Aramith cleaning solution, it leaves a slight layer of wax-type substance on the balls that makes them slicker than they are when brand new. The sliding off kicks, ease of pocketing rail shots, and trouble getting good action from CB spin off rails this brings changes the game, and not in a good way imo. I prefer playing with balls that are CLEAN, but not slicked-up more than their new condition. So I use a mix of Aramith:Rubbing alcohol at 1:4 ratio in my ball cleaning machine. That leaves them with a very similar play as their condition when new. Artistic Billiards artists sometimes apply wax or silicone to balls to pull off amazing massé and other crazy spin shots. What your “clean” balls are doing is a mild version of that.

[@bishopbilliards5650]

I agree that my results may be exaggerated from the "waxiness" of the cleaner. I could do some tests and see how these cleaning methods compare to one another. This could be another good topic to test but I think Dr Dave already covered this. This is honestly what caused me to want to make this video in the first place. When I clean the balls with the Aramith or Chem-Pak cleaner I will get wildly different cue ball action off the rails and cue. I now want to try your method and see how they feel. Thank you for your suggestion.

[@Ret_Lineman]

I always understood the ball to ball contact with clean vs dirty ,but didn’t realize how the slide on the rails came into play because the ball’s cleanliness. Very interesting. Thanks for that input

[@dannyc8875]

Never thought...wow. Really good stuff. Honestly looking forward to....

[@bishopbilliards5650]

Thanks Danny! If you have an idea you'd like to see me test out please let me know.

[@planetscore]

Great video! Next one should be about new vs worn out cloth. I was recently playing that three cushion shot in a bar with dirty balls and the trajectory was the same as with the clean balls in your video. My guess is that the worn out cloth masks it slip and the ball had no traction on it.

[@rcflightz2058]

Good stuff, keep it coming, I’ll be tuning in!

[@bishopbilliards5650]

Thank you! I'm working on the next video!

[@orazalo]

Thanks Adam. It would be nice if you could give us also tip how to deal/compensate with dirty balls when using side spin/stun shot.

[@bishopbilliards5650]

Thanks for the idea! I plan on doing a follow up video to this one.

[@jamescarithers6805]

Really interesting video and look forward to more great content.

[@bishopbilliards5650]

Thanks James! I hope you are still shooting well! I should have another video out soon!

[@el0rg]

I much prefer clean balls, but if you know the difference you can definitely take advantage of it when they're dirty. You didn't really touch on spin induced throw here, but you can change the object ball path quite a bit with spin when the balls are dirty. Especially useful when you're partially hooked. I appreciate the content, other than Dr Dave you don't really see anyone talking about this type of thing that can be a big part of the game! I also found it amusing to see you talk about a small budget for your videos when you're playing with a $400 set of balls on a Diamond.. *subscribed*

[@bishopbilliards5650]

Clean balls are my preference too and they get cleaned every week or two. There will be a part 2 in the future. Right now I am starting with more basic content as I get more comfortable making videos. It's not easy, but will come more natural the more I do them. I don't want people to think that these are the only effects of Clean vs Dirty since there are probably another 20 things that can be covered related to this (easily). As for my budget, I just haven't spent any money on video production. I have bought and tried 4 other pool tables prior to my Diamond and I just wasn't satisfied. So I finally decided to just get what I wanted and spent the extra money for a nice table and a good set of balls. It's something I enjoy doing everyday so I didn't mind indulging a little bit. Plus I got the table in used condition so I saved a lot of money on it. Lastly, I am trying to keep my videos related to topics that haven't been covered much. I don't want to put out content that have been done 1,000 times before so this topic was ripe for the picking.

[@tomgodzik6601]

Great video. Thanks for sharing it with us 🇺🇸 😀 😊.

[@bishopbilliards5650]

Thanks Tom! Another video will be out soon!

[@rossmiller8457]

this seems like an advert for dirty balls ahahah Great video

[@bishopbilliards5650]

Definately not haha, but both dirty and clean balls have their pros and cons.

[@Cristinbishop]

Great content Adam!

[@bishopbilliards5650]

Thanks Cristin!

[@TheSnookerGym]

Great video and good work.... I salute your efforts! You also have a great delivery.... nice to watch

[@bishopbilliards5650]

Thank you!! Trying to make unique videos. Just subscribed to your channel too.

[@dougoverhoff7568]

A well chosen topic, and one that I feel sorely needed to be addressed, and should prove enlightening to novices and seasoned players, alike. I had sort of hoped you would have shown the differences in clean and dirty balls on different cut shot angles, and as regards the effect of 'cling' or throw, especially if an object ball is traveling a further distance to the pocket, and on the differences in how it effects throw on combos. Also, the effects on the spreading of various racks when breaking with clean or dirty balls, as the differences in the results there can often be dramatic. Oh well, maybe in another video. Cheers!

[@bishopbilliards5650]

Hi Doug, I found it interesting that this topic wasn't covered more often which prompted me to make this video. This was my first KZbin video so I am still getting a feel for how to do this. I knew at the time that I did not cover all aspects and that there are tons more differences that can be great follow up material. I think Dr. Dave does a fantastic job showing how cling and dirty balls cut differently so I didn't feel the need to cover that specific topic. I agree with you 100% that a video on breaking dirty and clean balls would be a great topic to cover (which is another thing I have been wanting to cover for a long time). Thank you for the feedback and suggestion!

[@dougoverhoff7568]

@@bishopbilliards5650 For your first video, especially, I think you did a wonderful job. And I certainly realize one can't cover every aspect of a topic in a single video, especially when it comes to the game of pool and all of the complexities it involves. The good news is you'll probably not run out of topics. You're doing great, so keep the videos coming. Cheers!

[@jamiemcclurg9495]

This is so awesome!!!!!

[@bishopbilliards5650]

Thanks Jamie! I’m glad you liked the video!

[@randallburns4946]

Good video! Very good Information!

[@bishopbilliards5650]

Thank you Randall! I will have a new video posted this week!

[@Kevin-kw3ug]

Do you use the same type of balls? I can see that the two white balls are different of colour, in snooker sets these differences are there along with different weights

[@ementega]

Now compare between the used and new cloth please..

[@egpool1903]

Thank you for the content. Question: Where did you purchase/find the blue decals that have been added to the table between the diamonds?

[@pocketedyoutube]

Great video!

[@drick2659]

I've known this for a while and this is the reason I don't clean my table and balls as much as I once did. I have a question. Where you get that blue tape that goes on the rails?

[@bishopbilliards5650]

It’s actually just 1 inch thick painter’s tape.

[@landofthefree1804]

@@bishopbilliards5650brilliant thanks for sharing

[@ekiputranata8478]

Does the room temperature affect the direction of the ball, an example of a room that uses AC and does not use AC

[@bishopbilliards5650]

This is a great question. Humidity has a bigger effect on how pool balls react than the temperature does. The moisture in the air adds friction to the balls and to the tablecloth which increases throw a noticeable amount. A warmer playing surface allows the balls to roll further but I am not entirely sure that there is a noticeable difference on how the balls react at difference temperatures (given humidity is not a variable). This could be a great video idea.

[@WildStyleWorks]

i like the machine you made, i will need to make one too :-)

[@bishopbilliards5650]

Very handy and a huge time saver. There are tons of people who have made how to videos for them. Good luck!

[@lokyinphotography]

I think if we go to a regular pool hall, although they clean their pool balls. The dust on the table and also our hands will eventually make it dirty within a few racks. Unless we're playing in a tournament that the judge will use a glove to clean the ball and vacuum the table after each use.

[@johnpedersen3458]

Nice. More videos please.

[@bishopbilliards5650]

Thank you John! Another video will hit your feed in about a week or two.

[@rubenleary8812]

Do clean balls travel further? (Wanting to know as someone who owns a wooden top table)

[@bishopbilliards5650]

Hi Ruben, I was actually curious about this myself. I have a hypothesis but maybe it will have to be put to the test!

[@Pocketbilliardshots]

I believe so. I asked a question a while ago about how much more effective the break is with clean balls. So I started testing it out and yes, clean balls spread way better then dirty and is so much more likely to pocket balls on break. Sometimes after playing a long time I start having trouble making balls on break but after I polish them back up I have no problem dropping balls on break.

[@SQLKC]

How about a build video on the cleaner

[@bishopbilliards5650]

Hi Mark! Thanks for the suggestion but i’m trying to make unique videos that many people haven’t done yet. There are plenty of people who show how to make a ball cleaner on KZbin already.

[@Seri-Katil]

Clean balls slide more making them go longer/wider than the dirty ones which grip more causing them to come short and react sooner off rails and other balls because of increased friction

[@bishopbilliards5650]

Agreed, it makes a difference during play so I pay attention to how the balls look and feel especially when kicking, banking or drawing a ball.

[@Pocketbilliardshots]

Interesting that this came up in my feed. The other night I was trying for over an hour to get a break and run using balls that haven’t been cleaned in months and was not able to get one and overall just felt like I was playing bad. I took a break and decided to clean all the balls for the first time in a while. After they were cleaned I was able to run out with ease. I was wondering if it was just all in my head or not but I’m going to clean them allot more often now. The thing I do not like is since I’m used to dirty balls, all my kick shots are off and can’t get any spin off the cushions. I’m also curious how much the break is effected by clean vs dirty. I’d like to see a comparison just out of curiosity.

[@bishopbilliards5650]

It's certainly not in your head as cleaner balls are easier to be pocketed. It's something that I have noticed for years which is why I wanted to make this video. If you like having a "grippy" cue ball for your kick-shots you can simply not clean your cue ball and just clean all the other object balls. Although it's easier to get backspin and follow with a clean cue ball so there is some trade-off. My next video that I'm working on is related to the break so I will keep this mind. Thank you for the suggestion!

[@Pocketbilliardshots]

Yes, the big thing I noticed was on shots that I would normally miss that would be hangers from clipping the points on the pockets would instead just slide right in. For some reason I was hesitant to clean them because I just felt like really slick balls would throw my game off for some reason but it turned out being the opposite.

[@oshua86]

Would you say under typical pool room conditions where the balls aren’t cleaned consistently and are used for many hours a day when they are dirty, the typical amount of throw for any given cut angle with consistent speed can change from one object ball to the next to the effect of missing the shot? (Excluding cling of course)

[@bishopbilliards5650]

I would say that is certainly possible. I almost added a segment to this video that would demonstrate how long it would take to achieve maximum dirtiness. Maybe I'll cover that in a Part 2 video later on. Another thing that is kind of interesting is that if the pool hall doesn't regularly clean balls between customers it will make a difference depending on what game you are playing. If the customer before you played only 9 ball for a couple hours then the balls 1-9 will be more dirty than 10-15. Which means if you play 8 ball with the same set of balls who ever is stripes will be playing with cleaner balls than the person shooting solids.

[@oshua86]

@@bishopbilliards5650 I have certainly noticed that difference on both points and I’ve been called crazy. It’s gotten bad enough on certain local and regional tournaments where I have had to change my game from a mostly stun game (which is great for big tourneys where the conditions are ideal) to a game where I’ve had to become really good at judging gearing English to eliminate throw, or being really careful on compensating shots where I’m putting less than gearing or more. On longer shots with stun while playing on dirty or humid conditions I feel is too unreliable at times and the margin too big. Even with top or bottom which reduces throw I see unreliability.

[@bishopbilliards5650]

You are far from crazy and the fact that you are able to notice these subtle differences just means you play at a higher level than others. Show them this video if you have to! LOL

[@brett6314]

Old post but I am losing my mind because at one place I can't make $h1t and another I'm unstopable. I would love to hear how you adjust. I tend to play very soft and the "bar" setup I'm missing.@@oshua86

[@stevesalisbury9272]

Hey Adam I was wondering what cloth you used on the inside of the bucket to make the polisher?

[@bishopbilliards5650]

Hi Steve, for the bottom I am using a white towel that was cut and zip-tied since I wore through the original one that came with the polisher. For the inside walls of the polisher I am using black carpet that can be purchased by the foot at Home Depot. I wanted something that would last a long time so that's what I came up with. I bought it years ago but it looks very similar to this. Hope this helps, if it didn't let me know. www.homedepot.com/p/TrafficMaster-Elevations-Color-Sky-Grey-6-ft-Indoor-Outdoor-Ribbed-Texture-Carpet-7PD5N660072HO/203469232?MERCH=REC-_-searchViewed-_-NA-_-203469232-_-N&

[@rodsautter6135]

What do you do to keep your ball cleaner from "skating" across the floor. I don't have carpet floors and it skates across my tile floor.

[@bishopbilliards5650]

Hi Rod, the ball polisher shakes violently for me too and is very loud. I only use it on my carpet but I would guess that putting a towel underneath your machine would give similar results. I am considering saving up for the Diamond Polisher Machine since it's whisper quiet and looks really nice. I know it's a lot of money but it would be something I'd use for decades in the future.

[@mrtopbreak333]

Can I ask are you using a cleaning fluid? I clean my set with washing up liquid and rise off I find the balls although clean still retain friction. I believe that it is the residue that ball cleanings leave that adds to the problem. I would used the ball cleaner to restore shine but would still hand wash any cleaning solutions after. Thoughts pls.

[@bishopbilliards5650]

Dr Dave's video might be helpful to your question. kzbin.info/www/bejne/laXEdnV6i7Z1j7M

[@RichardsWorld]

Cleaning in necessary often. But, you should also have them polished once in awhile. The balls gets a lot of micro scratches.

[@nuggers23]

So this is basically the same difference as with new and old rails. Ain't nuthin' like some gangsta dirt... ;)

[@bishopbilliards5650]

There are similarities like dirtier cloth and rails have more grip than if they were clean. Yes you are correct :)

[@yes2crypto]

Nice

[@bishopbilliards5650]

Thanks!

[@kshgarg147]

Nice video. Can you make a video on the effects of wax on the balls?

[@bishopbilliards5650]

Thank you for the suggestion but I think Dr. Dave already covered this topic. Is this what you mean? kzbin.info/www/bejne/laXEdnV6i7Z1j7M

[@kshgarg147]

@@bishopbilliards5650 yes, this is what i was looking for. Thanks

[@victorhauk5973]

Dirty balls affect your play tremendously. Most of the manufacturers polish is made up of a lot of wax. Use a no wax plastic polish. Also, wipe your table cloth down with a wrung out terry cloth towel after play. This removes most of the chalk dust from your table cloth

[@MrFanaticrat]

Balls cleaned!

[@bishopbilliards5650]

Cleaner balls means you'll make more shots!

[@RyanRants000]

Great video but you neglected to add so many negative side effects of dirty balls to this video. How about cling and reduced ability to draw a ball back. These are the two biggest problems

[@bishopbilliards5650]

Thank you Ryan, I agree with you that there are many more side effects I could have covered. I probably should have stated that somewhere in the video. I wanted to focus on some of the tests that I haven't seen many others do. Cling has been covered thoroughly already by Dr Dave so I don't think I can add value in that topic. Your other subject of not drawing as much is something that I'm highly interested in testing. I've been wanting to make that a separate video but I haven't thought of a way to test it while eliminating human error. It's been on my mind for years now lol. If I had a robot that can shoot a pool cue that would be amazing :)

[@RyanRants000]

@bishopbilliards5650 . Upon my youtube reasearch of dirty cue balls I was amazed at how few videos there is on the topic. But it is such a deciding factor in pool that it cannot be understated. Great video and thanks for the reply. Keep playing!

[@bishopbilliards5650]

@@RyanRants000 This is the exact reason I created this channel. If I think of an idea that has not been covered before (or very little coverage) I will try to make a video about it. This is the best thing I can hear from someone, thank you!

[@CollegeHustler]

@@bishopbilliards5650 can you do cheap/worn felt vs high quality felt for masse and jump shots?

[@sonorangaming449]

What I am getting is that dirty balls can actually play better, to a certain degree anyway?

[@TheSnookerGym]

Wow I never knew that the reason balls go wider is that the extra friction kills the top spin with dirty balls, but with clean balls it is like catching a half ball contact with top spin - you get throw... kzbin.info/www/bejne/n3nMmGmqlK-so7s

[@alg.3236]

Hi, I was looking at 3:36 and I think the two shots are not even hitting the same spot, dirty one seems to be closer to the middle pocket than the clean one, if that's the case of course the result is going to be different , also at 1:57 and 2:23 are also seem to be hitting different spots , check them out , perhaps if the re was a pause right when the balls hit the real it would be easier to spot also it will make the video more scientific, either way it's just my opinion there is a few more places but I'm not that OCD to check them all, lol.

[@bishopbilliards5650]

Hi Al, I have a very low budget for production so everything from start to finish is done 100% on my iPhone X. It's very difficult to get the videos to line up for the perfect frame. I might upgrade to Photoshop some day but for now I am making them on a budget. I believe I am hitting the same spots and it's just that I can't get the framing just right. I am not perfect by any means so it's also possible I didn't hit 100% accurate, but if the balls were not hit at exactly the same spot the principles in the video are still valid. I should be posting another video tomorrow so let me know if I missed something in that too! I don't want to put out bad info! Thanks for the support and shoot well!

[@Crazeyfor67]

Hey there! Your videos are good. You should at least put out one per month.

[@brett6314]

I researched looking for this subject but on how to deal with it. I play at a dirty ass bar on Tuesdays and a pool hall that cleans their balls daily. My home table is newer Predator cloth and plays pretty fast. In general I'm quite satisfied with how I play at the pool hall but am practically going to be kicked off my team at the dirty ass bar. Besides the tables (diamond vs bar box) I really think that since I tend to play pocket speed and with touch the ball cling must be affecting me but I've not figured out how to deal with it. My team captain who is Vegas attending level says to play firmer but when I do I not only miss but then my position is total BS. I think I'll try to overcut for a while. See if that helps. Any advice would be fantastic.

[@bishopbilliards5650]

Hi Brett, I'm not sure what you have discovered in your research but what you might want to look into is using Gearing Outside English on shots where you suspect throw might make miss. Throw's effect is greatest near slower half ball hits so you can decide to use it when needed. Dr Dave's video (kzbin.info/www/bejne/a3SaYmdprK6WY68) might be helpful to you in making the dirtier balls play better. Let me know if this has been helpful, but I think you'll get a lot of bang for your buck spending time getting comfortable using Gearing Outside Spin.

[@majidmanion5476]

Way do not you show us how to make a ball cleaner

[@bishopbilliards5650]

I only want to make unique videos. There are a lot of videos on how to make a bucket polisher.

[@SQLKC]

@@bishopbilliards5650 Just post a link to someone else's build

[@myblacklab7]

@@bishopbilliards5650 Why don't you show us how to build a pool cue, hit dead center, and re-felt a pool table? All of that would be very relevant as well. ;P