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Alan Munro Inner circle Kentwood, Michigan, USA 5952 Posts |
I had a set of the Mikame billiards. They looked and handled in a manner similar to P&Ls. I was so afraid to use them because they kept chipping during practice. You needed to use them in a wide open area, without hard surfaces, like a lawn. LOL The balls were just too fragile to use. The German wooden balls were much more durable.
I later got a set of Multiplying Sponge Balls, which were excellent and the price was nice, although the dense sponge degrades after a number of years. I wouldn't sweat the price, even if I replaced them, annually. I later got a few sets of Fakinis, and those are my ball of choice. I wish the uncoated shells were still made, since I had trouble with peeling on a couple of shells that I had. I had to find the uncoated shells, secondhand. As for the German video, that's a vac-form process. I used to operate a huge vac-form press, years ago. Only do that process in a well-ventilated area. The fumes can be horrible. |
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Michael Baker Eternal Order Near a river in the Midwest 11172 Posts |
Quote:
On 2010-06-05 00:05, J.G. the magnificent wrote: OMG!!! You'd have to have the mind of M.C. Escher to make those things!! You'd go blind standing at the lathe! Quote:
On 2010-06-13 06:04, Alan Munro wrote: After busting up my first set as a kid, I learned to practice over carpeted floors. As I grew older, I learned to practice the more difficult moves over the bed or a couch. (You don't have to bend over so far to retrieve your mistakes!) Quote:
I later got a set of Multiplying Sponge Balls, which were excellent and the price was nice, although the dense sponge degrades after a number of years. I wouldn't sweat the price, even if I replaced them, annually. I used to have a set of the old "Chicago" balls, and now have a set made by Goshman. I find them too light for my own taste, but they are a bit easier to learn with. This has me thinking... if an appropriate shell could be found/made, Nerf makes some very dense balls used in their guns (I've seen them in green at WalMart). If I recall, they were about 1 1/2" - 2" diameter. It may be possible to pinch a shell from some other set, and either paint or spray flock to a matching color. Quote:
I later got a few sets of Fakinis, and those are my ball of choice. I wish the uncoated shells were still made, since I had trouble with peeling on a couple of shells that I had. I had to find the uncoated shells, secondhand. I have some that chip and peel at the edges. It's kind of disappointing when that happens, considering the expense. Have you tried completely peeling all the coating off? (Don't do that unless you already have a back up, though.) Quote:
As for the German video, that's a vac-form process. I used to operate a huge vac-form press, years ago. Only do that process in a well-ventilated area. The fumes can be horrible. Good to know. I have been looking recently into what appears to be a good home-built vacuum form rig. My original goal was to find a good way to make inserts for milk pitchers, but a thousand other ideas came to mind, and this makes a thousand and one!
~michael baker
The Magic Company |
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Alan Munro Inner circle Kentwood, Michigan, USA 5952 Posts |
Michael,
If you need vac-form parts with tight crevices, be sure to put tiny holes in the form to allow the plastic to be pulled in all of the way. A ball s***l form shouldn't need holes because of the shape. As for the dense nerf balls, they don't grip as well as the Multiplying Sponge Balls. The nerf balls are quite light, too. |
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Michael Baker Eternal Order Near a river in the Midwest 11172 Posts |
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On 2010-06-13 15:53, Alan Munro wrote: Thanks for the advice. Noted. I had checked the Nerf balls for possible use with an Astro Ball Cabinet, but wasn't sold on the color I saw that day (neon green).
~michael baker
The Magic Company |
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Alan Munro Inner circle Kentwood, Michigan, USA 5952 Posts |
I believe the small Nerf balls are also available in yellow.
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Michael Baker Eternal Order Near a river in the Midwest 11172 Posts |
Quote:
On 2010-06-13 22:00, Alan Munro wrote: I was hoping so, but only found green on my quest that day. I ended up using yellow sponge balls.
~michael baker
The Magic Company |
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Anatole Inner circle 1912 Posts |
Daytona Magic at
http://www.daytonamagic.com/products/MUL......EST.html lists wooden billiard in sizes from 25mm to 50mm. ----- Amado "Sonny" Narvaez
----- Sonny Narvaez
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Dougini Inner circle The Beautiful State Of Maine 7130 Posts |
Thank you everyone for a very informative thread! My first set was a 1 3/4 inch, German 3 ball and shell set. Bright red. Then I graduated to a 2 inch , same wood and a lacquer finish. My hands are small, but really had no problem. Thank you Sonny, for the link. I'd like to get a red set, just like I had.
I believe the sets I bought were from Hank Lee...not sure though. The bright red really shows up for a long ways, but mine chipped so bad (from dropping, LOL), I had to retire them. No big deal, but what's this "25 Millimeter/50 Millimeter" stuff? I don't do metric. Hate it. Not gonna do it. LOL! Is there a way to say this in INCHES? Or am I just an old fart that's living in the 19th century? (flame-proof suit put on) Doug |
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Anatole Inner circle 1912 Posts |
Doug,
I think most rulers sold in school supply sections of department stores have inch measurements on one side and millimeter measurements on the other, so that might be one way to convert. At home (I'm traveling right now) I have a plastic drafting circle template that is used to easily draw circles, and I think the circles were marked in both inches and metric. Check by calling a drafting supplies store, or even a good art supplies store. But using the power of the Internet, you could go to http://www.chapelsteel.com/millimeters-inches.html where there is an on-line calculator that converts metric to inches. So... 25mm=0.984250000000000 inches 35mm=1.37795 inches and so on. Wow... the Internet is just like... magic! The same site has links to converting kilograms to pounds in case you want to buy some illusions in Europe and have them shipped here. And no, you're not "an old fart living in the 19th century." You and I are just living in a country obsessed with an archaic system of measuring things. 12 inches make a foot. 36 inches make a yard. 5280 feet make a mile. Too hard to memorize. But 1000 meters make a kilometer. It does make calculating easier. I can count by tens to very high numbers, but try doing the same thing counting by 12s... ----- Amado "Sonny" Narvaez (playing the devil's advocate) P.S. A lot of the European multiplying billiard balls that were sold in the US in the 60's were not quite perfect spheres, so a ball might be 40mm measured in one direction and 42mm measured in a different direction.
----- Sonny Narvaez
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Dougini Inner circle The Beautiful State Of Maine 7130 Posts |
Wow, Sonny! I'm getting quite an education, here! I made that site a favorite, since I'm probably going to use it a lot!
You're right! The internet IS a vast knowledge base! Thank you for pointing me in the right direction! I got pretty good with those 2" Wooden Balls. I got lazy, when I bought my Ireland set. After I sprayed them bright white, they stick to my fingers. I'd have to practice all over again with the wooden ones. This time though, I'd practice on carpeting, LOL! Thanks again, Sonny! |
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Anatole Inner circle 1912 Posts |
Glad I could help, Doug.
I had a beautiful set of 40mm gold billiard balls that I bought at Earl Edwards's Magic Shop in Norfolk sometime in the 60's. The sh*** was a good fit, which was rare for wooden balls in those days, unless you bought them from Owens. I lined the inside edge of the sh*** with a thin strip of white 3M decorator tape. It made the sh*** a tighter fit, allowing me to toss the sh***with a ball inside into the air without them separating. It also helped silence the tell-tale wooden click when loading a ball into the sh***. ----- Amado "Sonny" Narvaez
----- Sonny Narvaez
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Bill Hegbli Eternal Order Fort Wayne, Indiana 22797 Posts |
Dougini, I believe the picture is just a very poor shoot, they look orange, but I do believe it is the photography. German Billiard Balls all come in bright red color as the text says. 50mm is considered to be 2" size balls.
Some web sites give both measurements for clarity. |
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Dougini Inner circle The Beautiful State Of Maine 7130 Posts |
Excellent Bill! Thank you!
I think I'm going to get a set. They used to come in a little red cardboard box. Sonny, I'll bet the Owens' were expensive! They don't sell cheap stuff! You've all been a big help! I'm glad I discovered this thread... Gratefully, Doug |
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mtpascoe Inner circle 1932 Posts |
Quote:
On 2009-02-13 10:33, markis wrote: Here is something I found on Home Depot's website. http://www.homedepot.com/webapp/wcs/stor......ketID=36 This is a good idea, but what would you do for the shells? |
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Anatole Inner circle 1912 Posts |
I'm not sure the doorknobs shown on the Home Depot site would work for manipulation. I would expect that the side of the ball not shown in the photo has a stem for attaching to a door frame.
I always thought it would be neat to do a routine with miniature pool balls like those shown here: http://www.cuesight.com/stbbmi.html Unfortunately they are only 1.5 inches in diameter, and most of us prefer a larger ball for better visibility. Also, the finish might make them too slippery for manipulation, although they could probably be treated to make them easier to grip. ----- Amado "Sonny" Narvaez
----- Sonny Narvaez
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J.G. the magnificent Special user Griffith Indiana 886 Posts |
Quote:
On 2010-06-13 22:00, Alan Munro wrote: Ya my brother has some. Quote:
On 2010-07-31 17:30, Dougini wrote: Never used wooden balls but I would think chipping balls from dropping them could be eliminated. Use them with a cloth or carpet peice under you. Posted: Dec 20, 2010 1:43pm Wooden ball door knobs do have holds at the back. You could just put in a wooden plug with wood glue then sand it smooth. The shells could be made by cutting a whole one in two halves then milling out a half.
Jeremy Gates
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Deceptor New user Omaha 46 Posts |
On the subject of hand lotion, Geoffrey Buckingham alwyas recommended rosewater and glycerin.
Always leave yourself an out.
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jasper23 New user 7 Posts |
It figures that just as I'm thinking that wooden billiards are my favorite, they seem more and more rare. I bought a set from a guy in Italy to find out it was his last. Same story from someone in The States. Are the German makers just stopping?
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Bill Hegbli Eternal Order Fort Wayne, Indiana 22797 Posts |
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On 2011-06-20 14:42, jasper23 wrote: I believe so, D. Robbins aka E-Z Magic were the importer of the German Billiard Balls. They like everyone else seek higher profits, and have went to the inferior India wood Billiard Balls. Now Wood Billiard Balls are only available from Viking Magic expensive set ($100.00) or custom wood turners. Expensive compared to the $20 German wood balls of a few years ago. |
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jasper23 New user 7 Posts |
The first set I got last year had good wood, but average paint. The more recent balls I got from Frankel Costume have the same gimmicks stamped "Germany" but the balls are smaller, with inconsistent roundness. However the paint is much nicer. Maybe the balls are coming from India, but the gimmicks are still German?
Anyway, I'm experimenting with painting my own made from Hobby Lobby wooden balls. So far I've had reasonable luck. |
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