Used Connelly Ventana Pool Table.

     Yesterday we picked up a really old Connelly Ventana pool table for a customer. This poor pool table looked like it had gotten into a bar fight. Come to find out it had actually been in a bar before this customer had bought it a few years back. So it was nice to see that the visual abuse that the table underwent was due to poor customer care in the bar it was in.

     The rails looked as if the stain and finish was almost completely rubbed off. The leg trim was broken and needed reattaching. The pool table pockets, well, the pockets just were no longer there and needless to say he had gotten some new ones for it. The pool table cloth was thrashed and not very well taken care of thus needing replacement. Due to the great amount of direct sunlight and lack of pool table cover, the pool table cushions were rock hard and needed replacement.

     All these things that made this table look so terrible and probably play even worse, but that isn't what upset us going into this job. The billiard technician, or should I say slate monkey, that worked on this table did more internal damage to it than the customer ever could have to the exterior.

     Firstly, the rail bolts had been half replace by bolts that were entirely too long and need extra washers to shorten them. Not only that but the "other bolts" used had a much bigger head size to them. After further inspection we noticed that they were the kind of rail bolts that one would use on a cheap crummy import pool table. He is lucky that the billiard installer didn't slip up even more while tightening these bolts and push one up through the pool table rail and crack it altogether. Lucky.

     Next were the pocket screws. Not only were there all sorts of different sizes involved, but they were all extremely loose. This is just unacceptable and there is no reason they should be like this. Again, this could have caused the rails to have been cracked while putting them on or taking them off.

     Then, the cloth. Goodness. What can we really say about this? First off it was only half on there. Really? You staple only half of the bed cloth on and then blindly staple the pockets to a point that creates bubbles and wrinkles? Guess there is a reason this guy is no longer in business. This part was so irritating I can't even continue to talk about the cloth.

     Next was the worst part of all. This pool table installer actually cause the slate and entire pool table to become so undervalued with what had been done next that it is disgusting. Instead of having the proper knowledge on how to fill stripped screws to make them grab the frame again he actually went around the slate, drilled new holes all over the place and then put in tiny wood screws to use for leveling. Come on dude! He did this everywhere too. So instead of using the proper slate screws that are almost triple the length and thickness he thought it better to drill new holes and use an inferior WOOD screw. Keyword there being wood not slate screw. Bad pool table technician. The thing now needs additional work because of this guys stupidity.

     Lastly, well, that just about sums it all up really. Overall the guy was terrible and actually cost this customer more money just to get this pool table to a point it can be played on again. Remember, you get what you pay for. Saving a small amount of money now could mean loads more money down the road.

     Same name, better quality and the most experience with the trade. This is why our customers are loyal and choose Big Break Billiards over the cheap guys. Get it done right with us. It's your break, make it big!

Moving and Recovering a Connelly Palo Verde Pool Table

  Over the past few years it seems as if the market for pool table design has strayed away from the more french style decor. Most people have gone to more traditional or contemporary styles of pool tables. You might even think that a round leg french style is a bit out there for yourself as well. This style, though, is exactly what the Connelly Palo Verde pool table is all about.
  Once you have laid eyes on this Connelly Billiards pool table you will absolutely fall in love with it. Our customer did. The Palo Verde pool table is from the plateau collection by Connelly and it features a slim base frame with round french style legs.
  The one we moved for our Highlands Ranch customer was made from oak wood in a natural oak finish. We put brand new black pool table cloth onto it during the setup portion. As you will see below this pool table became the family gem in the basement. They are sure to have years of fun on their new Connelly Billiards pool table.

Moving a Pool Table at Altitude

  Yesterday, we moved a Beringer Ambrosia pool table that we had sold to a customer almost two years ago. It was moving from the Jefferson/Como area over to south Fairplay. The overall move itself wasn't too far in between homes nor was it very difficult. That is, until you start moving the heavy pieces around.
  Jefferson/Como sits about 9800 ft high. The first home we got to (the pool table dismantle house) had easy access to the pool table. It sat on the ground level and was the first thing you saw upon entering the home. Not only that, we were able to pull up about 20 ft away from the door. This ended up being a cake walk.
  What we didn't realize was the new home where the table was going to be setup was well over 10500 ft in elevation. Not only that but we didn't get such a lucky walk. In fact we had to go around the house and up 2, count them 2, flights of stairs to the upper level of the house! At this elevation, for two Denver boys, it was like someone from sea level coming to Denver to move a pool table! But there is even less air up above 10,000!
  By the time we had gotten the frame up in place we were a bit fatigued. As if that wasn't bad enough we still had 3 pieces of slate that each weighted about 150 pounds apiece to go. After every piece we carried up, we needed a good sit down rest to catch our breath and keep the lightheadedness away.
  After a longer than usual carry into the home, we finally managed through it and got a perfect pool table setup in place from one of our very own Beringer Billiards pool tables. We forgot to take pictures of the table but managed to snap some while on the road of the scenery from the truck.

Perfect Practice Makes Perfect: For Pool and Billiard Playing

It’s no secret that being a good pool player means you need to practice. Then practice some more. But only perfect practice makes a perfect game.

There are actually, a great deal of things to prep and execute before taking a shot. First, you have to determine your object ball. What pocket is your object ball going to? What kind of shot are you taking, a bank or a cut? Next, you take a stance, keeping proper body position. Finally, use your non dominant hand to carefully bridge your cue and push a perfectly straight stroke. All that and we didn’t even cover English, placement, or combinations. 

There are few things harder than your stroke. So for now let’s focus on solid, clean, center mass cue ball shots.  Some 80% of shots on the table can be made with simple center shots on the cue ball. Once you master a center shot you can then practice the dynamics of what makes a good shot. Those would include the body position, aiming, angles, alignment, and stroke.
Practice those together and it will definitely help your game. Don’t grip the cue tight with your hand and always remember to pull back the cue slow and accelerate the cue through the shot.

The Differences in Pool Table Cloth

There are three types of pool table cloth on the market. In the industry we refer to them as worsted or woolen and the third uncommon is backed. So worsted, woolen, and back? What does this mean and what is the best choice for you?

             Worsted cloth is what is also known as “nap free” cloth or tournament grade fabric. There are a few different makers of worsted cloth with Simonis being the authority on the cloth since they have been around hundreds of years. Worsted cloth has a tight wool blend that has no fuzzy naps for inconsistency and pulls the tightest giving it the fastest most accurate play. It wears slower as well. This is what the pros play on.

            Woolen cloth is more common in home. Generally, there are more colors associated. It is a blend of nylon and wool and has what they call naps. These are small fiber bundles and when a ball is rolling on the cloth and slows down; then the ball may try to find the path of least resistance through that and will slightly wiggle. These inconsistencies are usually minute enough that most recreational users won’t notice. This cloth will wear faster and shows friction burns more predominantly.

            There is also a backed cloth, usually woolen, that has a backing on the bottom making it more durable and more resistance to chalk and dust build up. This is typical for commercial use.

            There has been some debate on the use of waterproofing chemicals on pool table cloth lately. We will recommend to most clients to use waterproofing on woolen cloth and non waterproofing on worsted cloth. Woolen cloth doesn’t have long enough life span for elasticity problems to occur over time.

Arcades | Arcades in Denver, Colorado

Remember Pac-Man, Frogger, and Centipede? What about some of the other classic arcade games; Galaga, Space Invaders, or Donkey Kong? Or maybe some of the newer ones like The Simpsons, X-men, Ninja Turtles? Everyone reading can relate to at least one of these games. These are nostalgic games from our youth. Imagine having all of those games.

We now carry a system called a Multicade (multiple arcade or multiple game arcade). Multicades are setup in either the old standup cabinet version or the sit down cocktail version.

They are available in either 48 games in 1 or 60 games in 1 for just the classic games from the 80’s. Generally, our classic multicades will contain some sort of classic game artwork. For example, we can make a 60 in 1 multicade look like Galaga by applying the artwork associated with that game back then.

There is also another multicade option available that features 1,315 games in 1! Every game you can think of. These are standup systems with 2 player-6 button function. Artwork is custom, so is ordering one of these bad boys.

We can also build to order any single game you might want to have for nostalgic purposes. Any single game system we build for you will have all new parts, fully refurbished cabinet, new matching artwork.

Garage door local delivery is included with any machine we build for you. With that we stand behind all of our machines with a 30 day warranty.

Our Pool Tables | Big Break Billiards and Connelly Billiards | Pool Tables Colorado

Big Break Billiards is Denver’s billiard company of choice for Connelly Billiards pool tables.

Connelly Billiards is a globally recognized American pool table manufacturing company. They have been around since the early 1980’s. Connelly has always carried and produced a beautifully designed and quality protected American made pool table.

About 7 to 8 years ago, they completely overhauled their table designs and began constructing their pool tables around an even more quality approach. Making tables that are above industry standard .Connelly is the only billiard manufacturing company that features a 4 rail bolt Rapid Rail system and also uses only domestic hardwoods with thicker frames and jointed corners alongside oversized slate from 1 to 2 inches.

Overall, Connelly pool tables have become the new standard in billiards worldwide, and with Big Break Billiards, your new Colorado authority!