How fast do pros hit break shots, and is there an easy way to measure your break shot speed without a fancy radar gun?
Typical top pro break speeds are in the 25-30 mph range. Here are some examples:
Here’s what would happen in you could instead break at 400 mph:
Concerning measuring CB speed, BreakSpeed is a smartphone app that works very well. You can also measure your break speed on any computer with a microphone (see below).
from Runnin8:
To find your own break speed:
1) Measure the distance (in inches) between where your cue ball rests on the table for a normal break and the center of the head spot and subtract 2.25″ for one ball diameter.
2) Use sound recorder on a PC or laptop to record the sound of your break. Most PCs can record at 44Khz, or 44 thousand times a second, more than accurate enough. Also, forget about having to get it right in the middle. Unless your break speed is near the speed of sound its a nit. Use a sound program like Wave pad to open the file and identify the peak where the cue strikes the cue ball and then the peak at rack contact. If you highlight with Wave pad it will tell you the measured time (in seconds) to the thousandth of a second.
3) Your break speed in mph is:
(distance-2.25″) x (1 ft / 12 in) x (1 mi / 5280 ft) x (3600 sec / 1 hr) / (measured time)
So:
mph = (distance – 2.25) / 17.6 / (measured time)
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