Foosball.com Forums

what table to purchase

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

what table to purchase
« on: April 28, 2005, 04:50:05 AM »
Hi,
I'm a first year med student and am about to purchase a table for our class lounge (from a very limited budget).  Do you have any recommendations on what table to buy (i personally like the older tables with one goalie and ramped edges.)  specifically, are there any qualities that i should look for?  we are looking to get the best value since we don't have a lot of money in our budget. thanks!  your site is VERY useful!

zameer

Re: what table to purchase
« Reply #1 on: April 28, 2005, 03:24:54 PM »
Do some research into the top "high end" brands here.... and buy online if you get a warm and fuzzy with what table fits you need...
http://store.yahoo.com/foosdirect-store/

Look for a nearby retailer how carries shelti at this link.. and go kick the ball around...
http://www.shelti.com/findretailer.html

Look for a nearby retailer how carries tornado at this link.. and go kick the ball around...
http://www.vdlp.net/new/zip/locatorsearch.asp

Happy Foosing... Jimw

Re: what table to purchase
« Reply #2 on: May 19, 2005, 12:59:01 AM »
hi, thanks for the advice. i'm now debating over a tornado whirlwind ($745) or a shelti 200 ($825). Any thoughts?
 
in all honesty, all of the players are recreational players. with the exception of myself and maybe a handful of players, most don't even play that much. it's going to be in the faculty of medicine student lounge which only med students can access so it won't even be used more and an hour or two a day if that. the store i went to recommended either the whirlwind or the shelti 200 because price is our major consideration (as well as durability). with tax and everything, the shelti 200 will be ab obout $100 more (quite significant given our budget.) Do you think it's worth the $100 to get the shelti over the whirlwind? The salesman said probaby not as they're both comparable. The counterbalanced men isn't a big concern because no one ever uses that anyway.

since i play the most, the decision has come down to whatever i like. i have mostly played on a really old one man table and have gotten used to it - but i have to admit, when i used the tornado today there was much more ball control than the table i'm used to playing on...any help you can provide is MUCH appreciated since i have exams coming up and need to decide on this by the end of the week...

Offline SumnerH

  • *
  • 174
  • No spinning, have fun!
Re: what table to purchase
« Reply #3 on: May 19, 2005, 11:07:22 AM »
hi, thanks for the advice. i'm now debating over a tornado whirlwind ($745) or a shelti 200 ($825). Any thoughts?
 
in all honesty, all of the players are recreational players. with the exception of myself and maybe a handful of players, most don't even play that much. it's going to be in the faculty of medicine student lounge which only med students can access so it won't even be used more and an hour or two a day if that. the store i went to recommended either the whirlwind or the shelti 200 because price is our major consideration (as well as durability). with tax and everything, the shelti 200 will be ab obout $100 more (quite significant given our budget.) Do you think it's worth the $100 to get the shelti over the whirlwind? The salesman said probaby not as they're both comparable. The counterbalanced men isn't a big concern because no one ever uses that anyway.

since i play the most, the decision has come down to whatever i like. i have mostly played on a really old one man table and have gotten used to it - but i have to admit, when i used the tornado today there was much more ball control than the table i'm used to playing on...any help you can provide is MUCH appreciated since i have exams coming up and need to decide on this by the end of the week...


The differences as I see them:
1.  If you're playing singles, the counterbalanced men do make a difference.  You can put the 5-rod and 3-rod up horizontally and shoot under them.  You might be able to replace the men at a later date, though (with the Storm II men), so you could get the table now and then later on spent the $70 or whatever to replace the men if it turns out to be a problem.
2.  The Tornado is what tournaments are played on, so if you ever decide you want to go check out a local weekly tournament you'd have some familiarity with the same table they use.
3.  The men's feet on the Shelti are wider.  This makes blocking easier, but makes offense (especially shooting from goal) harder.  It makes catching the ball and shooting push-kicks easier.  It makes getting around the ball on a front-pin shot harder.
4.  The ball/foot/surface on the Shelti is grippier.  This makes shooting the front-pin easier.  It means to shoot a pull/push you need to have the ball set farther forward than on Tornado.

Overall I personally think it's a toss-up between the tables as far as playability, but if Shelti narrowed their feet to the width of the Tornado feet then they'd be my personal favorite.  That said, I play a lot of tournaments so I would probably keep using the same table that tournaments are run on even if I felt it was just slightly worse, play-wise.
« Last Edit: May 19, 2005, 11:09:20 AM by SumnerH »

Re: what table to purchase
« Reply #4 on: July 06, 2005, 02:18:30 PM »
If you keep an eye out, you could find a good used Cyclone II cheaper than you could get a new Whirlwind (the Cyclone retails for 1000-1200).  I picked one up for 550.  Plus, you'll probably end up with some extras that you would end up paying for if you bought yours from a retail shop (men, rods, balls, etc).

cageybee

Re: what table to purchase
« Reply #5 on: July 21, 2005, 11:12:05 AM »
Can anybody tell me what the motivation for going to 3 man goalies is?  I've tried to play on tables with them...and to me, they stink, balls are getting stuck in the corner - and it's harder to defend due to the limited range of motion.  thanks for thoughts.

kgb

Offline SumnerH

  • *
  • 174
  • No spinning, have fun!
Re: what table to purchase
« Reply #6 on: July 21, 2005, 01:07:13 PM »
Can anybody tell me what the motivation for going to 3 man goalies is?  I've tried to play on tables with them...and to me, they stink, balls are getting stuck in the corner - and it's harder to defend due to the limited range of motion.  thanks for thoughts.

Quicker and easier to set the ball up
Cheaper to manufacture than banked corners, and less likely to break
Less problems with the unstoppable ramp shots that some tables had

I started on one-man goalies and switched to 3-man goalies.  It's disconcerting at first but really not a big issue once you get used to it--especially once you learn to stop those deflections off the wingmen into your own goal (which seem like a major problem at first but are really only a minor nuisance once you get the hang of it).

Offline marty

  • 192
Re: what table to purchase
« Reply #7 on: March 26, 2006, 02:42:41 PM »
i just purched a million doller table mainly because it was what i played on 20 years ago
and it seamed to be the only 1 man goalie out there. now its seems to be the low budget
table .  how do you feel about this table