Three-cushion and carom billiards use heavier balls, a faster cloth and a heated, pocketless table — gear that differs in almost every dimension from pool. Here are the real specifications, plus where a beginner should and should not spend money.
The cue
A carom cue is shorter, lighter and tipped smaller than a pool cue, because three-cushion rewards a clean, controlled stroke over raw power.
- Length: about 1,40–1,45 m.
- Weight: 480–540 g (lighter than a typical pool cue). Many pros sit around 490–510 g.
- Tip diameter: 11–12 mm, harder than a pool tip so it grips chalk without mushrooming under fine side spin.
- Shaft: traditional hard-rock maple, or a modern low-deflection (LD) or carbon-fibre shaft that reduces squirt — the cue ball's deviation from the aim line when you apply english.
- Parts to know: the leather tip, the ferrule under it, the tapered shaft, the joint (wood-to-wood for feel, or quick-release), and the butt with its wrap and balance point.
Established carom cue brands include Longoni, Adam, Mezz, Predator and Buffalo. The single biggest performance variable for a developing player is shaft deflection: a lower-deflection shaft makes side spin far more predictable, which is exactly what the position library drills train.
Feel deflection before you buy
In 3ball, the English pad shows how side spin bends the cue-ball path — the same effect a low-deflection shaft tames on a real table.
Open 3ball →The balls
Carom is played with three balls and no pockets: a white cue ball, a yellow cue ball (for the second player) and a red object ball. In many sets one cue ball carries a small spot so the two whites stay distinguishable.
- Diameter: 61,5 mm — noticeably larger than a 57,2 mm pool ball.
- Weight: about 210 g each, and critically matched across the set.
- Material: phenolic resin, which is harder and more elastic than the polyester used in cheap balls, giving the lively rebound carom systems depend on.
The Aramith Super Pro Carom set is the tournament standard; its consistency is why diamond-system numbers actually hold up shot to shot. Worn or mismatched balls are one of the most common reasons a beginner's system calculations seem to "lie".
The cloth
Carom cloth is worsted wool — tightly combed so there is almost no nap — which makes it dramatically faster and more directional than the fuzzy woollen cloth on a pub pool table.
- The standard: Simonis, in three speeds — 300 (fastest, championship three-cushion), 760 and 860.
- Why it matters: a faster cloth carries the cue ball further for the same stroke, so the speed assumptions baked into every diamond system are calibrated to fast, clean cloth.
The table
A match carom table is 2,84 m × 1,42 m of playing surface (the "10-foot" match size; smaller 2,60 m and 2,30 m tables also exist) and has no pockets.
- Bed: a multi-piece slate, precision-ground flat.
- Heating: tournament tables are heated (roughly 45–50 °C) to drive out humidity and keep the cloth fast and consistent — heating is essential at the top level, not a luxury.
- Cushions: a K-66 rubber profile tuned for predictable rebound.
- Diamonds: the inlaid markers along the rails (the reference points for the diamond system).
Chalk & accessories
- Chalk: applied to the tip to prevent miscue. Master and Silver Cup are classics; Taom is a premium low-residue option.
- Tip tools: a shaper and scuffer keep the tip domed and able to hold chalk.
- Glove: a billiard glove lets the cue slide smoothly through the bridge hand in humid conditions.
- Case: a hard case protects the joint and shaft, which warp easily if knocked or stored in heat.
Beginner buying guide
The honest advice: you do not need to buy anything to start. Learn the strokes, systems and positions first — free, in your browser, with 3ball. When you are ready for your own cue:
- Start mid-range: a quality production carom cue (Longoni, Adam or Buffalo) in the roughly €150–300 range outperforms what any beginner can use the limits of.
- Spend on the shaft, not the decoration: a low-deflection or quality maple shaft matters far more than inlays.
- Balls, cloth and a heated table are club territory — that is what a carom club or academy provides, so join one before buying a table.
Practise free in 3ball
Gear matters, but the stroke, the systems and shot selection are what actually raise your average — and those you can train right now without spending a cent. 3ball simulates real Hertz-contact physics, a brute-force shot solver and a library of classic positions, free and in your browser.