Info needed on unknown table with weird cushions

[tikkaroma]

Hi Guys, looking for some help please

my friend has just bought a table and had it fitted, the cushions make a loud thumping noise when the ball hits them, to investigate I opened the rails to see if the bolts were maybe loose but what I found was that the wooden rails are connected to the cushions using small 45mm bolts, and the cushions are not part of the rail structure, I have owned a snooker club in the past so know my way round tables and basic maintenance, but this confused me as I have never seen this setup before, all my rails have had the cushions attached to the wooden rails

now I have a few issues

1. does anyone know why this table is setup like this, maybe this is a known setup?
2. how do I diagnose the thumping noise from cushions (which I think is related to vibration of some sort)
3. will the table ever have normal playing conditions due to this dual connection to slate

hoping someone can help or guide me to what the next steps should be?

[itsnoteasy]

If the table can't be sorted the way it is could you drill the slates and fit conventional cushions to it?

[tikkaroma]

thanks "itsnoteasy" yes that is a good shout as a backup option

I spoke with Geoff and he explained this is normal for the table and he has seen these tables before, I am going to open the table up today and validate all the bolts are tightly in place as I know there are some bolts missing for the railings which are probably not helping, so table getting opened up today fingers crossed dont come across any big issues

[DeanH]

would love to see pictures

[tikkaroma]

Some photos now added, I have tightened the bolts on the cushions to slate and the thumping noise has now gone, I dont think the fitter was a professional one, the cushions are working well now and the straight 4.5 lengths worked as did the 6 cushions at an angle, my friend is very happy, but we want to get the wood polished before we set the table back up, any tips on what type of polish we should use?

[itsnoteasy]

Not that I took a lot of notice when the fitters built our table but that looks pretty normal to me.

[mikee]

I use Howard’s citrus paste wax on my cushions ,do it about 3 or 4 times a year ,if your going to take the wood back down to natural and start again then a stain and oil finish and then wax when it’s totally dry .Yep standard steel cushion set up there ,nothing unusual..

[tikkaroma]

thanks guys for the replies, I now know this is a normal setup, but at the time it surprised me

I will try the Howard’s citrus paste wax and let you know how I get on