9ft Allied billiards table in Garage

[Geoff Large]

Today we installed a 9ft table in a Garage near Doncaster , the table the customer purchased was an allied billiards 9ft from the items for sale site PRELOVED .
a modern 5 section 9ft which is the new way of making these tables these days as older 9fts normaly have a three section slate .
I did come across a problem on this 5 section slate , the end slates only have support on just half its section making the ends floating on air , and if leaned on can upset the first joint , I overcame this by adding extra support shims on top of the end legs to support this overhang .
the centre support muntings ( centre slate supports ) did not meet the slate but they where adjustable upwards , so I screwed some wood blocks to keep them pressed upagainst the centre section of slate , making slate sag unlikley , if these muntings did not support the slates , then they could over time sag and become what is known as dished slates .
I was happy with the quality of the table and the price the customer paid for it second hand , the table did level up to within an acceptable level , I suspect the table slates are Chinese , I do not think they are Italian as no Adressio biggio stamp on side of slate .
it did take some leveling but took my time and got there in the end .

attached two photo's




this photo clearly shows the side frame ending at the end leg which is in line with the first bolt hole , from that bolt hole to the end of the slate it was not supported , it is now , useing shims on top of the leg tops .
if the slate was a three section slate then the slate on the table would have been greater and no support on the overhang would have been used , so i think the table was originaly designed to have a three section slate on it .
Geoff

[ninefooter]

Hi Geoff, I know we discussed all the points and your professional considerations yesterday and I'm sure you're absolutely right in what you said, but just want to say that you did a marvellous job and the table played very well. The efforts you made in improving the table probably made my investment worthwhile, so I suppose in hindsight that it is always better to buy a well proven named table or good quality old table. Anyway, I'm grateful for what you did and it was a pleasure to watch a true craftsman at work.

[Geoff Large]

hi ninefooter , I am pleased that you like the table , a much better table to play on than the 8ft you sold on , I like the look of the table and it's condition is as new so a good buy , the only improvement to the room now is a roller shutter door to avoid the low hanging brackets of the swing up door that's if the wife allows you to spend some more ?
and of course those oil filled raditors to place under the table to warm the bed up in winter for a faster table and too keep any damp away .
I know you like the shade but as discussed most are moving over to the tournament type flouresent type lighting , and if you read the lighting threads on here you will see what I mean .
I am sure youre breaks will now improve down youre local club , now that you have a decent table to practice on .

Geoff

[jrc750]

Lovely looking table that

[ninefooter]

Thought I'd give an update, now that I,ve had several months practice and continous improvements to the garage environment. First, I practice virtually everday since the table was installed and have had a good start to the new season, winning 4 out of 5 matches. Geoff, you really did a great job and the table plays very well. I've made some of the improvemnts you recommended, in particular with placing two oil filled radiators underneath the table and with insulating and draught proving the garage, it remains at a constant room temperature of 20 degrees C.
I'm used to playing with the "Coffin Type" lighting as all the venues I've played at, all have the same type, so it doesn't bother me really. Finances won't run to changing the garage door this year, but have them well insulated and the low hanging brackets are well padded.
I've kept up the cloth maintenance in line with your recommendations, and eventually bought a new iron, which I use once a week. I keep it on the lowest setting which is quite cool and think it could do with being a bit higher, but couldn't remember what cloth quality the table has or what setting you used when you ironed it. I don't want to try a higher setting for fear of causing damage to the cloth. can you remember what setting you used?
Hope your workload is improving.

[Geoff Large]

Hi , yes my work has certainly picked up this last month , Iv'e been very busy all over the country , and we have a busy November and parts of December is filling up fast , we have sold a few tables too which is good for us as it brings in much needed Turnover .
We are also finding that the 8ft and 9ft tables are in more demand than the 12foot tables which is driving the price up on the second hand market .

on a personal note I have had enquiries to recover tables in Dubai / France / Germany and Recently in Greece . we will see if any come to anything next year . they are just enquiries at the moment , We are just about to get the nod on two holiday camps tables which are realy large jobs with over 40 tables between them and we may be starting a very large order for American pool table work .

Right the cloth you have on the table is Strachan 6811 tournament , this requires a high setting on the iron of no 8 or 9 but only if it is a Dowsing iron that you have , I cannot say what setting the chinese irons are put on as they are a bit hit and miss ,most give up the ghost and I have even had one catch fire when put on and melt it's mains lead plug , I always recomend Dowsing irons and this should be on a label around the handle area .
never leave an iron unattended , I have seen the cause of two house fires as a result of people leaving Billiard table irons on and going out , one was a farmer who went away for a Bank holiday weekend , having just put his iron on the night before he went and got called away from cleaning his table . when he got back he only had 4 walls and 5 badly cracked slates on the remains of his floor .
always stand the iron on its end when it is on NEVER on its sole plate flat as this will distort the irons face and warp it , and when it is cooling down also place it on its end to cool down just like you do with a household iron .
It is good to see that you have gained from the quality of table you are now useing at home , I do like the look of the table and it is a good build quality now that the end slates are Fully supported .
You may require it stretching after a years use , this is entirely youre call , as the cloth may slacken off , if this happens you can put a cue into it much easier than a tight cloth and the result will be a L shape tear , if you think you are wearing it out quick some people do not bother with a stretch and go for a recover say every 18 to 24 months .
normaly in private use I would only recover most tables every 6 to 8 years , but most of the time they are standing idle and are just room fillers , youre's is being played on a regular basis so will wear out like any other snooker club or hall table . which is normaly every 24 months at the most .

Geoff

[ninefooter]

Hi Geoff,
Glad to hear you're busy. Hope it stays that way. Thanks for the info re Table Iron Settings. It is a New Dowsing Iron and as I wasn't sure of the cloth quality, I've been ironing regularly on a No. 3 setting just to be on the safe side. My success continued tonight, winning 3-0 again. I've improved dramatically since getting this table and have won 15 points out of a possible 18 so far this season.

At our Club AGM this week, we decided to have our two tables restored and I put your name forward for quotation purposes. It won't be down to me, but hope they contact you. Anyway, thanks for your advice and good luck.

[philip in china]

Geoff, Are slates on smaller sized tables thinner than on fullsize ones? If they are the same thickness then I suppose there will be less sag.

[Geoff Large]

yes Phil they are normaly thinner , around 1.1/4 inch or 1.1/2 inch , there are some older tables out there though with 2 inch slates on 10ft and 9ft tables .

Modern 9ft tables have recently been made with 5 section slates , older type had three sections , this makes for getting them upstairs better , less weight to carry upstairs .