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So, it appears that I'm a sucker for salvage jobs, or old tables that are beyond help.
However, when browsing a facebook freebie site I came across one that I couldn't refuse. So, popped along to pick it up.
It's a bit of a state...
It's been outside for a while apparently. Everything is perished, however the slate looks to be utterly immaculate. The first thing that struck me, my friend and both of our backs when collecting though was the sheer weight of it. My god, neither of us are small or weak but this thing took ALL of our strength just to load it into the back of my estate. The first table I acquired for cheap was weighty, however this thing was literally twice the weight, if not more. The slate looks to be 1/2", the same as my other table however the bulk would appear to be the rails. Those things are meaty and certainly a lot larger, also allowing for the full size rubbers to be used. Which is handy, as I have a set of those!
Anyway, one of the main things that drew me to this was this:
Not related to Burroughs and Watts (as far as I know), Watts & Son is a local company that's been going for well over a century and known for their high quality furniture. Even now, the outside of their store looks like you would imagine the outside of "Are you being Served?" looks.
It's all good, solid wood of unknown type. The only exception is where the cloth would staple to it, and where the cushioned attach to the meaty rails. Looks like some sort of thick fiberboard. It's wet and horrid. If I have any chance of making this playable, it'll all need replacing.
Surprisingly, the structure of the table appears OK. This will be a long term project for sure, and it's likely I'll spend good time on each rail getting them sanded down, properly prepared, stained and finished.
The fiberboard stuff under the slate where the cloth staples too will also need to go, I'm not sure how to handle that. I may go see what wood is available maybe from a reclamation yard.
The slate is in absolutely wonderful condition, another surprise however that may be down to weathering. There's absolutely no chips or cracks in it, it's straight as a die and doesn't appear to show wear around the pockets.
The pocket brasses are in good nick, and the runners aren't bad either. Those will all be salvageable. The nets will need replacing. The leathers though are also in good nick.
Despite being outside the rubbers have good bounce, but obviously I'll change those out.
The legs are lovely and sturdy.
I've emailed the store to see if they happen to have any records of these tables. I didn't know they made any snooker tables so it's possible it's a rebadge or similar. There's no other markings on it at all. Still, I'd be interested to see if they have any information on it, the history of these things really interests me.
Best case scenario is that I manage to completely salvage this quarter-sized beast. Worst case is that I can't, and I lose nothing. A good compromise though may be to swap out the slate with my table which is ropey to say the least. Possibly also the rails, these give such a reassuring sturdiness that I don't get from my Riley tabletop antique where you can feel the rails vibrate.
So, again I'll keep up some pics on here with progress
My full hopes and intentions are as follows:
Rub down, prepare & finish the solid woodwork.
Replace the "soft" woodwork with something appropriate
Replace the rubbers and cloth (green this time!)
Replace any hardware - all the screws certainly. They all attach to the soft fibery wood stuff too, so I'll find something more substantial. Probably coachbolts to also give it a better finish.
Replace the nets
Optional: The time I've spent perusing GCL Billiard's website has given me a lot of inspiration. As I have a good frame & legs, I'd like to fit a crossmember and also adjustable muntins, rather than having adjustment on the bottom of the legs.
First glances, this is easily a lost cause. If I can make it play and look nice though, I'll be more than happy, and hopefully learn from the mistakes made on my first table as well as the great advice from here
However, when browsing a facebook freebie site I came across one that I couldn't refuse. So, popped along to pick it up.
It's a bit of a state...
It's been outside for a while apparently. Everything is perished, however the slate looks to be utterly immaculate. The first thing that struck me, my friend and both of our backs when collecting though was the sheer weight of it. My god, neither of us are small or weak but this thing took ALL of our strength just to load it into the back of my estate. The first table I acquired for cheap was weighty, however this thing was literally twice the weight, if not more. The slate looks to be 1/2", the same as my other table however the bulk would appear to be the rails. Those things are meaty and certainly a lot larger, also allowing for the full size rubbers to be used. Which is handy, as I have a set of those!
Anyway, one of the main things that drew me to this was this:
Not related to Burroughs and Watts (as far as I know), Watts & Son is a local company that's been going for well over a century and known for their high quality furniture. Even now, the outside of their store looks like you would imagine the outside of "Are you being Served?" looks.
It's all good, solid wood of unknown type. The only exception is where the cloth would staple to it, and where the cushioned attach to the meaty rails. Looks like some sort of thick fiberboard. It's wet and horrid. If I have any chance of making this playable, it'll all need replacing.
Surprisingly, the structure of the table appears OK. This will be a long term project for sure, and it's likely I'll spend good time on each rail getting them sanded down, properly prepared, stained and finished.
The fiberboard stuff under the slate where the cloth staples too will also need to go, I'm not sure how to handle that. I may go see what wood is available maybe from a reclamation yard.
The slate is in absolutely wonderful condition, another surprise however that may be down to weathering. There's absolutely no chips or cracks in it, it's straight as a die and doesn't appear to show wear around the pockets.
The pocket brasses are in good nick, and the runners aren't bad either. Those will all be salvageable. The nets will need replacing. The leathers though are also in good nick.
Despite being outside the rubbers have good bounce, but obviously I'll change those out.
The legs are lovely and sturdy.
I've emailed the store to see if they happen to have any records of these tables. I didn't know they made any snooker tables so it's possible it's a rebadge or similar. There's no other markings on it at all. Still, I'd be interested to see if they have any information on it, the history of these things really interests me.
Best case scenario is that I manage to completely salvage this quarter-sized beast. Worst case is that I can't, and I lose nothing. A good compromise though may be to swap out the slate with my table which is ropey to say the least. Possibly also the rails, these give such a reassuring sturdiness that I don't get from my Riley tabletop antique where you can feel the rails vibrate.
So, again I'll keep up some pics on here with progress
My full hopes and intentions are as follows:Rub down, prepare & finish the solid woodwork.
Replace the "soft" woodwork with something appropriate
Replace the rubbers and cloth (green this time!)
Replace any hardware - all the screws certainly. They all attach to the soft fibery wood stuff too, so I'll find something more substantial. Probably coachbolts to also give it a better finish.
Replace the nets
Optional: The time I've spent perusing GCL Billiard's website has given me a lot of inspiration. As I have a good frame & legs, I'd like to fit a crossmember and also adjustable muntins, rather than having adjustment on the bottom of the legs.
First glances, this is easily a lost cause. If I can make it play and look nice though, I'll be more than happy, and hopefully learn from the mistakes made on my first table as well as the great advice from here
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