Cleaning snooker balls, dish washer?

[Master Blaster]

Looks great but way too expensive, I found a few good videos on YouTube on how pool balls are cleaned and they have come up with some great contraptions. Going to try and copy the one that is a couple of buckets lined around the side and you use an electric buffer to do the work. One bucket with buffing pads for cleaning and the other using polishing buffs. In one bucket you do the cleaning of the balls and in the other you polish them. The guy actually sells his idea on eBay, but I'm sure it is easily made.

Cheers Ricky

Brilliant Ricky. Let us know how you get on if you do make something, it could be very useful for a lot of folk. A team captain is asking me to clean two sets of match balls. The polite answer was no, because I can't be bothered doing it with Aramith liquids and it takes ages. I much prefer silicone spray, you just rub the surface lightly to a shine once the spray is dried. Doing a set only takes 10 mins. If the balls are quite dirty then start with meths and a cloth, that removes most dirt. Or leave them to soak in some hot soapy water (Fairy) for a while, this loosens dirt on balls without too much effort and it's low tech and cheap! Marigolds, sponge, warm water, less pain in the fingers and no abrasion.

[Ricky2112]

Brilliant Ricky. Let us know how you get on if you do make something, it could be very useful for a lot of folk. A team captain is asking me to clean two sets of match balls. The polite answer was no, because I can't be bothered doing it with Aramith liquids and it takes ages. I much prefer silicone spray, you just rub the surface lightly to a shine once the spray is dried. Doing a set only takes 10 mins. If the balls are quite dirty then start with meths and a cloth, that removes most dirt. Or leave them to soak in some hot soapy water (Fairy) for a while, this loosens dirt on balls without too much effort and it's low tech and cheap! Marigolds, sponge, warm water, less pain in the fingers and no abrasion.

Will let you know bud, there's a bit of a mad inventor in me somewhere so I'm sure this won't be too difficult. Tried the water with fairy but still left a misty layer over the balls, maybe just need a good polishing.

Cheers Ricky

[Master Blaster]

Will let you know bud, there's a bit of a mad inventor in me somewhere so I'm sure this won't be too difficult. Tried the water with fairy but still left a misty layer over the balls, maybe just need a good polishing.

Cheers Ricky

I've just put some old practice balls in hot soapy water. Then I'll silicone spray and buff them and see.

Results: yes, you are right, a little bit of ghosting after hot soapy water and washing with a cellulose sponge. This is down to hot soapy water removing some of the solvent within the plastic at the surface. The same thing happens with a lot of plastics after a hot wash. Sunshine also dries out plastics and they lose oils this way, e.g. water butts and bins. I sprayed one ball with silicone, allowed it to dry, then buffed it. I put a little veg oil on the other one and rubbed it all over with a rag, then buffed it. Both balls were very clean and shiny, slightly deeper in colour and the ghosting had gone. The silicone dipped ball was uber smooth and shiny for obvious reasons. Both balls are brighter in colour if that makes sense? Happy with the results. I'll be washing my 1G balls in soapy water now and again in the future. Thanks for starting this thread.

I weighed the two balls and they were 138g and 140g, so maybe they are Super Crystalates V-max!? They're quite old, definitely not TCs and too heavy to be polyester/Premieres.

[Ricky2112]

Thanks master blaster, maybe try hotter water next time as it's probably grease of hands over time.

Thanks for your input.
Cheers Ricky

[Master Blaster]

My 1Gs are in sparkling condition but the next clean, I will do the soap and water thing followed by the silicone and oil test. Phenolic resin may react differently to Super Crystalate.

[Smeeagain]

doesn't the silicone act like polish and make them supper slippy/too slippy - not something Id want to apply to the cue ball... ?

Smee

[Master Blaster]

doesn't the silicone act like polish and make them supper slippy/too slippy - not something Id want to apply to the cue ball... ?

Smee

Well, the whole idea of shiny balls is low friction, so the silicone improves this aspect. The pack and the object balls speed up a wee bit. So it's worth a try. The silicone wears off after a while of course, it's not permanent.

[MikeTheBigMonster]

My friend use car clean&wax solution first follow by aramith solution.
the balls feel great, won't slide and roll naturally and do not collect dust over a period of time.
can get the car clean&wax solution from any gas station or garage.

[Master Blaster]

My friend use car clean&wax solution first follow by aramith solution.
the balls feel great, won't slide and roll naturally and do not collect dust over a period of time.
can get the car clean&wax solution from any gas station or garage.

Is this safe cut or T-cut?

[tommygunner1309]

Hahahahaha I thought this thread was a joke !!!!! I just can't imagine anyone washing Aramith snooker balls in a dishwasher !!!!!! Sounds a bit to me, like. "if you have a dent in your car, put it in the crusher to get the dent out" !!!!!

[Master Blaster]

Hahahahaha I thought this thread was a joke !!!!! I just can't imagine anyone washing Aramith snooker balls in a dishwasher !!!!!! Sounds a bit to me, like. "if you have a dent in your car, put it in the crusher to get the dent out" !!!!!

We lost the bottoms of a few stainless steel saucepans to a dishwasher. The tablets and hot water destroyed the stainless steel outer wall on the bottom to reveal the aluminium sandwich bit inside. It's the last place I'd put snooker balls. A bit of shower gel on the balls with a soft wet rag and warm water in a bowl is my cleaning choice now, followed by a buff with a soft cloth after a light coating of silicone spray. I think washing up liquid to be too harsh a cleaner and even hand soap, so I use shower gel because it's meant to be kind to skin so it should be kind to balls. haha.

[tommygunner1309]

I think washing up liquid to be too harsh a cleaner and even hand soap, so I use shower gel because it's meant to be kind to skin so it should be kind to balls. haha.

Yep - works for my balls

[Master Blaster]

Yep - works for my balls

You got hard water in Brighton apparently, also nice for balls.

[inevermissblue]

I use Autoglym Super Resin polish for the object balls and Aramith ball cleaner for the Cueball only. Makes the object balls really slick and shiny. Makes the Aramith cleaner go much further too.
Provided your Cueball is Clean you will always be playing with a more consistent game.
There's more than enough to contend with than having varying table behaviour due to an unclean Cueball.

[Master Blaster]

I use Autoglym Super Resin polish for the object balls and Aramith ball cleaner for the Cueball only. Makes the object balls really slick and shiny. Makes the Aramith cleaner go much further too.
Provided your Cueball is Clean you will always be playing with a more consistent game.
There's more than enough to contend with than having varying table behaviour due to an unclean Cueball.

I have some of that in my garage which never gets used on the car so I'll try it on the balls!