Slate

AllAmericanJock

AllAmericanJock

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What thickness does slate come in and what are the benefits of thicker verses thinner. Is price a huge difference between each thickness of slate. Is the country of origin a concern for buy slate.
 
3/4...7/8...1 inch. The thinner the easier it is to transport. Two piece and three piece slate makes it even lighter than the one piece. Performance wise the 7/8 and one inch over time i would think would do you well but that's just a guess. I will let a table mechanic chime in now...
 
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Usually thicker slate is on top of heavier built tables. The extra weight combined with the
construction make the table more wobble free when you bump into it or lean against it.

Italian slate used to be all the rage. Brazilian slate is in demand now. I think its because
Brazilian is denser or more stable. Then again it could be just cheaper. Never played on one
but I hear marble is great to play on....if you can afford it!
 
The table is a Vitalie and is solid cherry and has 6 legs, plus the slate support is all massive wood beams. Is there a way or site I could find out the difference between Italian and Brazilian slate. Is the maximum thickness of slate 1 inch or is there thicker slate?
 
AllAmericanJock said:
The table is a Vitalie and is solid cherry and has 6 legs, plus the slate support is all massive wood beams. Is there a way or site I could find out the difference between Italian and Brazilian slate. Is the maximum thickness of slate 1 inch or is there thicker slate?
Click to expand...

No expert here....but I think there is slate thicker than an inch but you don't hear much about that being used on pool tables. I think the thicker slates are reserved for the carom tables.

Could be off a bit on that.
 
AllAmericanJock said:
What thickness does slate come in and what are the benefits of thicker verses thinner. Is price a huge difference between each thickness of slate. Is the country of origin a concern for buy slate.
Click to expand...

3/4, 7/8, 1, 1.5, 2 inches. Price is relative to weight so yeah, a 1.5" slate may cost twice as much as a 3/4 " slate.

To the average joe consumer, country of origin makes little difference, except for price.
There are indeed slight differences in the slate depending on where its produced but you'd never notice as long as your table is constructed well.

Italian slate is mined (underground) and Brazilian slate is quarried from near or at the surface. Without getting all nerdy and going into the mineralogical context, it's safe to say that "deeper" mined slate, generally speaking, tends to have a slightly higher moisture content, is slightly softer, and is slightly more flexible. This is typical of Italian slate, although Italy is not the only place where slate is mined underground.

Mines located at or near the surface, generally speaking, tend to produce slate that has slightly less moisture, is slightly harder, and is slightly less flexible.

KEEP IN MIND that most people cannot tell the difference between them, and, more often than not, either type of slate will serve its purpose well with no problems at all.

For the 'perfection minded' (or anally retentive) folks out there - here are some additional things to consider:

- "Hard" slate conducts noise better. "Soft" slate absorbs noise better.
- "Hard" slate is stronger, but is also more brittle. Cracks/flakes more.
- "Soft" slate flexes when needed, but also when not needed. Cracks/flakes less
- "Hard" slate is more difficult to work with and is harder to split uniformly.
- "Soft" slate is easier to work with, splits easily and uniformly.
- "Hard" slate tends to have a higher rate of random unwanted mineral deposits (from secondary or plutonic induced metamorphism) leading to a larger amount of defective or unusable slate for pool table applications. (along with a more intensive inspection process)

Also keep in mind that "hard" and " soft" are terms of relativity. In other words, the differences between the two are very minute and practically undetectable from one table to the next. In other words, it's not something to get hung up about.
 
So when buying slate should not worry about country of origin, just the quality of the slate. Also, the holes on the table, how do they drill and counter sink the holes to match the tables holes for the screws?
 
Nice post mr Bond. I learned something today. I had a 9 foot Brunswick that had
1 1/4. There was a 9 foot at my local hall that had 1 1/8. For the same money, I would
go with 1 inch or better. Some would say the thicker slate is easier to jump a ball off of.
Dont know if that's true, but believable. I do seem to have a harder time jumping a ball
Off a 3/4 inch valley. Easier on my 1 inch slate table at home. If price is a problem, get a used bar
box. Plus many used tables around. 7 foot tables seem very good with 3/4 inch. On a 9 foot, I would
go 1 inch or thicker.
 
AllAmericanJock said:
... Also, the holes on the table, how do they drill and counter sink the holes to match the tables holes for the screws?
Click to expand...

I'm not sure I understand that question. An answer, depending on what you are really asking, is that, while the holes in the slate are invariant, where the holes land on the subframe can vary slightly from assembly to assembly, and you may end up with new and different holes any time the table is disassembled and reassembled.

I have a Connelly Ultimate ('Chiricahua'):

sm__IMG_1655.jpg


sm__IMG_1688.jpg


And it is the quietest, truest-rolling (which really doesn't have much to do with its slate thickness) table I've ever played on.

Since the slate is the primary source of stability in a pool table, by virtue of its mass (although that Connelly subframe is massive - nevertheless, it's still only wood, not stone), and since the rails are directly attached to the slate, the stability of the rails can only be enhanced by a more massive slate. But, of course, this is only one variable among many, and there is the law of diminishing returns to be considered.

- s.west

p.s. You'd probably get better answers to some of these questions in the Talk to a Mechanic forum...
 
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So the original holes in the slate does not matter, because the holes are for attaching the slate to the frame of the table. The table is a Vitalie and has massive support beams. Do you have any idea price wise what slate might be for a 4x9 table.

I will post pictures once I am on my desktop computer.
 
Thanks for the slate catalog, only thing it's in Canada and I'm not. Does Brunswick's Billiards sell just slate or other manufacturers that sell slate?
 
I used to live about half an hour from Slate Valley along the New York/Vermont border near Granville, NY. Slate Valley produces some of the toughest, hardest, and densest slate in the world. Where I trout fished on the Mettawee River, it was not uncommon to see pool tables sized slabs of slate along the river banks as in the photo below. I'm told that some of the best American antique tables have Vermont slate beds.

Here's a real interesting video I just found from Brunswick. Shows the whole process from slate mine to finished slates. Well worth the watch.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k717SV6ljBQ
 

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swest said:
I'm not sure I understand that question. An answer, depending on what you are really asking, is that, while the holes in the slate are invariant, where the holes land on the subframe can vary slightly from assembly to assembly, and you may end up with new and different holes any time the table is disassembled and reassembled.

I have a Connelly Ultimate ('Chiricahua'):

sm__IMG_1655.jpg


sm__IMG_1688.jpg


And it is the quietest, truest-rolling (which really doesn't have much to do with its slate thickness) table I've ever played on.

Since the slate is the primary source of stability in a pool table, by virtue of its mass (although that Connelly subframe is massive - nevertheless, it's still only wood, not stone), and since the rails are directly attached to the slate, the stability of the rails can only be enhanced by a more massive slate. But, of course, this is only one variable among many, and there is the law of diminishing returns to be considered.

- s.west

p.s. You'd probably get better answers to some of these questions in the Talk to a Mechanic forum...
Click to expand...

You've got 2" thick slate on that table and it's one of the main reasons it's so quiet. The quietest pool table I've ever played on in fact. That's a great table, one of the best ever made.
 
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