Does anyone know whether I can install artemis rails and extend the rails to cut pockets smaller on a furniture 7ft table?
Converting furniture table to diamond playability
- Thread starter pocketsplitter
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Nope! Not gonna happen! You can improve play, pockets etc, but it will not play like a diamond. Only diamonds play like diamonds! Long story short I tried, and sold my table and bought a diamond. Currently I have approximately 9 weeks left before it arrives. It sucks but if you want it to play like a diamond you gotta pay for it. Just my 2 cents!
It is possible but is it worth the money?
I have a Brunswick Heritage 9ft table that was purchased new in 1973.
I had it recovered and was considering to extend the rails and adding new cushions to tighten the pockets to 4 1/2. Doing this would also reduce the shelf inside the pocket. To see how your table would be take some rubber material and tape it to the inside of the pocket to make the pocket the size you want.
It was going to cost at least $2500 for the material and labor.
I decided that I didn't really need a harder or more difficult table to play or practice on. My problem along with most players isn't really being able to pocket the balls, it is mastering CB control, and perfecting a stroke; and to do that pocket size doesn't really matter.
The ironic thing is many when seeing the table will comment about how easy it will be and find that they rattle the pockets more because of the deeper shelf and lead in angle of the pocket.
Also consider this. Does the same player run more racks on a Valley BB than they do on a Diamond 7ft table?
I have a Brunswick Heritage 9ft table that was purchased new in 1973.
I had it recovered and was considering to extend the rails and adding new cushions to tighten the pockets to 4 1/2. Doing this would also reduce the shelf inside the pocket. To see how your table would be take some rubber material and tape it to the inside of the pocket to make the pocket the size you want.
It was going to cost at least $2500 for the material and labor.
I decided that I didn't really need a harder or more difficult table to play or practice on. My problem along with most players isn't really being able to pocket the balls, it is mastering CB control, and perfecting a stroke; and to do that pocket size doesn't really matter.
The ironic thing is many when seeing the table will comment about how easy it will be and find that they rattle the pockets more because of the deeper shelf and lead in angle of the pocket.
Also consider this. Does the same player run more racks on a Valley BB than they do on a Diamond 7ft table?
It is possible but is it worth the money?
I have a Brunswick Heritage 9ft table that was purchased new in 1973.
I had it recovered and was considering to extend the rails and adding new cushions to tighten the pockets to 4 1/2. Doing this would also reduce the shelf inside the pocket. To see how your table would be take some rubber material and tape it to the inside of the pocket to make the pocket the size you want.
It was going to cost at least $2500 for the material and labor.
I decided that I didn't really need a harder or more difficult table to play or practice on. My problem along with most players isn't really being able to pocket the balls, it is mastering CB control, and perfecting a stroke; and to do that pocket size doesn't really matter.
The ironic thing is many when seeing the table will comment about how easy it will be and find that they rattle the pockets more because of the deeper shelf and lead in angle of the pocket.
Also consider this. Does the same player run more racks on a Valley BB than they do on a Diamond 7ft table?
I have a 1979 Brunswick "Vintage" 4x8 and I feel your pain! It looks like fun and games until You rattle ball after ball and have Hangers completely behind the points!
I think there exists a multitude of factors that make a table play well. I had a furniture table and decided against tightening up the pockets when I was rolling balls against one long rail, while kneeling and resting my chest against the other long rail. I could feel the rail/table move when the ball hit, even softly, the opposite rail. My current table's rails are twice as heavy and the frame much beefier than my old table resulting in a much more stable base for the slate. Good luck with your decision.
For the OP- with enough time, work, and money just about any such thing as you propose could be accomplished....but at what point is it not worth it?
I guess if money is no object and you really want the furniture table appearance, then you can find a talented table mechanic to rebuild the thing as you like. Heck, you could even have custom slates cut.
But, it's also possible you could end up with this: LINK
Instead of this: LINK
.
I guess if money is no object and you really want the furniture table appearance, then you can find a talented table mechanic to rebuild the thing as you like. Heck, you could even have custom slates cut.
But, it's also possible you could end up with this: LINK
Instead of this: LINK
.
Good post, I feel the same way.
The ironic thing is many when seeing the table will comment about how easy it will be and find that they rattle the pockets more because of the deeper shelf and lead in angle of the pocket.
The pockets on my 8-footer look like buckets.
That said, C.J. Wiley came over to the house one night for a couple of hours for a paid session. I can still see in my head how many times he walked away from my table shaking his head in disbelief that those pockets rejected his shots.
Pocket face angles and shelf depth make a hell of a lot more difference than the size of the opening IMO.
To the OP: I do not know what your budget restraints are (or what your wife might say if you are married), but if it were me....I'd take the $$$ you are going to spend on upgrades and add to it and just get a Diamond table. You'll be happier in the long run.
Maniac
Its not the cushions that make a Diamond play like a Diamond, its the table construction as a whole. Your sub-rails would need to be modified, extended, and re-cut to Diamond specs. First thing I would look at are your pocket shelfs. If your side pocket openings are even or stick out past the nose of the cushion that means you have shallow shelfs which will be magnified if you tighten the pockets. You would need to extend the slate to increase the pocket shelf, lots of work. The table will obviously never be as sturdy as a Diamond which makes a huge difference. More than likely it will not be cost effective to perform the needed modifications to your existing table. I have played on a few Valleys that were modified "to play like a Diamond", they do not come close, they end up playing like a gaffed Valley with tight pockets. To get a table to play even close to a Diamond you really need to start with a heavy commercial table.
Thanks all, got lots to think about. I think my biggest frustration with furniture tables are the rails and how the ball reacts after contact. Also even thought it seems sturdy, the balls always feel like the die on the rail when you compare it to a gc or diamond.
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If you're willing to pay the price I'm sure someone will take your money to do what you think you want done.
And then he will wonder why he didn't just put the 4K into a diamond.
Good advice.
This reminds me of an acquaintance years ago that took a VW Bug and did a conversion kit to make it look like a Ferrari. Spent a lot of time and money doing it. When he finally finished it he said that he wish that he would have bought a real one. He said it is very disappointing driving and not fun driving around in a look alike but underpowered car. If he bought a real one he could have always got his money back.
The kit car still had problems with handling, ride, and etc. and it was all related to what he started with. The foundation was still the same.
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Like I stated earlier, you can improve playability and customize the pockets and such, that might be really all the OP needs. I battled with the idea of selling my furniture table for pennies on the dollar but I did and ordered the diamond. After you pull the trigger a relief, and calmness comes over you because ultimately you won't be happy till you get what you want! To the op Sell,Save, purchase a diamond!
I agree with this post...GCs and Diamond nine-footers weigh 1400 pounds....
...you can't make a 900 pound table play like them.
The money isn't the issue. It's that the wife thinks diamonds and other commercial tables look terrible.
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