There is a local bar with several 9' Gold Crowns that will at least need new cloth. the guy won't go lower than $800.00. i really need an 8' but might be able to figure something out to make it playable, like installing it at an angle which i really don't want to do. after that 8' gold crown gave me such a fit i don't know if it's going to be worth it to drive about 150miles round trip and disassemble another table. it's a lot of work... then of course i have to install it at my place. oh, and there's always the fear that the slate could be sub-par et.... to buy or not to buy, THAT is the question...
9' Bar GCIII Tables For Sale
- Thread starter SlateMate
- Start date
things are much cheaper in florida. i'm still torn on weather to drive up there. those GCIII tables and their CHEAP anodized aluminum castings all need to be refinished. i just got finished doing this job and it was a huge PITA. i'll probably pass.... if anyone is in florida and interested. the tables are on Tampa Craigslist.
Aluminum is not cheap at all, its actually quite expensive. The rail trims are the only aluminum trim parts. Everything else is cheap pot metal alloy of some sort. If you look closely, you will notice that the rail trims are anodized and the castings are a plating of sorts. From what I have learned is that you cannot anodize pot metal or most other metals.
I have a company that powdercoats all the trim parts, they are like new and better than they were. No maintenance, super durable and seems like the best choice for a busy home table or pool room table. Does not easily scratch or chip and tons of options color/ finish wise. You could also chrome everything, but, I tend to lean towards the whole "chrome don't get ya home" type of mentality
Just because of the cost and maintenance involved in it. It does scratch and will come off eventually. Great to look at, but, if you use the table a ton, well you know. Trent from Toledo
i'm talking about the CHEAP, thin bronze? coating that they put on the aluminum. it lasts like a fart in the wind. i painted the last ones i had xirallic gold, black and they looked great but it was hard work. they were tarnished to an unrecognizable, ugly BLACK mess.... i had to wire-wheel all of the bronze off then etch the aluminum, then prime then paint.... sure i can pay someone to deal with it but that's not what i do.
I was just making conversation and offering a suggestion. Thats what I come on here for, to talk shop.
As I said before, the trims are not the same metal as the corners and nor is the finish. The corners are plated and clear coated. The Doler Jarvis Toledo plant use to produce the castings for Brunswick for many years. The company that plated all those parts is about a mile and a half down the street from me and is also the parts refinisher for Ken Hash at Classic Billiards. I know quite a bit about the castings and trims
You do what ever makes you happy, I was just making a suggestion. I do this full time and have restored 51 various model GC's in the last 5 years.
they can all be seen right here:
https://www.facebook.com/pg/toledopooltables/photos/?tab=albums
So yeah in my business, painting them for a customer is wasting time and money... I dont mind paying a professional powdercoat them
Time is money and wasting time is throwing money away. Not to mention powder coating is the best method I have found. If you find anything that is stronger and more cost effective I would love to hear about it!
Trent from Toledo
sure, but my point is that we shouldn't have to deal with this. i've done it TWICE and it's a PITA. if Brunswick hadn't put that crappy bronze coating over the aluminum we could just polish them every now and then but this coating tarnishes and corrodes leaving a huge mess and unnecessary time / expense to deal with it. i had to totally wire-wheel remove the corroded bronze to get it down to the aluminum so i could etch and paint. and this is their top-of-the line table too that they've been making for many decades. you'd think that they could do better. heck, an epoxy black painting would look better and last longer. that's what i did on my GCI. so in short: buying an older GC is a big restoration and from the looks of their new tables nothing will change any time soon. this is why i'd just rather get a Diamond pro or Olhausen table, set it up and PLAY. no screwing around....
In home environments I have seen some MINT gc 3 metals. Pool rooms are notorious for having literally no plating left on the metal castings. The original GC1 castings were actually aluminum. You can polish pot metal, it won't bling like chrome or polished aluminum.
Trent from Toledo
Trent from Toledo