A few questions about home tables

[9BallPaul]

I've owned an 8-foot slate table (Presidential) for two years and have been happy with it. It's rekindled my love of pool and led me to lots or practice. No coincidence that my game has vastly improved. Not bragging here or looking for action, just sayin'.

Lately I've been venturing into the Denver pool halls and playing on some 9-footers, especially old Brunswicks and Diamonds. What's unbelieveable to me is how well the rails play. The rails on my table are bouncy, and this is driving me a little nuts, although I should grin and bear it.

But I want to play on the best equipment. I'm considering new Simonis 860 HR and Artemis rails. My table guy quotes about $650 for this work. Is that a decent quote, and worth it?

Or should I begin looking for an old Brunswick (pre-China) or a used Diamond, maybe a tournament table. Those are terribly pricey and I'm on a fixed income, so consider that, please.

And finally, this question: A pool table is essentially three pieces of slate, balanced and made to roll true, covered by felt, surrounded by cushions and upheld by a frame. The pockets are variable and can be shaped and sized to the owner's desires.

Why should one table play differenly than another -- although I know that they do. Thanks in advance.

 

[Cuebuddy]

Hey Paul I have been following your table posts for awhile now and you remind me of me. I owned a 9 ft Olhausen for 14 years and was never quite happy with it. It played good, better then most but it was not what I wanted to spend the rest of my life with:smile:. I changed cloth, several times and threatened to change pocket openings but after doing the math I decided to pull the trigger on a competition style table. I have had it for one year and am still tickled pink (what ever in the hell that means). In my opinion you will never be happy until you get what you want. I was lucky I was able to get a very fair price for my old table and thats what it took for me to get what I really wanted all along. Massive frames and wide rails mean allot to how a table plays, not to mention how it is set up. Once you find your soul mate table you will know it and any flaw in your game will be all yours and not your tables. As far as a fixed budget be patient and find a used Gold crown or Diamond and never look back. Good luck Paul and happy hunting.

 

[gunzby]

I agree with Cuebuddy completely. If you are going to go in on a long term investment like a pool table you should get what you want and not what fits your budget.

I would much rather wait (and I have learned this from experience with my current table) and spend the extra money on something that I will enjoy for years and years than save a few bucks and buy something that will do for right now.

 

[scruffy1]

I agree with Cuebuddy completely. If you are going to go in on a long term investment like a pool table you should get what you want and not what fits your budget..

This advice also works great if you are buying a home!!

 

[poolhustler]

If you have room for a 9 foot table, that's what I would recomend.

Sell the 8 footer and put the money into a 9'er.

 

[JimS]

I have a nice big room... 17x30, so I started with a nice Brunswick furniture table. It was a nice table but....

After I'd had that table for about a year and had been playing quite a bit during that year, I discovered that what I had was ok but........

I got a Diamond Pro 9 ft and have been very, very happy ever since, especially since RKC set it up with Simonis 860 HR.

 

[Dead Crab]

Be careful about applying the "pool hall standard".

I recently played on a commercial table (Gold Crown) where the rails were like rock, and the facings were even harder. The pockets were too wide at the opening and too narrow at the throat. If I bought this table for home use, I would probably have to put $1000 into it to make it play decently. So buying a Gold Crown for the sake of buying a Gold Crown may not help your situation. They aren't all the same.

To answer your question, the quote that you received sounds pretty reasonable.

If you make the changes, and still notice a difference compared to pool hall tables, it may be because the commercial tables don't play as well as yours.

 

[8JIM9]

home table

9BallPaul,
As for the problem that the rails are bouncy, if that means that the balls hop when you hit a rail; you might be able to fix that by shimming up the rails.
Just lossen the rail bolts from under the table, lift the rail up a slide a penny under the rail near each bolt; then re-tighten the bolts. good luck.
8JIM9