Damp wiping makes cloth slower?

[Lawnboy77]

Yep. I first noticed it when I started alternating tables too - one place I'd been damp wiping for almost a year, the other place hardly ever. The hardly ever place felt slicker even when I was wiping it... now, after a couple months of wiping both they're both slower.


pj
chgo

I suspect the differences you guys are seeing has little to do with the bed cloth, but more to do with dirty, sticky rail cloth. The stickier the contact point, the faster the rebound will be. Have you ever messed around and shot a few balls on a table with no cloth on the cushions? The balls roll around like a pinball machine. There is very little lose of energy from balls scooting off the rails, it's almost like perpetual motion, the same principle applies to dirty/sticky rail cloth at the ball contact point, but obviously not nearly with the grip of phenolic resin meeting good ole bare gum rubber.

Edit: If you guys want the little bit of extra speed, but you like a somewhat clean table to play on, then clean as usual and leave the rail cloth contact points dirty and sticky.

 

[Patrick Johnson]

I suspect the differences you guys are seeing has little to do with the bed cloth, but more to do with dirty, sticky rail cloth. The stickier the contact point, the faster the rebound will be. Have you ever messed around and shot a few balls on a table with no cloth on the cushions? The balls roll around like a pinball machine. There is very little lose of energy from balls scooting off the rails, it's almost like perpetual motion, the same principle applies to dirty/sticky rail cloth at the ball contact point, but obviously not nearly with the grip of phenolic resin meeting good ole bare gum rubber.

Edit: If you guys want the little bit of extra speed, but you like a somewhat clean table to play on, then clean as usual and leave the rail cloth contact points dirty and sticky.

Bed cloth for sure - I suppose rail cloth too, but that's not what's noticeable. The main symptom is it's much harder to draw the CB.

pj
chgo

 

[alstl]

Due to the rotation of the Earth you should always wipe in a clockwise direction in the Northern hemisphere to accelerate the cleaning and drying action. Wiping in a counter clockwise direction will increase throw as the cloth grabs the balls with throw increasing according to distance from the equator.

The formula is t = π ÷ d

t is throw
d is distance in feet from the equator.

Never ever wipe the cloth when the barometric pressure is falling. This causes the cloth fibers to expand and absorb an inordinate amount of moisture which will result in balls not spreading like they normally would. I'm currently working on a barometric pressure machine which will cause barometric pressure to rise or fall in a controlled area which can be used to give your opponent a slug rack clandestinely.

It's all explained in great detail on my pay website.

 

[Bob Jewett]

Bed cloth for sure - I suppose rail cloth too, but that's not what's noticeable. The main symptom is it's much harder to draw the CB.

Which says you're probably getting the fuzz up which causes more ball-cloth friction. Try the iron thing. They even have special rectangular billiard cloth irons for snooker tables. Here's a video of brushing and ironing. The iron has no cord.

 

[Patrick Johnson]

Which says you're probably getting the fuzz up which causes more ball-cloth friction. Try the iron thing. They even have special rectangular billiard cloth irons for snooker tables. Here's a video of brushing and ironing. The iron has no cord.

I don't see any fuzz (haven't looked that closely, though). Is there a way to shave/mow it so it doesn't happen as quick?

I swear it feels rougher - like the threads are thicker...

pj
chgo

 

[Patrick53212]

I use an X-1 and I use a brush attachment tool on my vacuum to clean the table. I have not used any sprays or even damp cloth to wipe it. I play on my table almost daily. I suppose if my hands start to pickup dirt or chalk, I may start to wipe it down. I have only had my table for 6 months. There are burn marks from breaking as well as jump shots and hard hit shots but that is going to happen regardless of what you do. Cleaning the balls after every use will help but not eliminate that from happening. I am glad that my table is finally playing "tight". For the first several months, the cloth was too new and balls would slide in where they would jaw up when playing on the same tables in tournaments.