Gold crown 1 ball return box install questions

[Nogbert]

Recently got into pool and decided to go all in and bought a gold crown 1 in great condition from a local guy. He had only ever used the drop pockets, but had the ball return rails and box up for sale to I decided to grab those. I got the return gully/rails installed no problem, and the return box bolted to the bottom of the ball rack easily enough. The issue I am having now is getting the rear 90 degree brackets to attach the return box to the frame to span the gap. To me I imagine the upper edge of the box should run parallel from front to back but instead there are cutouts that make the span far to large for the brackets.

Additionally, on the rear side of the ball rack there we’re installed two 1/4-3/8” pieces of plywood to snug up the screwed connection behind the stock spacer blocks that are pictured in the manual. I’m wondering if the ball rack was installed improperly many years ago and this is a cascading issue. Please see all problem areas circled in red in these photos

 

[gazman100]

Hi there.
The the ball tray and the collection gully is pretty much similar to other tables i've installed. Everything just sits or floats under the rail.
The first thing i'd be doing is check and double check that the rails are square to the slate long ways and sideways. This is best done with the rails only installed without the skirts. Just simply the slate to the frame underneath That way you can get precise.
The modification with the piece of wood is a modification which I do to support the collection gully which is not factory.

 

[gazman100]

If you look at the pic below where the yellow line is is a countersunk bolt.
It goes into the slate frame with a piece of timber taking up the space between the panel and the frame similar to what someone has tried to do with your table.
When done correctly it provides excellent support.
Expand the image for a closer look.
This is a modification shown by RKC.
Cheers

 

[rexus31]

Recently got into pool and decided to go all in and bought a gold crown 1 in great condition from a local guy. He had only ever used the drop pockets, but had the ball return rails and box up for sale to I decided to grab those. I got the return gully/rails installed no problem, and the return box bolted to the bottom of the ball rack easily enough. The issue I am having now is getting the rear 90 degree brackets to attach the return box to the frame to span the gap. To me I imagine the upper edge of the box should run parallel from front to back but instead there are cutouts that make the span far to large for the brackets.

Additionally, on the rear side of the ball rack there we’re installed two 1/4-3/8” pieces of plywood to snug up the screwed connection behind the stock spacer blocks that are pictured in the manual. I’m wondering if the ball rack was installed improperly many years ago and this is a cascading issue. Please see all problem areas circled in red in these photos

Here are shots of mine.

You really need to address the splits in the wood at the mounting holes, otherwise the mount will not be solid or stable. I epoxied mine together and drilled out/plugged the holes with dowels prior to repainting, then drilled new pilot holes for a solid mount. It's also a good idea to source the original L brackets which are pretty beefy. I had to slightly adjust the angle of mine in my vice to get a flush mount both on the frame and box. Here's a shot of the surgery I performed on the corners and some finishing shots.

 

[rexus31]

Here are the mounting instructions for the Ball Storage Rack form the Gold Crown I Installation Manual.

 

[Nogbert]

yeah before i do anything with the rear mounting brackets (i have the originals) i was going to repair and refinish those splits and some other split parts/the box and rack generally. to me is seems like the original ball rack was simply mounted incorrectly (too far away from the edge of the table) to the frame/rail.

When I have it off I will plug the existing screw holes and drill fresh pilots too. This probably wont happen for a little while as i am currently in the middile of the slow process of sanding and polishing the very yellowed plastic skirts.

the guy i bought it from got it like that and never needed to adjust it since he was using drop pockets.