Gold Crown 3 Problem

I am confused as well. Did you really contact Blatt, or did you mean that hypothetically? Would it be reasonable to take this problem to blatt, even though its been almost 7 years after the purchase?


realkingcobra said:
I still can't tell, but my guess is that the corner pockets have different openings because the rails are not set right on the corner castings, but that still don't explain why the playing surface is 100 1/2" long:confused:

Glen
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Bambu said:
I am confused as well. Did you really contact Blatt, or did you mean that hypothetically? Would it be reasonable to take this problem to blatt, even though its been almost 7 years after the purchase?
Click to expand...
Unless you have some documented dealings with them concerning the playability of the table it's probably not worth it. Rails have some play when installed. One thing to check is if the table is square and if there's any adjustment left for the rails. This could fix the dimension problem but won't fix the slow play.

If the rails were made for the table and set to use k66 then just changing to k55 will present its own problem. Check the mechanics directory for NY and NJ - you would probably do well to have someone new check out this table.
 
I think Glen is on to something with the table being pieced together. I may be totally wrong but that corner shot of aprons and legs definitely do not look like brunswick hi-tech black finish to me.What do you guys think? Look in the corner,you can almost see another finish. Brunswicks finish was a pretty high gloss and with aprons receiving little wear, i think they are painted. I also think he probably has k66 on there and Rick is correct about there being enough play in the castings to account for the playfield discrepancy. lets get that rail cloth off and see that rubber!!!!:eek:
 
I agree, the skirting around the table looks refinished. It looked new enough when i got it, but I could tell it wasnt original paint. Didnt think that was a problem, just part of the restoration process. I'd like to expose a cushion, but I wouldnt be able to get the cloth back on.
 
Bambu said:
I agree, the skirting around the table looks refinished. It looked new enough when i got it, but I could tell it wasnt original paint. Didnt think that was a problem, just part of the restoration process. I'd like to expose a cushion, but I wouldnt be able to get the cloth back on.
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New rail cloth, as a minimum, is usually a given when reworking rails.
 
Thanks Dart, you think its ok to use the old bedcloth? Its about a year old, with maybe 10-20 hrs/week of play. I still want to use this table until Cobra fixes it up, so I'm going to wait on taking off the cushion cloth. Btw Glen, even if you cant tell what the problem is from here, is it safe to say you can install new rubber and pockets(no matter what the problem might be, within reason)?

Dartman said:
New rail cloth, as a minimum, is usually a given when reworking rails.
Click to expand...
 
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Bambu said:
Thanks Dart, you think its ok to use the old bedcloth? Its about a year old, with maybe 10-20 hrs/week of play. I still want to use this table until Cobra fixes it up, so I'm going to wait on taking off the cushion cloth. Btw Glen, even if you cant tell what the problem is from here, is it safe to say you can install new rubber and pockets(no matter what the problem might be, within reason)?
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I can fix any table, only depends on if the table is worth the fix. When the fix is worth more than the table...I don't touch it;)

Glen
 
realkingcobra said:
I can fix any table, only depends on if the table is worth the fix. When the fix is worth more than the table...I don't touch it;)

Glen
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I'm going out ona limb here and calling this the post of the year in the Mechanics section....:thumbup:

And an extra :thumbup: for an intelligent two line response!:grin-square:
Rare and hard to do sometimes around here.
 
Bambu said:
Thanks Dart, you think its ok to use the old bedcloth? Its about a year old, with maybe 10-20 hrs/week of play. I still want to use this table until Cobra fixes it up, so I'm going to wait on taking off the cushion cloth.
Click to expand...

If in good condition the bed cloth wouldn't need to be changed.
When reworking rails there's typically not enough cloth to work with
which makes new rail cloth necessary.
 
Thanks Dartman. I know it wasnt a great question, but I have been on the verge of selling or trading this table for years. I didnt know if it was fixable, or what the particular problem was.


Cuephoric said:
I'm going out ona limb here and calling this the post of the year in the Mechanics section....:thumbup:

And an extra :thumbup: for an intelligent two line response!:grin-square:
Rare and hard to do sometimes around here.
Click to expand...
 
Ah, thats good. I am starting to understand why my dad hated Christmas so much(he was broke)!
 
All the help you're giving here, you guys are great! From an appreciative lurker.

Rich
 
Bambu said:
Thanks Dartman. I know it wasnt a great question, but I have been on the verge of selling or trading this table for years. I didnt know if it was fixable, or what the particular problem was.
Click to expand...

You'll find out soon enough when you know who gets there.
Have patience. :thumbup:
 
I just wanted to add that the information in this thread is fantastic.. I'm going to go home and measure my GCIII to make sure it's correct now.
 
In case anyone was wondering, I am looking forward to meeting Glen very soon. Hopefully, he will get to NY sometime next week. This will be the best late Christmas present I ever had! May you have a safe trip, RealKingCobra!
 
Update: Blatt Gold Crown 3 Problem

Back in January I posted about a problem with my gold crown 3. Cobra, Dartman and a few others helped me out a great deal, much thanks to all of you. To sum it up, I bought a refurbished gold crown 3 with k-66 rails from Blatt. I searched for a reason why my table played slow for 8 years, until you AZB guys set me straight.

I finally learned here, that a a gold crown 3 needs k-55 superspeeds(and not k-66). I took this info to Brunswick, and they confirmed....k-55. I didnt expect much, but 8 years later, I took this info to Blatt. It took some explaining, but when the dust settled I ended up with brand new k-55 superspeeds. Much thanks to Steve R. at Blatt. The guy really bent over backwards to make me happy, and he did the job absolutely free.

After the new rubber was installed, I thought the table played as if it was new. I was just about to sail off into the sunset. But after playing on it a few times, I noticed some ball hop. After testing, other areas of the rails play a little jumpy, and some have a weird/dead sound. To get to the root of the problem, I bought myself a rail gauge. Only one out of the 6 rails measure true, with all of the others featuring random low spots. The worst area thats low is about a diamond long, and does cause hop at times. Others measure only an inch or two and only 2 or 3 areas cause actual ball hop.

I hate to complain about a free job, but I had to take this problem back to Blatt. I am waiting on a reply from them. The biggest question I have at this point, is am I being a nit pick? If I were to take a rail gauge to a common brunswick table, would the nose height be consistent? Is ball hop in some areas to be expected? I dont expect perfect, but there is a clear difference in play. Then there is the obvious question, not knowing what is wrong with this table. Any thougts or suggestions are appreciated.
 
Bambu said:
Back in January I posted about a problem with my gold crown 3. Cobra, Dartman and a few others helped me out a great deal, much thanks to all of you. To sum it up, I bought a refurbished gold crown 3 with k-66 rails from Blatt. I searched for a reason why my table played slow for 8 years, until you AZB guys set me straight.

I finally learned here, that a a gold crown 3 needs k-55 superspeeds(and not k-66). I took this info to Brunswick, and they confirmed....k-55. I didnt expect much, but 8 years later, I took this info to Blatt. It took some explaining, but when the dust settled I ended up with brand new k-55 superspeeds. Much thanks to Steve R. at Blatt. The guy really bent over backwards to make me happy, and he did the job absolutely free.

After the new rubber was installed, I thought the table played as if it was new. I was just about to sail off into the sunset. But after playing on it a few times, I noticed some ball hop. After testing, other areas of the rails play a little jumpy, and some have a weird/dead sound. To get to the root of the problem, I bought myself a rail gauge. Only one out of the 6 rails measure true, with all of the others featuring random low spots. The worst area thats low is about a diamond long, and does cause hop at times. Others measure only an inch or two and only 2 or 3 areas cause actual ball hop.

I hate to complain about a free job, but I had to take this problem back to Blatt. I am waiting on a reply from them. The biggest question I have at this point, is am I being a nit pick? If I were to take a rail gauge to a common brunswick table, would the nose height be consistent? Is ball hop in some areas to be expected? I dont expect perfect, but there is a clear difference in play. Then there is the obvious question, not knowing what is wrong with this table. Any thougts or suggestions are appreciated.
Click to expand...

2 questions, one...what is the measurement from the point of the cushions to the formica finish on the rails...2", 1 15/16"....what? Second question, if you look down the nose of the cushions the lenght of the rails, is the nose of the cushions straight, or are there dips in the nose height?...meaning where the cushions installed straight? The reason I'd like to know the measurement is so I can tell if a table saw was used to recut the cushion bevel on the sub-rail...and not cut straight, meaning you could have some changes in the resaw of the bevel if the rails weren't straight when recut, so the measurement would tell me if some of the sub-rail was removed or not.

Glen
 
Brunsick offered the Hightech in brass and chrome,the finish is in noway hightech black.The casting don't look correct for sum reason.I have a high tech in storage and the finish is not even close to what your showing.Can we please get a pict of the baseframe aswell.
 
realkingcobra said:
2 questions, one...what is the measurement from the point of the cushions to the formica finish on the rails...2", 1 15/16"....what? Second question, if you look down the nose of the cushions the lenght of the rails, is the nose of the cushions straight, or are there dips in the nose height?...meaning where the cushions installed straight? The reason I'd like to know the measurement is so I can tell if a table saw was used to recut the cushion bevel on the sub-rail...and not cut straight, meaning you could have some changes in the resaw of the bevel if the rails weren't straight when recut, so the measurement would tell me if some of the sub-rail was removed or not.

Glen
Click to expand...

I would also be interesting to know the actual playfield dimensions now with the K55 cushions installed.
 
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