Gold Crown 5 Review - Poor Quality, Poor Design, GC5

[iusedtoberich]

Pictures first, written after:

I played on the first GC5 for me in about 12 years. The GC5 aesthetically is my favorite table. I really like the parallel sides of the corner castings, the brushed nickel trim color, and the formica color. I'm a big GC fan, and have played on all of them except the 6 now, with most of my play being on the 4's.

Overall, I thought the quality of the table was piss poor. I was disappointed for sure.

-The corner castings were tilted a bit and stuck up a lot (typical of every GC ever made, why Brunswick has not fixed this is beyond me).

-The formica rails had dings all over them. This did not photograph well, but could be seen at a low angle when down over a shot. There was even one area of the formica that had a slight bubble about 3" area. I've seen many dings on older GC's, but I've never seen a bubble. Also on older GC's that had dings, it was more of a sharp ding. These dings were more wavy. IDK if they cheapened out the formica used? Or maybe the wood underneath is softer? That might explain the waviness and the bubble?

-The pocket plastic curled away from the corner casting. These were factory pockets, not made smaller, so really no excuse for the plastic curling away.

-The balls landed in the ball box with a loud clink every single time, as the ball would hit the metal trim piece at the front.

I know I've been tough on Diamond over the years because of their faster and shorter than other table cushion bounce. But they really did a great job solving all these issues, that even a very modern GC5 still has. The room I was in also had Diamonds, and it had none of these problems. The tops of the rails were flawless. The pockets were very well designed, and well integrated with the rails. No metal anywhere. Everything is flush. Nice ball box.

I suppose my ideal table might start as a Diamond, with the rails re-beveled exactly the same as a GC, Superspeed cushions installed, and the slate shelf ground down to the same as a GC. ha ha.

 

[Maxx]

How much of that is design and how much setup?

 

[iusedtoberich]

How much of that is design and how much setup?

They’ve been like this for 60 years. I vote design.

Edit: Also, its the responsibility of the designers to make it easy and "consistent" for the installers. Diamond did this. Brunswick did not.

 

[Tennesseejoe]

Pictures first, written after:

View attachment 710954

View attachment 710955

View attachment 710956

View attachment 710958

I played on the first GC5 for me in about 12 years. The GC5 aesthetically is my favorite table. I really like the parallel sides of the corner castings, the brushed nickel trim color, and the formica color. I'm a big GC fan, and have played on all of them except the 6 now, with most of my play being on the 4's.

Overall, I thought the quality of the table was piss poor. I was disappointed for sure.

-The corner castings were tilted a bit and stuck up a lot (typical of every GC ever made, why Brunswick has not fixed this is beyond me).

-The formica rails had dings all over them. This did not photograph well, but could be seen at a low angle when down over a shot. There was even one area of the formica that had a slight bubble about 3" area. I've seen many dings on older GC's, but I've never seen a bubble. Also on older GC's that had dings, it was more of a sharp ding. These dings were more wavy. IDK if they cheapened out the formica used? Or maybe the wood underneath is softer? That might explain the waviness and the bubble?

-The pocket plastic curled away from the corner casting. These were factory pockets, not made smaller, so really no excuse for the plastic curling away.

-The balls landed in the ball box with a loud clink every single time, as the ball would hit the metal trim piece at the front.

I know I've been tough on Diamond over the years because of their faster and shorter than other table cushion bounce. But they really did a great job solving all these issues, that even a very modern GC5 still has. The room I was in also had Diamonds, and it had none of these problems. The tops of the rails were flawless. The pockets were very well designed, and well integrated with the rails. No metal anywhere. Everything is flush. Nice ball box.

I suppose my ideal table might start as a Diamond, with the rails re-beveled exactly the same as a GC, Superspeed cushions installed, and the slate shelf ground down to the same as a GC. ha ha.

At least 12 years old??? Could these problems have been caused by poor table mechanics? Or are these photos from when it was new?

 

[rexus31]

The table in question could be as old as 16 years. There is going to be some wear and tear after having been in a commercial environment all its life. As for playability, there's no telling what's been done to this table over the years. Some of the issues you are referencing could be poor quality materials and some of that has to do with an inexperienced mechanic with no attention to detail. For example, not properly setting the pocket castings. I'm almost certain there are some very nice Gold Crown V's out there that have held up nicely over the years and have been properly maintained.

 

[iusedtoberich]

At least 12 years old??? Could these problems have been caused by poor table mechanics? Or are these photos from when it was new?

I should have phrased it differently. I've only played on GC5's twice in my life. The first time was about 12 years ago in a room in Atanta that had 10 or so new at the time GC5 8' tables. The second time was last night, at a room in PA, with the 9' GC5 in my review. I don't know the age of this particular table, but could be anywhere from 15 or so years old to maybe 5 or so years old. I know Brunswick was still selling some 5's after the 6 came out to deplete inventory.

As far as installers, I think almost every GC I've seen, regardless of generation, has had the corner castings all wonky, sticking up, angled, etc. Some are better than others, but they are all not great, IMO. To me, that means a design issue. A great design makes it easy for the installer to do his job better.

 

[iusedtoberich]

The table in question could be as old as 16 years. There is going to be some wear and tear after having been in a commercial environment all its life. As for playability, there's no telling what's been done to this table over the years. Some of the issues you are referencing could be poor quality materials and some of that has to do with an inexperienced mechanic with no attention to detail. For example, not properly setting the pocket castings. I'm almost certain there are some very nice Gold Crown V's out there that have held up nicely over the years and have been properly maintained.

I hear you. And if you look at my past posts I've always been Pro GC by like 100 to 1 compared to Diamonds. The thing is, if you see a 20 year old Diamond with a Dymondwood top in a commercial setting, it looks almost brand new. The only way you will find an old GC that is not dinged to hell is if it was never in a pool room, and always privately owned. This GC5 the formica just felt cheaper than the hundreds of GC4's and below I've played on. It might be my imagination, it just felt like its thinner and wavier, even where there were not dings.

The plastic pulling in from the pocket castings, I've seen that a long time across many GC's. I think it became more prevalent with the 4's when they switched to the flush design. This 5 looks very similar in design to the 4 in that area.

 

[iusedtoberich]

On the plus side, I did not see any pitting on the corner castings on this table, which I've seen on almost every other GC from prior generations I've personally played on. Maybe Brunswick finally corrected this issue?

 

[rexus31]

I should have phrased it differently. I've only played on GC5's twice in my life. The first time was about 12 years ago in a room in Atanta that had 10 or so new at the time GC5 8' tables. The second time was last night, at a room in PA, with the 9' GC5 in my review. I don't know the age of this particular table, but could be anywhere from 12 or so years old to maybe 5 or so years old. I know Brunswick was still selling some 5's after the 6 came out to deplete inventory.

As far as installers, I think almost every GC I've seen, regardless of generation, has had the corner castings all wonky, sticking up, angled, etc. Some are better than others, but they are all not great, IMO. To me, that means a design issue. A great design makes it easy for the installer to do his job better.

Gold Crown I-III had castings that were not flush with the rails, by design. Flush castings and pocket liners started with the IV.

There are FAR too may inexperienced installers (not mechanics) working on tables to point the finger at the design being an issue. You never know, whoever setup this table may have never worked on a V and thinks what he/she did was correct, not knowing they are supposed to be flush.

 

[GoldCrown]

Looks like an abused table installed by Hackers.

 

[iusedtoberich]

Gold Crown I-III had castings that were not flush with the rails, by design. Flush castings and pocket liners started with the IV.

There are FAR too may inexperienced installers (not mechanics) working on tables to point the finger at the design being an issue. You never know, whoever setup this table may have never worked on a V and thinks what he/she did was correct, not knowing they are supposed to be flush.

I know they were always proud of the rails, by design. There was even a podcast with a Brunswick designer who stated that about 10 years ago on here. But they often end up angled, with the "points" higher than the rest. And they often end up more proud of the neighboring rail as a whole than what feels right.

I agree some of the onus is on the installer. But, if I was Brunswick, and saw thousands of my tables with messed up corner castings, I'd go back to the drawing board and figure out what could be changed in the design to make it more consistent for the installers. I type this as a design engineer myself.

 

[rexus31]

I hear you. And if you look at my past posts I've always been Pro GC by like 100 to 1 compared to Diamonds. The thing is, if you see a 20 year old Diamond with a Dymondwood top in a commercial setting, it looks almost brand new. The only way you will find an old GC that is not dinged to hell is if it was never in a pool room, and always privately owned. This GC5 the formica just felt cheaper than the hundreds of GC4's and below I've played on. It might be my imagination, it just felt like its thinner and wavier, even where there were not dings.

Agreed. Dymondwood is a superior product for wear and tear. I wouldn't be surprised in the least if Brunswick started using generic laminate vs Formica. My Gold Crown I was in a commercial setting its whole life and the rails (Formica, Elegant Rosewood 6211) are in great shape with not one ding.

The plastic pulling in from the pocket castings, I've seen that a long time across many GC's. I think it became more prevalent with the 4's when they switched to the flush design. This 5 looks very similar in design to the 4 in that area.

This has been any issue from the IV on. Not sure what the fix would be though in terms of manufacturing.

 

[rexus31]

On the plus side, I did not see any pitting on the corner castings on this table, which I've seen on almost every other GC from prior generations I've personally played on. Maybe Brunswick finally corrected this issue?

I think the pitting is exclusive to the plated castings from the GCIII up. The plating they used was terrible. I've not seen a Gold Crown I or other non plated Gold Crown casting pitted.

 

[cjr3559]

I’ve got to chime in being a 4 year owner of a V TE drop pocket. The bubbling and dings are disturbing but I’m guessing this table hasn’t been maintained well, nor does any one care about it. For all we know it was under a leaky ceiling.

My pocket castings look like those pictured but the slight ledge is a non-issue for me. The terrible gaps seen in pic 3 adequately describes the term ‘hack’ in the workmanship here.. and if the chalk represents the establishment the table is par for the course.

Can’t say anything about the ball return ‘tink’ other than that’s got to be a quick DIY fix.

Maybe Brunswick did go on the cheap starting with the 5’s and they just don’t age well in a commercial setting. But for a home table I wouldn’t trade it for anything else except maybe a Centennial (new or old).

 

[skogstokig]

i play in two rooms with GC5's and i agree with every point. most of all i dislike the protruding metal. if they are supposed to be flush then i've certainly never seen it

 

[pocket]

This is the ghost of TFT "how dare you"

 

[iusedtoberich]

I’ve got to chime in being a 4 year owner of a V TE drop pocket. The bubbling and dings are disturbing but I’m guessing this table hasn’t been maintained well, nor does any one care about it. For all we know it was under a leaky ceiling.

My pocket castings look like those pictured but the slight ledge is a non-issue for me. The terrible gaps seen in pic 3 adequately describes the term ‘hack’ in the workmanship here.. and if the chalk represents the establishment the table is par for the course.

Can’t say anything about the ball return ‘tink’ other than that’s got to be a quick DIY fix.

Maybe Brunswick did go on the cheap starting with the 5’s and they just don’t age well in a commercial setting. But for a home table I wouldn’t trade it for anything else except maybe a Centennial (new or old).

Thanks for your feedback.

I don't know the history of the table for sure. Yeah, a leaky roof might explain the bubble. I know I've never seen another. The dings are from balls jumping off the table. Nothing there to do with maintenance. Just how resistant the laminate is to the balls hopping the rails. I know some mechanics will damage the rails with a hammer when putting in the featherstrip. But those marks are different than these dings. (One of those marks in the rail picture might actually be from that).

The chalk was worn, yes, but there were 20 brand new ones too. I just happened to grab this one and I put it in the picture for scale. The room is actually quite nice. It's under new management as of 2 years ago. The new owner put all new 7' and 9' Diamonds, Predator lights, new Centennial and Predator balls, keeps the AC COLD. Etc, runs weekly tournaments, etc. He kept this one GC5 for the GC fans (like me) to play on. I don't think the 5 was from the prior owners though, as this room has been open for 30 years, and I think all the old tables were 3's if I remember right.

Does your GC5 make the tink when the balls fall in? I wonder if a soft trim piece is missing, or they are all like this.

 

[mikemosconi]

I hate Diamond table play - will take play on a well maintained standard GC any day of the week

 

[iusedtoberich]

I hate Diamond table play - will take play on a well maintained standard GC any day of the week

You’re preaching to the choir. Believe me, it was hard for me to make this post. I’m just calling it like I see it on the design, construction, and assembly of this table. All interrelated imo.

 

[cjr3559]

Does your GC5 make the tink when the balls fall in? I wonder if a soft trim piece is missing, or they are all like this.

Mine is a drop pocket, but I wonder the same thing about the ball return. But I agree it was probably designed and built that way.

As far as dings from balls hitting the rails; could be a case of bad players, not bad tables. There’s always the type who needs to practice atomic breaks and/or jump shots repeatedly. We all know it’s brutal to the equipment.