How To Get A Valley to play a lot better

Johnnyt

Johnnyt

Burn all jump cues
Silver Member
I'm not a table mechanic so probably shouldn't post this…but. I have been playing on and working on Valley bar boxes for years. If you have a Valley and you or someone you know is interested in making it play better here is what you do.

1)Take all rails off and lift slate up about a foot on one end. Have someone slide a 4x4's under slate and across table from long rail to long rail to hold it up for recovering. Do same at other end.
2)While slate is out tightening all 8 corner-casting bolts.
3)Replace with good cloth. If table is outside in unheated and no A/C or dehumidifier in a high humidity state 860 or Tour Edition will work for up to 80 % humidity as long as cloth is installed tight. For low humidity states and inside tables you need a little slower cloth on a 7' Valley. It will play way too fast with the 860 or Tour Edition on it.
4)Buy a set of Ridgeback rails that Glen has designed. http://shop.ridgebackrails.com/main.sc
5)Level table and enjoy. Johnnyt

Valley web site. http://www.vdlp.org/valley/index.asp
 
thanks johnnyt, i have a dynamo which is almost the same as a valley. this info helps.

Mike
 
Johnny, a question?

Johnny,

Do you think that the cloth and rails changed angles and speed so much that it would be tough adjusting to the typical marginally kept up bar table in most places to compete on? I like the Diamond seven footer with pro cut pockets if I didn't have room for a nine footer but I think it probably would keep my nine foot game in better shape than my seven foot Valley or Dynamo game.

Thanks for your thoughts. I have been giving serious thought to following your lead and swapping to bar tables.

Hu


Johnnyt said:
I'm not a table mechanic so probably shouldn't post this…but. I have been playing on and working on Valley bar boxes for years. If you have a Valley and you or someone you know is interested in making it play better here is what you do.

1)Take all rails off and lift slate up about a foot on one end. Have someone slide a 4x4's under slate and across table from long rail to long rail to hold it up for recovering. Do same at other end.
2)While slate is out tightening all 8 corner-casting bolts.
3)Replace with good cloth. If table is outside in unheated and no A/C or dehumidifier in a high humidity state 860 or Tour Edition will work for up to 80 % humidity as long as cloth is installed tight. For low humidity states and inside tables you need a little slower cloth on a 7' Valley. It will play way too fast with the 860 or Tour Edition on it.
4)Buy a set of Ridgeback rails that Glen has designed. http://shop.ridgebackrails.com/main.sc
5)Level table and enjoy. Johnnyt

Valley web site. http://www.vdlp.org/valley/index.asp
Click to expand...
 
ShootingArts said:
Johnny,

Do you think that the cloth and rails changed angles and speed so much that it would be tough adjusting to the typical marginally kept up bar table in most places to compete on? I like the Diamond seven footer with pro cut pockets if I didn't have room for a nine footer but I think it probably would keep my nine foot game in better shape than my seven foot Valley or Dynamo game.

Thanks for your thoughts. I have been giving serious thought to following your lead and swapping to bar tables.

Hu
Click to expand...

I don't think it would be hard to adjust. As long as the player handles stop shots and uses reverse on rails to get position. The speed would be the hardest to get use to. The Ridgebacks are cut different making cheating the pockets harder so no problem there. As far as the rails playing true with the ridgebacks an average and up player shouldn't find a regular bar table much of an adjustment. Regular Valley rails suck for everyone.:smile: Johnnyt
 
Thanks!

Johnnyt said:
I don't think it would be hard to adjust. As long as the player handles stop shots and uses reverse on rails to get position. The speed would be the hardest to get use to. The Ridgebacks are cut different making cheating the pockets harder so no problem there. As far as the rails playing true with the ridgebacks an average and up player shouldn't find a regular bar table much of an adjustment. Regular Valley rails suck for everyone.:smile: Johnnyt
Click to expand...



Johnny,

Sounds like a table set up like yours might be just the ticket. I'd prefer a Diamond but I'll count the nickels and pennies when the time comes. Of course while I'm dreaming maybe I can squeeze a seven footer and a nine foot Diamond in my new shop. A blank slate and no shortage of ground to build it on, most of seven acres.

Hu
 
ShootingArts said:
Johnny,

Sounds like a table set up like yours might be just the ticket. I'd prefer a Diamond but I'll count the nickels and pennies when the time comes. Of course while I'm dreaming maybe I can squeeze a seven footer and a nine foot Diamond in my new shop. A blank slate and no shortage of ground to build it on, most of seven acres.

Hu
Click to expand...

Used 7' Valley with a good slate and wood $500-$750
Good cloth..............................$125-$175
Ridgeback rails................about $160
New Pockets...................about $30
Misc.........................................$50
,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
$900-$1200
Won't play guite as good as a Diamond but waaaaay better than a standard Valley. Johnnyt
 
Good job Johnny.

I take Johnny's information to be aimed at guys like us, who want to challenge ourselves and play on the best equipment. So if one of us wants a table in our homes, does not have room for a 9 footer, and can't afford a 7 foot diamond, then Johnny laid out a formula he found to be successful for us "player" types after years of trial and error.

Much appreciated.
 
Johnnyt said:
Used 7' Valley with a good slate and wood $500-$750
Good cloth..............................$125-$175
Ridgeback rails................about $160
New Pockets...................about $30
Misc.........................................$50
,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
$900-$1200
Won't play guite as good as a Diamond but waaaaay better than a standard Valley. Johnnyt
Click to expand...

Great job Johnny, I am fortunate enough to have room for a 9 footer. But my best bud has a pretty nice Valley, and thanks to all your research...he is doing exactly as you recommended.

I pound on him on my Gold Crown, and he destroys me on his Valley...maybe it will even things out a little ??? :cool:

Thanks again,

Dick
 
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Thank you all for the kind words. Tweaking a Valley like that really helps. I would never post to have people spend their hard earned money for it if it didn't. Johnnyt
 
Johnnyt said:
I'm not a table mechanic so probably shouldn't post this…but. I have been playing on and working on Valley bar boxes for years. If you have a Valley and you or someone you know is interested in making it play better here is what you do.

1)Take all rails off and lift slate up about a foot on one end. Have someone slide a 4x4's under slate and across table from long rail to long rail to hold it up for recovering. Do same at other end.
2)While slate is out tightening all 8 corner-casting bolts.
3)Replace with good cloth. If table is outside in unheated and no A/C or dehumidifier in a high humidity state 860 or Tour Edition will work for up to 80 % humidity as long as cloth is installed tight. For low humidity states and inside tables you need a little slower cloth on a 7' Valley. It will play way too fast with the 860 or Tour Edition on it.
4)Buy a set of Ridgeback rails that Glen has designed. http://shop.ridgebackrails.com/main.sc
5)Level table and enjoy. Johnnyt

Valley web site. http://www.vdlp.org/valley/index.asp
Click to expand...

do you have pics of your baby?
 
Many players don't know this.

Johnnyt said:
I'm not a table mechanic so probably shouldn't post this…but. I have been playing on and working on Valley bar boxes for years. If you have a Valley and you or someone you know is interested in making it play better here is what you do.

1)Take all rails off and lift slate up about a foot on one end. Have someone slide a 4x4's under slate and across table from long rail to long rail to hold it up for recovering. Do same at other end.
2)While slate is out tightening all 8 corner-casting bolts.
3)Replace with good cloth. If table is outside in unheated and no A/C or dehumidifier in a high humidity state 860 or Tour Edition will work for up to 80 % humidity as long as cloth is installed tight. For low humidity states and inside tables you need a little slower cloth on a 7' Valley. It will play way too fast with the 860 or Tour Edition on it.
4)Buy a set of Ridgeback rails that Glen has designed. http://shop.ridgebackrails.com/main.sc
5)Level table and enjoy. Johnnyt

Valley web site. http://www.vdlp.org/valley/index.asp
Click to expand...

Many years ago all the bar tables had big cue balls on them. Then they came out with the magnetic ball, the mud ball and othere types of balls to make the cue balls the same size. Some of these were hard to play with.

The rail design had to be high enough so that darn big cue ball didn't just hop off the table when it hit the rail. When valley came out with the mag ball there was nothing done to change the design. The rails were left the same way.

When the rails are too high like on a valley the cue ball is getting pinched under the rail. So are all the other balls. This in turn ruins the rails soon because it's always pushing them up.

Many people blame the bad rails on a valley on people sitting on the table when it is the balls that ruin the rails by the rails being too high.

This is why some of the valley bar tables play so bad. The slates can be shimmed up a little from the bed and this will solve some of the problem. Once this is done they bank much better also unless the rals are already ruined.

The best way to totally fix this is to redesign the table. This is one of the secrets with the diamonds. They never were designed to accomodate that big old rock.

Another problem I know is the vendor in our area just has a bunch of rails already covered they carry around in garbage cans . There might be 30 rails in there. Now instead of recovering the rails right there they just swap the rails. The problem here is you might get 3 bad rails and 2 good ones and one medium bad one. try playing on that table. One takes off like a rocket and the other ones are dead of vise versa.

Now you know..............

Maybe these ridgeback rails are lower. This would fix the problem. My buddie back home puts custom rails on home tables and they play great afterwards. They're a little lower.
 
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