Proper Torque for Tightening Rail Bolts - Valley 8' table

[WoodyJ]

Hi,

I have a 1994 Valley 8' barbox with Ridgeback rails. What's the proper torque for tightening down the rail bolts?

The following link says 65 inch-pounds:

http://valley-dynamoparts.com/docs/Old_Pool_FAQ-V_mk20.pdf

"WHAT IS THE TORQUE SPEC FOR RAILS? We tighten rails to 65 inch-pounds, but for consistent quality play it is far more important that rails are properly aligned, ..."

Whereas a post here indicates a higher torque of 15 foot-pounds for other tables:

http://forums.azbilliards.com/showthread.php?t=204904

Am I correct in assuming 1 foot-pound of torque = 12 inch-pounds of torque? Which would give 65/12 = 5.4 foot-pounds of torque per Valley's recommendations.

So, what do you guys suggest?

 

[realkingcobra]

Hi,

I have a 1994 Valley 8' barbox with Ridgeback rails. What's the proper torque for tightening down the rail bolts?

The following link says 65 inch-pounds:

http://valley-dynamoparts.com/docs/Old_Pool_FAQ-V_mk20.pdf

"WHAT IS THE TORQUE SPEC FOR RAILS? We tighten rails to 65 inch-pounds, but for consistent quality play it is far more important that rails are properly aligned, ..."

Whereas a post here indicates a higher torque of 15 foot-pounds for other tables:

http://forums.azbilliards.com/showthread.php?t=204904

Am I correct in assuming 1 foot-pound of torque = 12 inch-pounds of torque? Which would give 65/12 = 5.4 foot-pounds of torque per Valley's recommendations.

So, what do you guys suggest?

Here's a thought, if the rail bolts pass through the slate, that's one thing...but, on a valley and almost all other coin-op tables, the rail bolts are 1/4" thick, and are passing through a poplar top rail cap, with a small fixed washer head seated against the sides of the bolt hole. That means there is very little resistance against over tighening the rail bolts and sucking them deeper into the rail cap, which WILL result in the threaded end of the rail bolt passing through the T-nut inserted into the rails....and into the back of the cushions, resulting in pushing the cushions out away from the cushion sub-rail liner causing a bump to protrud out of the front side of the cushions.....so, don't over tighten the rail bolts on your table...that's why there's a difference between the torque settings you're talking about.

Glen

 

[WoodyJ]

Thanks RKC for responding above and others via PMs.

The guy who recovered my table and replaced the rails just used his battery operated drill to snug down the rail bolts (i.e., no torque wrench). So, they may well be on too tight.

I'll borrow a friends torque wrench, use a regular wrench to loosen them and then torque them down.