rail bolt broken off

[mchnhed]

Probably Could Not Find The Correct Tool.
Contact Classic Billiards.

 

[BigAlTheTiger]

First of all, nothing you put in the hole for lube is going to have an effect on the slate...its rock. Second, the mushroom head on the rail bolts have been machined down to a square 9/16ths head so that a drill/impact driver can tighten them up. Third, all that slate dust in the threads is from the bolt threads scrapping the side walls of the bolt holes, which indicates to me the rails are not matched up to the rail bolt holes in the rails, which means either A) you have miss matched rails to the slate or B) the rails are not mounted in the right places, each rail has a 50/50 chance of mounting up for example, you have 2 left rails, they may both mount to the slate, but have tight rails bolts going in, or switch them and the rail bolts are loose until the final last turns, because they're centered in the holes in the rail and slate. The last problem with the rail bolts is that they have a Brunswick thread on them, which means they have to be Brunswick rail bolts to match the anchor embedded in the slate, you're not going to find a tap & die to match the threads, at least that's been my experiencewith working on old Brunswick antique pool tables, but my experience is on older antiques like 1925 and older.

I'm not sure what year the table is. Maybe I will include a picture of it, and someone may know.

I don't know that the rails were in the correct places, but I can tell you how they were placed. The #1 stamped rail was at the head of the table. Moving counterclockwise was the #2 stamped rail. Each rail moving counterclockwise was one Roman # higher.

I am pretty sure that the rails have stamped on them the same number that the slate has on it. I will double check to make sure that they have the same id # stamped on them and list in another post.

What foot pounds of torque would you recommend for these bolts for my old Brunswick table?

Thanks again RKC for your time and advice.

 

[Crash]

1) I am not a mechanic and I assume you are a DIYer so you're not worried about making profit ...
2) If you are very careful, i.e. patient and slow, drill the whole bolt out using a left handed bit. Make a jig to guide the bit. A 7/16 will give you 1/32 over the existing 3/8 bolt and may even catch and turn the bolt out. If so then STOP and go to step 3. Don't let cuttings build up. Drill all the way through the barrel nut. If you've gotten this far then use an easy out to remove the barrel nut. Don't go cheap use 1/4 bit and easyout.
3) Call and talk to Classic Billiards for replacement bolts. They are probably 14 TPI 3/8 so you can't just run down to Home Depot and get one :-(
4) I bet crazier things have been done to T-Rail tables Good Luck!

 

[realkingcobra]

I'm not sure what year the table is. Maybe I will include a picture of it, and someone may know.

I don't know that the rails were in the correct places, but I can tell you how they were placed. The #1 stamped rail was at the head of the table. Moving counterclockwise was the #2 stamped rail. Each rail moving counterclockwise was one Roman # higher.

I am pretty sure that the rails have stamped on them the same number that the slate has on it. I will double check to make sure that they have the same id # stamped on them and list in another post.

What foot pounds of torque would you recommend for these bolts for my old Brunswick table?

Thanks again RKC for your time and advice.

The foot of the table body can be determined by the patient date sticker, but how did you determine the head slate, it can be mounted either to the head or foot?

 

[BigAlTheTiger]

broken bolt

The foot of the table body can be determined by the patient date sticker, but how did you determine the head slate, it can be mounted either to the head or foot?

great question. I will have to look and see if I see a date stamped on either end. I'll finish removing staples, and look. If no date stamp, is there another way to tell?

I know that there are serial #'s stamped on slate and rails. I will check and let you know.

 

[BigAlTheTiger]

head stamp

The foot of the table body can be determined by the patient date sticker, but how did you determine the head slate, it can be mounted either to the head or foot?

I checked the rails and the three pieces slate. They all have the same serial #. I removed the staples and looked under the cloth at the head of the table. There was the word "head" stamped in all capital letters.



So, what is the correct order for the rails? Each rail has a Roman # on it from 1 to 6.

Thanks RKC

 

[BigAlTheTiger]

jig

1) I am not a mechanic and I assume you are a DIYer so you're not worried about making profit ...
2) If you are very careful, i.e. patient and slow, drill the whole bolt out using a left handed bit. Make a jig to guide the bit. A 7/16 will give you 1/32 over the existing 3/8 bolt and may even catch and turn the bolt out. If so then STOP and go to step 3. Don't let cuttings build up. Drill all the way through the barrel nut. If you've gotten this far then use an easy out to remove the barrel nut. Don't go cheap use 1/4 bit and easyout.
3) Call and talk to Classic Billiards for replacement bolts. They are probably 14 TPI 3/8 so you can't just run down to Home Depot and get one :-(
4) I bet crazier things have been done to T-Rail tables Good Luck!

Crash, Is there a way you could post some more pictures of your Jig that you made? If I could see how it was set up, then it's possible that I could duplicate how you made yours. I have a portable Dewalt drill. 18 volts I think.

Why do you recommend to remove the barrel nut?

Thanks

 

[fastone371]

Beeswax as a Frozen Fastener Remover
It May Lube But it Will Not Eat the Rust.
.

If it was my table I would start with bees wax. I live in the rust belt and have had to deal with rusted fasteners my whole life. Any of the penetrating lubricants you can throw in the garbage when it comes to rust seized fasteners, its absolutely useless, it only works if and when the fastener is already broke free. The bees wax works great on rust, I did not believe until I tried it. I do not have an explanation as to why it works so well but it does. The nice thing about bees wax is that it has been used for probably at least a century on pool tables so you wont be introducing any "foreign" chemicals.

 

[Crash]

Crash, Is there a way you could post some more pictures of your Jig that you made? If I could see how it was set up, then it's possible that I could duplicate how you made yours. I have a portable Dewalt drill. 18 volts I think.

Why do you recommend to remove the barrel nut?

Thanks

IF you have to drill out the broken bolt it will destroy the barrel nut.

I posted a picture in my T-rail thread of my jig. Made from a 2x4 with a predrilled hole for a guide. You can not hand hold a drill straight for 4 inches.

 

[realkingcobra]

I checked the rails and the three pieces slate. They all have the same serial #. I removed the staples and looked under the cloth at the head of the table. There was the word "head" stamped in all capital letters.

View attachment 460209

So, what is the correct order for the rails? Each rail has a Roman # on it from 1 to 6.

Thanks RKC

From the head they should go clockwise around the slate, but you need to know which end of the slate is the head end first, and if it's mounted at the head end of the table.

 

[kid]

I've seen lots of tables with the rail # going counterclockwise...


Envoyé de mon iPhone en utilisant AzBilliards Forums

 

[BigAlTheTiger]

counterclockwise

I've seen lots of tables with the rail # going counterclockwise...


Envoyé de mon iPhone en utilisant AzBilliards Forums

I don't see how mine could be any other way. The only concern that I see is if by chance the head and foot slates are in incorrect locations like RKC pointed out.

I don't think they are, but I don't know how to find out for sure. The breaking end is marked "head" on the slate, and the other end has the rack on it. Since it is an old table, the rack end has seen its share of the rack banging against the frame on that end. The foot end appears to have something stamped in the slate, but unfortunately, it is not readable due to something like puddy that has been applied there over the years.

thanks,

 

[BigAlTheTiger]

I have not had any luck yet with the rail bolt yet. I was curious, if I have to turn the slate over to get to the nut, what kind of problems could I run into?

I want to think it over good before I try to tackle that. It may be a routine job for the table mechanics. It may not be bad for me if I had some experience in it.

Thanks for your help.