Rehab of slate backing

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balsa nut

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Doing an overhaul of an older Olhausen, and encountered a problem with the particle board slate backing; it is crumbling apart. Ahem, "the best in billiards." To be somewhat fair, it looks like it has had a couple of re-felts, but the staple removals have really torn chunks out of the backing, and it is crumbling apart with fingernail pressure.

Rather than ripping the "boards" off and replacing, I tried a polyol product (I won't mention the brand name, and I am not selling it), a two part base/catalyst system. It is water thin and really soaks into the wood. You keep brushing or feeding it onto the wood as long as it continues to be absorbed. Hardens in 5 minutes. Can be nailed, drilled, stapled, etc. Seems to have solved the problem for me around the edges. An advantage seems to be, once you are finished treating the wood with this stuff, the slate is ready to replace, level, and staple. Anyone else encounter similar issues with particle board? .. And solutions? ...
 
I was hoping to hear some input from other techs on this one. This is a good question. I 'm not sure how balsa nut's solution will work on short and long term basis. I have preventive measures that I take to prevent this but no solutions. I always use spray glue which kind-of holds the liner together and follow it up with small gauge staples. I also think the person pulling the staples needs to be careful.
 
balsa nut said:
Doing an overhaul of an older Olhausen, and encountered a problem with the particle board slate backing; it is crumbling apart. Ahem, "the best in billiards." To be somewhat fair, it looks like it has had a couple of re-felts, but the staple removals have really torn chunks out of the backing, and it is crumbling apart with fingernail pressure.

Rather than ripping the "boards" off and replacing, I tried a polyol product (I won't mention the brand name, and I am not selling it), a two part base/catalyst system. It is water thin and really soaks into the wood. You keep brushing or feeding it onto the wood as long as it continues to be absorbed. Hardens in 5 minutes. Can be nailed, drilled, stapled, etc. Seems to have solved the problem for me around the edges. An advantage seems to be, once you are finished treating the wood with this stuff, the slate is ready to replace, level, and staple. Anyone else encounter similar issues with particle board? .. And solutions? ...
Click to expand...
If the slate is not mounted to the table, then turn it upside down on the table for a work bench. Take a skill saw, set the depth so that it won't touch the slate, then cut about an inch off the backing the length of the slate, remove the cut off, scrape off any left over. Then take some poplar 3/4" thick boards cut 1" wide, use then to replace the cut off section, don't worry about gluing it back in place, run some sheet rock screws through the poplar and attach it to the particle board slate backing, now the problem is permanently fixed, and if you happen to staple that out...just unscrew the boards and replace them again.

Glen
 
If this was done at the factory level, there'd never be a problem with using partical board or MDF!

Glen
 
Sounds like cobra has been there and done that. I have many personal testamonials about the polyol product, particulary from the community of folks restoring antique autos, the really old vehicles that have sheet metal wrapped around a wooden sub-structure. Products like this can save some of the old wood, and avoid expensive tear-down and replacement.

It worked on the particle board, but cobra's solution is better.
 
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