Renaissance Pool Tables

[Kickin' Chicken]

This morning I posted a story in the "was I negative about red cloth" thread regarding exposure I had to Renaissance brand pool tables in 1980 in Santa Ana, CA. They were making some truly gorgeous yet gaudy tables.

I was curious to see if they were still around so I searched google and it appears they are, though they operate under the founders name now, Porter & Sons, out of Missouri. They sold the Renaissance Pool Tables name to AMF in 1989 and AMF now has tables made in China with the Renaissance name.

So, as I had mentioned in my comments on the "red cloth" thread, these guys, I thought, were making some exquisitely beautiful tables with lots of very impressive hand-carvings (I watched them doing this back then).

They appear to still be in business and I wonder if anyone here has had any dealings with them or may be aware of their products and what they might think of their quality. Happy to report that they continue to be made here in the USA.

I will post pics of 4 of their tables below. Like I said earlier, maybe a little gaudy for some but there's no denying that for carving these designs by hand, the work looks to be most impressive. :thumbup:

Please let me know what you think of them, and also, if you are aware of the playability/durability/overall quality.

Best,
Brian kc

 

[The Schwartz]

All that carving looks very detailed and complicated. I'll bet it took a lot of time, patience, and talent to create those designs.

IMO though, it still looks like the table is wearing a frilly lace skirt. It's what I picture the fruity prince from the movie Braveheart playing pool on. Not my cup of tea. I'd rather look at a Connelly any day.

 

[bfdlad]

Wow, I really like those tables. I can imagine how they may not play well as they are prob built for fancy more than playability. Then again I think a new diamond table with no frills looks sexy to me also. Maybe I just like pool tables but these are cool. Thanks for the pictures.

 

[Secaucus Fats]

In 2007 AMF sold the Renaissance table business to an Ohio based business that imports them from China. AMF ceased all production of pool tables around the same time.

 

[Tbeaux]

Thanks for posting this. With the recent sale of Vitalie it's nice to know there are still well crafted American made furniture style table companies around.

 

[JAM]

I like the purple one!

 

[cut shot]

Its a real looker for sure!:thumbup:

 

[jay helfert]

Renaissance (when they were based in St. Louis) used to be in the very high end home table market, with tables going for fifteen to twenty five thousand. They were heavy duty, solidly made tables. I don't know how well made they are today. These tables look nice, but I wonder what they look like underneath. That's the second place I look when examining a pool table.

 

[3kushn]

Yep and before AMF the company was owned by the guy that owns CL Bailey tables.

The original company was in Bland, MO

 

[cut shot]

I was born near bland. Those poor folks would kick down the doors to earn 8-10 bucks an hour! They are a hard working bunch down there. A shame they closed it down.

 

[Kickin' Chicken]

Renaissance (when they were based in St. Louis) used to be in the very high end home table market, with tables going for fifteen to twenty five thousand. They were heavy duty, solidly made tables. I don't know how well made they are today. These tables look nice, but I wonder what they look like underneath. That's the second place I look when examining a pool table.

As I had mentioned in the other thread, these guys had some serious operation going with old-time Italian craftsmen carving & chiseling magnificent artwork, really, in the open air right next to their Santa Ana shop's overhead door. And for me, a then 23 y.o. trying to learn the pool table building trade, it was quite an experience.

Funny that the one I liked the best, despite all of this world class woodworking going on, had zero wood. See-through clear lucite with a purple cloth. LOL!

No doubt, these guys were catering to So Cal's very wealthy residents.

Equally fun for me was the famous Unser Race Shop, just on the other side. Got to go enjoy that tour, as well.

Best,
Brian kc

 

[jbecker]

I have the second one with a Renaissance Custom Original on the serial number plate. I am not sure how old it is. We have had it 20 years. It is in excellent shape. Does anyone know how much it is worth?

 

[M HOUSE]

Here's the story

As I had mentioned in the other thread, these guys had some serious operation going with old-time Italian craftsmen carving & chiseling magnificent artwork, really, in the open air right next to their Santa Ana shop's overhead door. And for me, a then 23 y.o. trying to learn the pool table building trade, it was quite an experience.

Funny that the one I liked the best, despite all of this world class woodworking going on, had zero wood. See-through clear lucite with a purple cloth. LOL!

No doubt, these guys were catering to So Cal's very wealthy residents.

Equally fun for me was the famous Unser Race Shop, just on the other side. Got to go enjoy that tour, as well.

Best,
Brian kc

In '87 I worked for a pool table store in Houston that was a distributer for Renaissance. The owners of the store were friends of "Cap" Porter, the founder of Renaissance. Cap was the master craftsman. He designed and built some bueatiful and very ornate tables. The table with the purple cloth was called the Royal Georgeian and retailed for $28,000 in 1987. Cap was famous for his wood working and even taught classes at either USC or UCLA for a while.

Those very wealthy So Cal residents are actually the ones that got the Porter family out of the pool table business. When Cap discovered that he could sell the movie star set kitchen cabinets for $100,000 a pop, making pool tables became a big waste of time. The family sold the pool table making part of the business to the company in Bland, Mo. Some of the designs would be similar, but obviously the tables were not the same once Cap was no longer involved.

Anyone lucky enough to have a Cap Porter original has a masterpiece.

 

[M HOUSE]

Lucite table

Brian,

Do you remember if the Lucite table you saw had round chrome legs?

 

[Kickin' Chicken]

one heck of a coincidence?

I was just pm'd within the last half-hour by another az'er about this very same July 2010 post.

Is this just a crazy coincidence or were you guys talking?

As for the lucite table, it very well may have had round chrome legs but I sure can't remember.

It did have a ball return that you could watch the balls all the way to the ball box, courtesy of the clear lucite.

Nice memory.

Do you recall a clear lucite model?

Best,
Brian kc

 

[M HOUSE]

Lucite, yes we had one

Yes, we had one of those Lucite tables in our store. Inside the chrome legs was a thick walled steel drum. Each leg weighed well over 200 lbs. Our installers begged us not to sell that table because they wanted no part in moving it.

Turned out to be a good thing we didn't sell it. Our store was located on the frontage road next to I-45. One night a car ran off the road and went through our big display window. It destroyed everthing it hit until it ran into that Lucite table. That table didn't budge which probaly prevented a lot more damage.

 

[Kickin' Chicken]

So, regarding the coincidence of two az'ers (you being one) both contacting me about this very same 1 year old post, both within maybe 40 minutes of each another, this really is pure coincidence?

As for the lucite table not budging, it doesn't surprise me at all. Those Renaissance guys seemed to be sparing nothing when it came to putting their tables together.

Thanks for the history on Cap Porter. Interesting stuff.

Best,
Brian kc

 

[M HOUSE]

pure coincidence

So, regarding the coincidence of two az'ers (you being one) both contacting me about this very same 1 year old post, both within maybe 40 minutes of each another, this really is pure coincidence?

As for the lucite table not budging, it doesn't surprise me at all. Those Renaissance guys seemed to be sparing nothing when it came to putting their tables together.

Thanks for the history on Cap Porter. Interesting stuff.

Best,
Brian kc

Some people like to say that nothing happens by chance. I guess this proves them wrong. It was just a pure coincidence.

 

[Blue Hog ridr]

These tables look nice, but I wonder what they look like underneath. That's the second place I look when examining a pool table.

Thats funny Jay because thats what I do when examining a women.

Those tables make my eyes bleed but there is no denying the craftsmanship involved, thats a fer sure. Just not my cup of beer.

 

[1581zebra]

In doing some research into my old table, I ran across this old thread and thought I'd toss my two cents in...
My parents bought a table from Charles Porter that we took possession of in (I think) February of '79. I grew up playing on it, and always appreciated it even as a kid. When I left home for the military in '87 my dad sold it since no one else used it. I recently tracked it down and bought it back from the widow of the guy my dad sold it to. Soon after this guy got the table, he died, and his wife never had it set up... so for the last 24 years it's been stored in an attic in Cary, NC. Not such a great place to store such a piece of furniture. I decided to take a chance on it since it was still boxed up and it holds such sentiment for me. The set up was finished yesterday with new rubber and 860, and after all those years in such an abusive environment, it's exactly as it was when last I saw it. It went together with ease- the mechanic made several comments about the quality. I'm no table mechanic, but I suspect the fact that he only put 3 wedges under the slate to make it perfect is a testament to the high quality? As far as playability... Most of my time the last 24 years has been on gold crowns, and this table doesn't *feel* like a gold crown, but it does feel solid as a rock. I remember playing on an old restored Brunswick a few years back that impressed me a bit, and this table feels a lot like that one did, if that makes sense. The craftsmanship is amazing imo. I'll post a cell phone pic that doesn't do it justice in a bit...

[/IMG]
Sent from my Droid using Tapatalk