Warning to those buying used Gold Crowns!

realkingcobra

realkingcobra

Well-known member
Silver Member
I've said it over and over in the past, and I'm saying it once again. If you're one of the people thinking of buying a used Gold Crown...because you've always wanted one, and think you've found one a a great price and you're ready to pull the trigger to buy it...THINK TWICE before spending you're money...and ASK QUESTIONS FIRST!!!

Here I am in Stephens City, VA working on my last Gold Crown 3 before heading back to the Diamond factory...and I'm working on another Frankenstein Gold Crown...once again:eek: Rails are from three different Gold Crown 3's...and no, just because they're GC3 rails that don't make them match up when they're installed. A Gold Crown 4 frame....which needs to be modified so the ends will quit sagging down...and so on and so on...same thing, different customer!

All I'm saying is listen to me, there's always someone selling a Gold Crown somewhere in this country, and it's always a great deal on a table....UNTIL...you get it home and set up. Not everyone selling a GC is on the level with you about the table, their first interest is in getting your money...because they have something YOU want to buy, and for the most part...you have NO idea about the condition of the table because you don't know any better...so you end up being the perfect customer in the end....you bought the table, and they have your money....done deal!!!

I'll post some pictures of this job as it's getting done, maybe some of you will get something out of this, maybe you won't.....but at least I tried to inform some of you about what to look for, and what to avoid....who knows!!

Glen
 
I bought a used Gold Crown and it's been a great table and will most likely continue to be great for many years to come.

Of course I looked it over and tested it out first just like you should with any table.

Bottom line I got a great table at a very good price.
 
Odd that this trait runs so strong in GC's. Those GC owners must be a bunch of hippies willing to go all willy-nilly on their table like frankenstein in a cemetary.
 
Yeah for every Horror story of a GC 3 there are one's that play great. I bought a GC 3 about 5 years ago from a closed pool room. $1000 bucks I figured the rails would be crap. After storing it for 3 months set the table up and to my amazement the rails played perfectly. Table is perfectly level and no sag at either end.

So like anything else in life sometimes you make out and sometimes you don't
 
realkingcobra said:
I've said it over and over in the past, and I'm saying it once again. If you're one of the people thinking of buying a used Gold Crown...because you've always wanted one, and think you've found one a a great price and you're ready to pull the trigger to buy it...THINK TWICE before spending you're money...and ASK QUESTIONS FIRST!!!

Here I am in Stephens City, VA working on my last Gold Crown 3 before heading back to the Diamond factory...and I'm working on another Frankenstein Gold Crown...once again:eek: Rails are from three different Gold Crown 3's...and no, just because they're GC3 rails that don't make them match up when they're installed. A Gold Crown 4 frame....which needs to be modified so the ends will quit sagging down...and so on and so on...same thing, different customer!

{SNIP}
Glen
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Are you still planning to make a stop in Arlington, VA on your way back to the factory (I hope!)?

Thanks,
Cory
 
mosconiac said:
Odd that this trait runs so strong in GC's. Those GC owners must be a bunch of hippies willing to go all willy-nilly on their table like frankenstein in a cemetary.
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Pool room tables are sometimes disassembled and moved a lot.
If they are apart and not marked, many parts of the tables could get reassembled with different rails, frames or slates.

Even if they are marked, and moved to a different location.. the movers could mix parts just putting them in the truck.
Could happen easily if many tables are shipped at the same time. The parts will fit but will not be factory matched. IMO
 
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Paul Dayton said:
I have found that it is always best to ask a competitor what they think about the other guys products.
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I don't think brunswick are really competitors.

Brunswick is clearly not interested in 'real' pool and I don't seee much interest in the recreational/ home market from the Diamond folks.

And on topic...anybody buying a used table would be well-served by having a professional look it over first.
 
Used is used. I would only buy from a reputable mechanic/installer. In general I never buy used anything. Thanks for the thread. This can save someone a lot of grief & dissapointment.
 
Look - we all know that Glen is partial to Diamond tables.

But some of these comments are a little 'nitty'.

Glen is a mechanics mechanic - to insinuate that he criticizes GC because he does work for Diamond is a cheap shot.

His pride will not allow him to cut a corner or do a bad job.

He is trying to do a public service with these type of posts.

Also one of the reasons he likes Diamonds is that he helped design them and they specifically addressed the issues that seem to plague the older GC.

I hope everyone accepts this information in the spirit it was offered.

Mark Griffin
 
Mark Griffin said:
Look - we all know that Glen is partial to Diamond tables.

But some of these comments are a little 'nitty'.

Glen is a mechanics mechanic - to insinuate that he criticizes GC because he does work for Diamond is a cheap shot.

His pride will not allow him to cut a corner or do a bad job.

He is trying to do a public service with these type of posts.

Also one of the reasons he likes Diamonds is that he helped design them and they specifically addressed the issues that seem to plague the older GC.

I hope everyone accepts this information in the spirit it was offered.

Mark Griffin
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Tap Tap Tap
 
The warning also applies to most vintage and antique tables as well.
Sure they are beautiful to look at, just make sure you know what you are getting!

It's one thing to go out and buy a "fixer upper" on purpose...
Its another to get duped into a cheap table that will ultimately cost you three times what you paid just to make it playable.
 
Mark Griffin said:
Look - we all know that Glen is partial to Diamond tables.

But some of these comments are a little 'nitty'.

Glen is a mechanics mechanic - to insinuate that he criticizes GC because he does work for Diamond is a cheap shot.

His pride will not allow him to cut a corner or do a bad job.

He is trying to do a public service with these type of posts.

Also one of the reasons he likes Diamonds is that he helped design them and they specifically addressed the issues that seem to plague the older GC.

I hope everyone accepts this information in the spirit it was offered.

Mark Griffin
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Good post Mark, I am not a big fan of the Gold Crown vs Diamond war. I am a big fan of Glen and his work. He helps others out every day and anyone who has ever had their table worked on by Glen will attest to that.

The reason why GC's can be so dangerous to buy is that they were the greatest competition table for many years so there was thousands of them and over the years they were mixed and bastardized. Not all of them but many were. I need a Gold Crown fix now and then but I bought a Diamond for my home table and Glen gladly helped me out.;)
 
Black-Balled said:
Brunswick is clearly not interested in 'real' pool [/B]
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That's interesting. New to pool are you?



Anyway. I am looking for a Gold Crown myself. Obviously we need to be careful. Gold Crowns have been the standard and the mainstay for decades, so many of them have had hard lives in pool halls. It seems to me that with the downturns in the industry they get sold off, stored, mixed up, sold, set up, etc multiple times. This leads to the Frankensteins.

I am trying to educate myself as much as I can. But I certainly won't be buying a new table.

One of the things I am considering is buying a used Gold Crown from a billiards dealer/shop I found in my region. I don't know them though and don't know how well I can trust them. Realize that plenty of these Frankensteins are sold by people in the industry...dealers...mechanics...etc.

Where I am from I would have been going to West Penn Billiards or Saunier Wilhelm. I am from Pittsburgh originally, now I live in Florida. I knew them. I trusted them. I bought a Brunswick from Saunier Wilhelm about 25 years ago. But I don't live there anymore and Saunier Wilhelm is sadly gone anyway. So I am left to my own devices. I know I won't have RKC, and I will not be becoming a table mechanic myself just so I can know how to buy a table. So how am I supposed to best optimize my chances of getting a decent table? I don't know really.

Even when you trust people it isn't always fool proof. I made the mistake of letting the shop at West Penn Billiards put tips on my JOSS shafts in the late 80's. I don't even want to go into the details but I will tell you that I have never let anybody work on the cue since. I learned to do my own tips because of that experience.

So my search is on. As far as snide comments about Brunswick or Diamond tables Vs Gold Crowns from some folks, frankly they can stuff it. I played on Gold Crowns for longer than some of the folks on this forum have been alive. I want a Gold Crown.

.
 
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That saunier welhelm story brings back memories for Pittsburgh....LMAO
I spent plenty of time in that store....couldn't wait to get back home and put that stevens rubber backed cloth on my brunswick table.....LMAO
I have some GC4s right now for sale.....if your interested you can call me.
I also have brunswick lights.

770-548-4292
Mark Gregory
 
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