What to do with my Brunswick GC5 TE cushions?

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wealmostlostdetroit

Member
Hi guys.

Need help with my GC5 TE and its cushions.

Table: Brunswick Gold Crown 5 Tournament Edition, around 15 years old.
Cloth: Andy 988
Rubbers: Superspeeds that came with it
Conditions: around 70 degrees (+-5), 40-50% humidity most of the time


All other Brunswick GC's I have played on had that notorious bounce off the rail but somehow I don't get it on my own table. In almost all cases the ball loses speed when it comes off the cushion. The cloth (Andy 988) isn't new but still plays faster than a new Simonis so please take that into the account when watching the video.

Read somewhere that the ball should travel at least 4 lengths at break speed but I usually get 3.5 or in some cases even slightly less.

What is the reason for this behavior and what to do? Assume I'd like to imitate similar conditions to Brunswick's in pool halls - sizeable bounce off the rail, fast cloth and the rails need to grab the spin a decent amount. Right now there's no bounce and not much spin grab, balls usually slip on the rail which is resulting in far shallower angles than expected (and way too many balls pocketed). Is this a characteristic of Andy 988 or something to do with rails again?

I was thinking:
- New Artemis rubbers which are supposed to be more bouncy and spin-grabbing than Superspeeds while also getting pocket size down to 4/4.25 from 4.55
- Downgrade from Andy 988 to new Andy 900/588 or Simonis which should perhaps help with the angles and grips

Is there anything else that could play a factor here? The way rails/cloth are installed, any suggestions welcome.
 
Last edited:
wealmostlostdetroit said:
Hi guys.

Need help with my GC5 TE and its cushions.

Table: Brunswick Gold Crown 5 Tournament Edition, around 15 years old.
Cloth: Andy 988
Rubbers: Superspeeds that came with it
Conditions: around 70 degrees (+-5), 40-50% humidity most of the time


All other Brunswick GC's I have played on had that notorious bounce off the rail but somehow I don't get it on my own table. In almost all cases the ball loses speed when it comes off the cushion. The cloth (Andy 988) isn't new but still plays faster than a new Simonis so please take that into the account when watching the video.

Read somewhere that the ball should travel at least 4 lengths at break speed but I usually get 3.5 or in some cases even slightly less.

What is the reason for this behavior and what to do? Assume I'd like to imitate similar conditions to Brunswick's in pool halls - sizeable bounce off the rail, fast cloth and the rails need to grab the spin a decent amount. Right now there's no bounce and not much spin grab, balls usually slip on the rail which is resulting in far shallower angles than expected (and way too many balls pocketed). Is this a characteristic of Andy 988 or something to do with rails again?

I was thinking:
- New Artemis rubbers which are supposed to be more bouncy and spin-grabbing than Superspeeds while also getting pocket size down to 4/4.25 from 4.55
- Downgrade from Andy 988 to new Andy 900/588 or Simonis which should perhaps help with the angles and grips

Is there anything else that could play a factor here? The way rails/cloth are installed, any suggestions welcome.
Click to expand...
You might have more luck in the ask a mechanic section. That said make sure your rail bolts are properly torqued. I don't know the torque specs for a brunswick but for a diamond it's 12 ft/lbs. It can make quite a bit of difference and it's not uncommon for them to not be set right by the installers, also they can (potentially) loosen over time just with the shifting of seasons and use.
 
I'd say likely an install issue or table is dirty.

3.5 vs 4 lengths could be the speed you're hitting isn't 4's distance.

I'm not up on Artemis current offerings and believe the backing (profile) is not direct replacement for gold crown. I'd get superspeeds again, if needed.

And simonis.
 
wealmostlostdetroit said:
Hi guys.

Need help with my GC5 TE and its cushions.

Table: Brunswick Gold Crown 5 Tournament Edition, around 15 years old.
Cloth: Andy 988
Rubbers: Superspeeds that came with it
Conditions: around 70 degrees (+-5), 40-50% humidity most of the time


All other Brunswick GC's I have played on had that notorious bounce off the rail but somehow I don't get it on my own table. In almost all cases the ball loses speed when it comes off the cushion. The cloth (Andy 988) isn't new but still plays faster than a new Simonis so please take that into the account when watching the video.

Read somewhere that the ball should travel at least 4 lengths at break speed but I usually get 3.5 or in some cases even slightly less.

What is the reason for this behavior and what to do? Assume I'd like to imitate similar conditions to Brunswick's in pool halls - sizeable bounce off the rail, fast cloth and the rails need to grab the spin a decent amount. Right now there's no bounce and not much spin grab, balls usually slip on the rail which is resulting in far shallower angles than expected (and way too many balls pocketed). Is this a characteristic of Andy 988 or something to do with rails again?

I was thinking:
- New Artemis rubbers which are supposed to be more bouncy and spin-grabbing than Superspeeds while also getting pocket size down to 4/4.25 from 4.55
- Downgrade from Andy 988 to new Andy 900/588 or Simonis which should perhaps help with the angles and grips

Is there anything else that could play a factor here? The way rails/cloth are installed, any suggestions welcome.
Click to expand...
How did you determine that the Andy cloth is faster than Simonis? Its completely normal for the ball to lose speed every time it contacts a rail. Usually the biggest factor in the speed of a table is the cloth. I went from original Monarch Superspeeds and unknown cloth, it was too nappy to be Simonis, to Artemis cushions and Simonis 860 on my GC1 along with sub-rail modifications for current profile cushions and my table went from 4 lengths to 4 1/2-4 3/4 lengths up and down. I don't know for sure but I would guess most of the speed I picked up was due to the cloth and not the cushions.
 
Are you the original owner of this table and have had it 15 years, and noticed the speed has declined over the years?

Or, did you just buy this table used and have it set up in your home?

The video does not seem too far off to me, but 3.5 or less rails is definitely off.
4.25 rails should be quite easy to achieve on any Gold Crown.

Cushions going bad on a GC5, of 15 years, is probably not common. I play on many 4's with original cushions and they play like new.
 
For a shot like the one in your video, the cue ball will lose nearly half of its speed when contacting the cushion. That's normal. Most players get so use to that loss, it seems as if it doesn't lose any speed. If the ball gets a "big bounce" and only loses 30%, it seems to pick up speed. But the bounce in the video seems weak.

The rails could be dead. Brunswick has had a supplier problem with Superspeed. In the 1990s it was horrible but I don't know about your vintage.

If the cushions are very slippery, you can lose a little more speed because the cue ball comes off with spin back towards the rail. This is often seen on brand new cloth and on high-nylon cloth sometimes.

See how many lengths your can get on tables down at the PH. If you can get 4.5 lengths on those tables and only 3.5 on your table, I think there is definitely something wrong.

On the other hand, if your rails all play the same, you could just leave them like that. If they have other strange behaviors that make your practice unlike real play, I'd try to get them fixed.
 
doesnt sound like your table is too far off normal. why start changing it to something that isnt fun to play on.

are you so good that 4.5 inch pockets are no fun because you run out all the time? are you that good?
 
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