Why does my table jiggle?

9BallPaul

9BallPaul

Banned
I'm not often around this corner of the forum, but I need the expertise that hangs out here. I posted last month on the main board, but got only a handful of responses. So if these sounds familiar, it's been copied and pasted.

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Yikes! My table ain't stable!

Help me out here. I own an American-made 8-foot table with three piece, one-inch slate. Table was manufactured and made in the USA and assembled in my basement by a reputable mechanic employed by a reputable dealer, from whom I bought the table new.

For the past year, I've sometimes thought I noticed balls moving slightly when I backed away from shooting a shot from the end rail, one that caused me to lean my body weight against the table.

Yesterday I confirmed that this was happening by moving my weight against the end rail and watching the balls. Yep, they moved. Is this OK?

On a side note, the table features hard phenolic pockets. A shot fired hard into the side pockets sometimes bounces straight back onto the table, whereas a table equipped with softer, old-fashioned leather-slung pockets would almost surely acccept the ball. What to do?
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and then check to see that the top of the leg and the bottom of the frame are tight against each other,no gaps or that will make for a shakey table.
 
9BallPaul said:
I'm not often around this corner of the forum, but I need the expertise that hangs out here. I posted last month on the main board, but got only a handful of responses. So if these sounds familiar, it's been copied and pasted.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Yikes! My table ain't stable!

Help me out here. I own an American-made 8-foot table with three piece, one-inch slate. Table was manufactured and made in the USA and assembled in my basement by a reputable mechanic employed by a reputable dealer, from whom I bought the table new.

For the past year, I've sometimes thought I noticed balls moving slightly when I backed away from shooting a shot from the end rail, one that caused me to lean my body weight against the table.

Yesterday I confirmed that this was happening by moving my weight against the end rail and watching the balls. Yep, they moved. Is this OK?

On a side note, the table features hard phenolic pockets. A shot fired hard into the side pockets sometimes bounces straight back onto the table, whereas a table equipped with softer, old-fashioned leather-slung pockets would almost surely acccept the ball. What to do?
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Click to expand...
Post a picture of your table here on AZ, so I can see what it looks like, then I'll comment.

Glen
 
i dont know what kind of table you have but here is a senario

AMF had a table called the Rouge, the rouge was the cheapest table in their line at that time.(not a bad table but the cheapest)
this table had 2 legs and 2 long beams with 4 cross beams for the frame.
there was a lot of play in the main beams where they attached to the legs.
if your floor was off a little bit and all you did was tighten bolt A with nut B
the frame would be twisted just a bit....(also the frame needed to be squared)......so when it was finished, it would wobble or move just a bit...

with out seeing your table or knowing what kind of floor you have its is almost impossible to say what you need to do ......

i have also seen wooden floors that would give as you walked around the table making the balls drift .. if thats the case you need to fix the floor...

i hoppe this helps
scott
 
9BallPaul said:
Done:

http://www.presidentialbilliards.com/vegas.htm

The table sits on a basement floor, on thick carpet with thick padding. It weighs about 900 pounds. Thanks for the advice.
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Alright, this is my thoughts. Your table, because of the design is better built to set on a hard surface, not carpeting such as yours, and because the table leg bases are small in diameter, they don't cover as much surface as they need to in order to create the stability you're talking about. Your carpeting and padding is thick enough that the table weight is not enough to fully settle down into the carpet, so it's more or less sitting on a sponge, thus the shaking, so...either you need to remove the carpet under the legs or...you need to disperse the weight of the table legs over a broader area, like putting something like 12" round plates under the legs of the table, that way the weight of the table sits more flat on the surface of the carpeting/padding as to stop the sponge feel of the table shaking and moving.

Glen
 
9BallPaul said:
Done:

http://www.presidentialbilliards.com/vegas.htm

The table sits on a basement floor, on thick carpet with thick padding. It weighs about 900 pounds. Thanks for the advice.
Click to expand...

This model doesn't appear to have a center stretcher, not that it has to to be stable, but it does help. That being said, you will want to check the tightness of the bolts where the legs meet the frame. They should be completely snugged down so there is NO PLAY... Also check the feet of the table, if they are adjustable make sure the insert in the base of the leg is securely fastened to the leg.

Finally, if all your hardware and frame components are tight and there is no loose joinery in the cabinet, you may have to look at the actual design and engineering of the table to determine a fix for this problem.

You have a very fine looking table there...:thumbup: I hope this helps you find the problem.

Jay
 
Thanks for your your replies, guys. I knew I could depend on this board. Since posting the thread opener, I talked to my dealer and he agreed that his mechanic should stop by my house for a look-see.

He too mentioned the idea of dispersing the weight over a larger area.

But now I fallen head-over-heels for a new table -- a Brunswick Gibson. Here's a pic:

http://www.brunswickhomeandbilliard.com/pool_tables/brunswick/casual/gibson.html

I've got a feeling that would be real stable. Trouble is, I've gotta sell the idea to Mrs. 9BP.
 
Well, You missed one on Craigs list this week. It went cheap. A friend called and want's me to set it up. Ron
 
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