Today I have been over to a members club in Bloxwich close to Walsall and Birmingham
the Members club have a very nice upstairs room with 3 period pre 1900 snooker Tables
these tables had been totally renovated with new cushions and pocket plates in 2008
The far table was my first to be worked on , this table had thin slates and I would say was circa 1890
I stripped down the cushions and payed close attention to the sharp woodwork that was causing split cloth on the center pockets where balls where impacting as they went down the slate fall
I filed and rasped the sharp edge off and sanded the wood too , I stuck two pieces of tape on top of this filed and sanded wood angle before I re-covered the cushions , the cloth will now last far longer before a split appears .
although the slate joints where not too bad , I did improve them by surface filling with easy sand car body filler to make a much better blend of joint .
I also checked the level and found it to be good on this table
The table has just been finished and tomorrow I will also re-cover the table furthest away from this one
the balls being set up for play , I re-covered this table in the new light weight Strachan 6811 29 oz cloth
I did panic a bit when I unwrapped the cloth as the supplier had only put 4 cushion strips in the pack , a quick phone call informed me that this new 29 oz 6811 tournament cloth came 6 inches wider than normal
and that the other 2 cushion strips had to be taken off the side of the bed cloth to make up the 6 required for the re-cover
The new cloth went on very well , I found it easy to stretch , and that it had a finer shaved closer nap than the 30 oz that I normally use .
I am awaiting feed back from this re-cover from the players before I could recommend , but it all looks good for fitting it .
I will add further photo’s later of the 2nd re-cover .
the second table, both tables had some sharp edges to the end of the cushions , these where being caught as the ball went down the center pocket
and with hard ball and sharp wood the result was splitting cloth .
I sanded the sharp edges to the cushions with a file and sand paper , this rounded the sharp edge away and the cloth will now not split at this point in the future
I always look out for this on cushions , especially on replacement cushions as all three tables had been upgraded with Brand new modern cushions in 2008 .
the Strachan 6811 29 0z light weight Tournament (new for 2015) is extra wide and you have to take two cushion strips off the side edge .
the 2nd table I re-covered was a an old Roberts table circa 1880’s / 90’s with octagonal legs and had three munting slate supports in each of the three sections ,
the other two tables have two muntins per section
in fact all the three tables in this room are very old pre 1895 Billiard tables which would have had finger brass top pocket plates on , they have very thin just over an inch slate thickness ,
I think these tables where chosen because the snooker room is upstairs and the slate would have been half the weight of 2 inch thick welsh slates of the day .
the Padmore table at the other end of the room , I can date the start date of Padmore’s to around 1830 when they moved from London to Birmingham
This firm still lives on today , under the Thurston Umbrella of companies of Padmore / Clare/ & Thurston brought together by Clare’s of Liverpool and now based in Liverpool
Based on leg design I would say the center table is the oldest table in this room but the other two tables are within a few years of it
On this visit the Centre table which does not get as much use as the two outside tables did not require any work but the level was checked
This club is called St Johns Snooker club and is based in Bloxwich and they are looking to increase their membership
here is a link to the face book page https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.699270330122868.1073741842.442976969085540&type=3
but if you live in the area or close by then I can highly recommend this club please contact Keith for membership details on 0775 696 4101
they are based on Victoria Avenue Bloxwich WS3 3HS
*Please note the Club is none alcohol as it is in an annex of the Main St Johns church , but that is a good thing for serious snooker players , there are a few century break members at this club
August 18th 2015 we have just had an update feedback on the thinner 29 oz cloth we used on these two tables
Players feedback as follows on the 29 oz Strachan 6811 tournament cloth
Mick Faulkner = cloths are superb fast and accurate control on screw shots top class job
Steve Barton = Knocked in an 88 Break on 1st session on cloths very very nice lovely and fast nothing at all to criticize , They are just perfect
Riley Parsons = Sensational ! they are just perfect for knocking in yet more 100 breaks
Jack Harris = They are the best tables I have ever played on
Mark Thomas , = Perfect can’t fault them in anyway
Stuart Langford = Best I have ever played on
Keith Myatt = even for me , the 2 new cloths are far more reactive than the 30 oz table and very very fast .
Playing on 30 oz is no longer enjoyable .
Everyone wants to play on the 2 tables with the 29 oz clothed tables .
the two juniors Jack and Riley , have now transferred from Ladywood SC to St Johns SC so that they can play on these 29 0z cloths.
They have both been selected to play for ENGLAND U18s and have both already had 3 or 4 centuries each on the new cloths .
As you can see , these tables are perfect and fitted the same.
Assuring GCL Billiards and Geoff of our Business in the future and looking forward to seeing you when the cloths are due their 12 month re-stretching of bed cloths
Kindest regards and thanks for your attention to detail and being a perfectionist like myself.
Keith Myatt ( Secretary St Johns SC )
