Tag Archives: snooker

Posted in News

SNOOKER TABLE RECOVERING BY TIME SERVED BILLIARDS FITTER , is snooker on the Decline ?

I have been guilty of pushing our work towards the Pool table market recentley , but rest assured I have not forgotten or neglected the importance of Snooker Table work .
In todays Cue Sports clubs and pubs etc , the preferance over the years is towards the quick game of Pool , it is important in my profession as a billiards fitter to balance the work between the two cue sports in order to have continuity of work  , and many of you know that pool is slowly if not allready taken over the national cue sports game in the UK , a quick easy game with more turnover for the table owner and useing far less space than a full sized snooker table , many clubs have had their Snooker table’s removed and two Pool table’s put in the same space . where once stood a table taking £4 per hour , now stands two pool,table’s taking 50p ( per 7 min game each ) thats around 9 games per hour = £4.50p each table = £9 an hour , over 100% more takings than the one large full size snooker table . (some charge £1 per game )
As you can see because of this quick easy game of pool  the snooker side in the uk is on the decline , that is why more and more countries outside the uk especialy China are more into snooker than the UK .

But I know there are a lot of die hard fans of Snooker out there , firstly let me say I am proud to have been trained by previous time served fitters who have passed down the art of billiard fitting from master fitter to trainee , sadly this practice is slowly drying up , no more time served fitters are being trained up in the UK , and the table’s have to be kept to an acceptable playing condition , at GCL BILLIARDS we point out that we are Time served Billiards fitters first and foremost., trained in the art of maintaining any billiard or snooker table from a simple service to a full revamp of the table includeing polishing , re-rubbering , Reclothing , nets leathers , leveling , and logistics .

so if you are thinking of having youre table re-covered or re-rubbered , then please do not hesitate to get in touch with Geoff Large a time served billiards fitter at GCL BILLIARDS , just pick up the phone , Geoff will discuss any work you may require and give sound advice .
we are NBSA approved .

Posted in News

LET GCL BILLIARDS RERUBBER OR REPLACE YOURE SUPREME POOL TABLE CUSHIONS BY A QUALIFIED BILLIARDS FITTER

 

A set of the new black rubber cushions .

This week fitting in between work , I am rerubbering 4 sets of 7ft Supreme Pool cushions 2 sets for a client and one for myself to use on a rental table the other a spare set for stock  , I will be useing the new Black rubber which lasts far longer than the original red rubber used in the manufactureing of Supreme winner and prince tables for many years, 
Supreme recently have changed to use black rubber now because of the problem with the hard dead red rubber which happens to tables around 4 to 5 years old or where a table is kept in a cold room , if you are suddenley experiencing a dead cushion or two , then the others are not far behind , the only solution is to rerubber the whole set of  cushions or buy brand new set of cushions from the Factory which will cost you around £120 /£140 per set , which we can also supply.
If the woodwork of the cushions are good then a rerubber is the most cost efective way of solving the problem of dead cushions , I carry a stock of old cushions with good woodwork that I will be rerubbering for exchange with youre old cushions at just £80 per set with the guarentee of the better black rubber being used
. the old red rubber is not good so avoid firms useing this.

I have recently experienced tables where just one cushion was replaced by the last fitter or firm , this is not going to stop the other 5 going rock hard soon after , and is false economy . youre takings wil also go down as players refuse to play on a table with no bounce in the cushions.
Being a time served billiards fitter , I have been trained in the art of Rerubbering in not just pool tables but such games as Bar Billiards , Bagatelle , bumper pool , American pool with triangle shaped rubber, and Full sized snooker tables to match template pocket openings . 
Youre pool table will suddenly play like new once a rerubber and recover has been completed by GCL BILLIARDS.

***GCL BILLIARDS also rerubber other makes of pool tables , but we do not have spare sets in stock to get ready so have to do all work on site rather than exchange ( unless they are brand new from manufacturer ) , please call for a quote . also some tables use smaller rubber such as super league which is 5/8th rubber and not full size like supreme tables ***.

Posted in News

2 more pool tables at Newark receive the GCL BILLIARDS treatment of professional Recover and full internal clean out of rail system


Two out of these 6 Winner supreme pool tables received a recover and full internal degrease and clean of internal ball rails and ramps by GCL billiards Yesterday , some of the best pool players around the counties of Lincolnshire and Nottinghamshire play at this venue in Newark town centre , just like more snooker clubs these days , Newark cue club has gone from a fully 8 snooker table only club to just 4 full size snooker tables and 6 winner supreme 7×4 pool tables all with the new pro lighting  , along with an excellent Professional 3 board darts Room that has just had it’s wall dismantled to open plan it up into the main club .
The pool players are off to play in a tournament at Great yarmouth this weekend , good luck to all the players taking part .

as can be seen here when you place a £20 note under the Electronic level it is showing 0.1 out of true , when the note is removed the reading is 0.0 , I use a combination of an engineers level and this digital level to get the best results when re-leveling a Pool table

we have had a massive influx of orders for re-covering pool tables , and I guess that is down to the winter leagues just starting , we are that busy that I am having to work weekends and evenings to catch up . the hire of pool tables is also busy with another pool table ordered for two weeks time in a local pub , the current hire people just cannot maintain the table to the high standards of the pool teams and pub managers / owners , the Landlord expressed his disapointment in failed call outs to put the table right , this has resulted in GCL,s gain and their loss .
We are true Cue sports people and we only maintain Pool and Snooker tables and that is why we are so thorough in what we do as we are not side tracked by having to put Juke boxes or gameing machines right , we do not deal in coin slot gaming machines only cue sports tables . and we also include two recovers a year in our rental agreement . Backed up by a time served Billiards fitter who knows how to get the table performing level and trouble free .

Posted in Sold

ENBILD FULL SIZE SNOOKER TABLE FOR SALE

Full size snooker table. Enbild World Class Match Table. Dark/mahogany
wood. 8 turned legs. Hand floated 1/¾ inch slate bed. New cloth and re-
covered by Keith Davis ( Ex World Champion Steve’s brother) and never
been played on since. Beautiful table to include all possible
accessories including, shade style light, extra cues, all rests,
extensions, balls, iron, cover, brush, wall scoreboard  etc. Buyer to
be responsible for pick up. Illness forces sale. Other snooker room
items available in this private sale.  One owner since new.  Photos
available.  £1250. 

please get in touch with Geoff c.large@btinternet.com and I will put any Genuine people in touch with the seller.



Please use GCL BILLIARDS in any dismantle and transportation of the table , Geoff Large used to work for a Firm that where East Midlands agents for ENBILD and has set many Enbild tables up in the 1980s and 90s ,they are good tables with hand floated slates.
Hand floating is a way of getting the slates better for trueness than straight out of the packing crate , which 90% of tables where in the 80s and 90s , The table is based in SCOTLAND.

Posted in Sold

Rilet Aristocrat NOW SOLD £2000

NOW SOLD !

A 1987 Riley installed table, this table was brand new when installed, so has only had one careful home owner, never been used in a club and therefore is as mint as you will find one.  The last one that came along in this condition sold straight away.

PLEASE NOTE THIS TABLE HAS STANDARD CUSHIONS AND NOT STEEL BLOCK TYPE.
IT HAS HARD WOOD CUSHIONS WHICH ARE VERY GOOD FOR BOUNCE AND ALMOST AS GOOD AS STEEL BLOCK REBOUND

The table is not as dark as this photo, look at the next photo for a true colour and wood grain.

The table has all the accessories required to play the game and to maintain the cloth in perfect condition.  The iron will be sold with the table if the seller receives the asking price which will be negotiated with the seller.  GCL BILLIARDS is only passing information on about the table, we would however like to be involved with the dismantling and setting up of the table as our reward for pairing the seller and the buyer together.

GCL Billiards has not inspected the table at first hand, but know of the family that the table is coming from and one of the brothers is a well known figure in snooker circles in the Nottingham area and beyond.

If the buyer chooses, a time served billiards fitter could be sent out to check over the table to be double sure it is 100%.  Things like cushion bounce, slate trueness and condition of polish etc can all be scrutinised by a profesional eye (allthough the photos confirm the condition).  There will be a cost to this service though to cover travel and time.

I do know that when the table was purchased new it cost over £4500.  The seller is looking for £2000 or offers in that region.  This does not include the dismantle and set up or any transportation costs, as previously stated they are willing to listen to sensible offers.

I am linking the blog for this advert to www.thesnookerforum.com in the tables section as this will help widen the search for a buyer for the table.

GCL Billiards do not charge a commission for the service of advertising client’s tables, all we ask is that you would consider us for the work of removal, delivery and set up of the table.  We are fully professional and have over 37 years personal experience in the art of billiards fitting.with many personal testimonials.

Please email c.large@btinternet.com for further information regarding this table , quote Aristocrat mint Newark in the heading .

The Table is NOW SOLD , after putting the table up for sale in MAY 2013 , we had no enquiries then all of a sudden within the same week in October 2013  we have two people after it .
Now it shows that these adverts do get noticed , and we still have a client who requires one in the same condition .

Geoff Large
Billiards Fitter

NOW SOLD !

Posted in News

Snooker table for Sale? Snooker table wanted? Free selling and buying service!

As a Billiards/Snooker firm we get a few phone calls from people wishing to sell a full sized snooker table.  We also get clients requiring a snooker table.  Over the years the market has changed in table sales, due to many clubs closing and large snooker club companies shedding clubs that do not pay.  The market is now flooded with full size tables and this reflects on the price that one can expect for a table.

At GCL BILLIARDS we do not buy full sized tables for resale, but we do run a service whereby if a person requires to sell on a table and a client is looking for a table we will put the two together to work out a sale between them.  This generates business for GCL BILLIARDS in the transport and any work required such as rerubber and recover etc.

Only this last week I had a phone call from a customer in MANSFIELD who wanted to sell on his table after many years of ownership.  I explained that we do not buy tables of that size but would look for a person to buy it from him.  I had just the person for him, a client in LINCOLN who had contacted me about 4 weeks previously.  I had been looking at tables on ebay for him, to try and find a good one amongst the many bad ones that you can buy.  I put the two people together and they have worked out a deal whereby the seller gets his room back for other uses and the buyer gets a good table for the right price.

We got the work of transporting and a re-rubber plus recover nets and leathers plus supply a few spares etc.  Everyone is happy at this result and nobody paid a commision for selling or buying.

We do charge an inspection fee though if that is required for peace of mind.  Such things as slate trueness and build quality, pocket openings, condition of rubber and polish, cloth condition and any problems I may see with the table.  The inspection fee covers travelling expenses and time and is calculated on the distance that I have to travel.  This is money well spent as a qualified billiards fitter’s eye over a purchase such as this will save money if you can avoid the bad buys from the good ones.

We do not charge a commission for putting clients together, it is a free service.  All that we ask is that the seller or buyer puts work our way in return for the free service.

******Please note********
I only pass on information about the seller whith his or her permission and normally only pass on emails or a telephone number for the first introduction, not the address.  Any table condition cannot be guaranteed unless inspected at first hand by a GCL BIILIARDS qualified billiards fitter.

An introduction is not a recommendation of the table but to find out if that table is suitable for the buyer’s needs.  I do of course study the table photos and if I think the table is not suitable to pass onto a future buyer, I will inform the seller of this.

Posted in News

Recommendation of my work

I was very pleased to get the following recommendation from Alan Newbold at the Ivanhoe club.  You can be sure that my workmanship on all cuesports tables will be carried out with the same level of craftsmanship and attention to detail as applied to the Ivanhoe club whether that be just one pool table or five full size snooker tables as in this case.

As I have mentioned in a previous Blog post, a large percentage of work coming into GCL BILLIARDS  are the result of recommendations and building up a good reputation with a client base.

I have read other firm’s blogs and referrals and I always wonder why they show recommendations and not put who they are from, opting to say secretery from a working mens club or the owner of a snooker hall rather than mention who and where it is from.
I prefer to show who is recommending me then you will know it is not made up, but is a genuine recommendation or refferal of my work.

IVANHOE SOCIAL CLUB
WILFRED PLACE
ASHBY – DE – LA – ZOUCH
LEICESTERSHIRE
LE65 2GW

Secretary: A.NEWBOLD.

 To whom it may concern

 GEOFF LARGE.

During July 2012, Geoff Large re-covered the five snooker tables at the Ivanhoe Social Club.  Our tables have new cloths every two years and Geoff has done the work on the last three occasions.
I have watched Geoff at work on the tables and I have always been impressed by his skill and attention to detail.  Geoff has a wide knowledge of snooker table technicalities and offers a fund of advice.
Our teams play in local snooker leagues and our tables are considered the best in the area. I would unreservedly recommend Geoff for any work involving snooker/pool tables and the like.
His work is always of the highest standard.  He is thorough, painstaking and always proves genuinely professional in everything he does.

First of 5 tables recovered at the Ivanoe club, two members try it out.