Vacuum? How to do it?
Real Dufour
I got the full course on how to use the brush on my pool table, but I
never though of asking if it's the only thing to do... To me, even if you
brush, chalk powder will fill the cloth eventually. (I'm chalking a lot,
and after an hour our two of play, the cloth is not green anymore!) So
the big question is:
Do you vacuum a pool table???
If so, what accessory do you use (I was thinking about using that round
brush with long soft hairs...)?
It's just that I'm thinking that the chalk powder may damage the cloth
eventually... I'm not an expert, so please let me know if I'm wrong!
Robert Hokkanen
Have not used a vacuum on Simonis cloth. When chalk appears on the
bridge hand the
Simonis is wiped down with a dampish (water)
cloth after play.
roadtrip
Well, several people I know (including me) use a hand vacuum frequently
on Simonis to remove chalk and dust. It must have a non-friction
attachment like a brush, not a beater bar or anything abrasive.
The reason for this is that when Simonis is wiped down with a wet cloth,
the chalk and powder form a sort of glue, which eventually slows down
the play of the table. I know this from personal experience. Although
the table looks much better after damp wiping, the congealed "gunk" in
the cloth will seriously slow your table down.
I had to re-cover mine; it got so slow it was like playing in a swamp.
Now I just vacuum and it's worked fine for a year and a half.
Bill Creasy, a.k.a. "roadtrip", Pool Tournament Fnformation on the Web
David Nadler
Without intending any disrespect, I've seen people do
this too and not quite believed my eyes. Is this really
the right thing to do? I don't like the idea of
residual chalk dust mud and dampness in the cloth.
dn
--
Craig Arnold
The night before the finals matches at the BCA Tourney the tables were
vacuumed using indusrial canister type vacuums with solid 4" wide
nozzles. Then the table rails and pockets were wiped down with a wet
cloth and finally the balls were polished by machine.
I use a crevas tool at home and think it works well. I know my hands are
cleaner at home after an hours play than any place else but then my home
table doesn't get played as much.
Craig
Tacoma WA
Cuestick
We have 24 tables in our pool room, including a 6x12 snooker table. I would
certainly like to see them all get used more than they do, but we do have them
full quite often. We vac our tables off every Monday and Friday. We use the
crevass tool under the cushions, then an 8" wide natural hair brush to do the
rest of the table. Our vac is a Royal Commercial vac, but isn't nearly so
powerful as a "shop vac" which would be too powerful and stretch the cloth.
The only thing I would definately say not to do is to use a dirt devil type
vac on it that has rotating brushes and a beater bar.
About once a month we take a towel in a bucket of hot water with a spoonfull of woolite
in it, and wring out the towel about 75-80%, and wipe the surface of the cloth with
it. If done right, the cloth should dry in a matter of minutes. Our cloth is all
Simonis, and this seems to restore alot of it's original playability and color
without damage. It also makes for a good tight rack by eliminating the divots
caused by successive racking.
Matt
Billiards Playground, Kalamazoo MI
Ron Shepard
In article <338469...@serv01.net-link.net>, Cuestick
<cues...@serv01.net-link.net> wrote:
[...]
>The only thing I would definately say not to do is to use a dirt devil type
>vac on it that has rotating brushes and a beater bar. [...]
Do you believe that the rotating brush is unnecessary or that it does
damage to the cloth? Does it tear the cloth, or does it do something
else? Is there some frequency threshold where using a hand vac with a
rotating brush would be acceptable for a home table (say once a month or
less)?
$.02 -Ron Shepard
Frank Glenn
I have posted this before, but I use windex to clean the table, and I
use a vacuum. First I sweep with the brush to one corner, and then
vacuum. Then I spray the table (mist would be a better description)
with windex. I vacuum the brush to get the chalk out of it, and then
I brush the table again from the head to the foot. I know other
people who do this, and have had no problem with the table or the
cloth. My table does not have simonis on it, but one of my friends
does, and he is the one who turned me on to this. His table is very
fast. It is always very fast. He is in the cuemaking business, and
the table is in his shop, so it gets a fair amount of play (more than
a home table would). The vacuum I use is a dustbuster, battery job,
but Dave uses an upright. I have uded our upright with the hose
connection, and it didn't seem to hurt it. My cloth no longer pills
up, but the only wear spots are from the head string where I break. I
move the cue around to keep from wearing a hole in one spot. Hope
this was helpfull.
Frank
Robert Hokkanen
Frank Glenn's mention of misting with Windex
brings to mind a discussion with Walt Harris
(Billiard Atlas, author) some years ago concerning the practice of using
a silicone
spray (mist) on billiard tables , after cleaning,
to maintain the speed and ball slide. Don't
recollect the product name. At that time, he
mentioned that Sang Lee imported a spray
from Japan. Perhaps it wouldn't work on the
slower Simonis or Granito cloths. Anyone
have any experience in this area?
As a clarification to my earlier posting on using
a dampish cloth on Simonis; table brushing preceded the wipe down.
Also , talcum powder
use is severely limited so the chalk/powder
"glue" by Craig Arnold has not been experienced. The cloth
will be inspected closely upon the next recovering to see if our table
cleaning procedures should be changed. If misting
with a spray does truly reduce the coefficient
of friction perhaps that practice should be
implemented on the pocket tables also.
Lucky
> >The only thing I would definately say not to do is to use a dirt devil type
> >vac on it that has rotating brushes and a beater bar. [...]
>
> Do you believe that the rotating brush is unnecessary or that it does
> damage to the cloth? Does it tear the cloth, or does it do something
> else? Is there some frequency threshold where using a hand vac with a
> rotating brush would be acceptable for a home table (say once a month or
> less)?
>
> $.02 -Ron Shepard
I use a Dirt Devil, and am quite happy with the results. I don't have
any stretches, tears, rips, marks or blemishes of any kind. I always
vacuum in the same direction, Not sure if this makes any difference. I
vacuum, the tops of the rails and under the rails with an attachment
also.
I'm just doing this on my table that has 21 oz. mali cloth on it. There
might be some reasons for not doing it in a pool hall, maybe it does add
more wear and tear to the cloth.
It saves me alot of time, looks good, keeps the table fast, doesn't
affect the playability.
There's something missing though, maybe a bit of nostalgia.
Lucky
=^.^=
she...@tcg.anl.gov (Ron Shepard) wrote:
>In article <338469...@serv01.net-link.net>, Cuestick
><cues...@serv01.net-link.net> wrote:
>[...]
>>The only thing I would definately say not to do is to use a dirt devil type
>>vac on it that has rotating brushes and a beater bar. [...]
>Do you believe that the rotating brush is unnecessary or that it does
>damage to the cloth? Does it tear the cloth, or does it do something
>else? Is there some frequency threshold where using a hand vac with a
>rotating brush would be acceptable for a home table (say once a month or
>less)?
I vacuum our table using a Sears canister vac (Whispertone is the
model line). I use the brush (dusting) attachment. Most moderate to
expensive vacuums have an air flow control switch or level where you
can allow some air to enter the metal tube, thereby decreasing the
suction somewhat. I always adjust this to let some air in when I
vacuum the table, otherwise I'm afraid the suction would be too
powerful for the cloth.
I would never use a beater brush attachment.
Bev =^.^= clou...@primenet.com
http://www.primenet.com/~cloudbow/
http://www.bayside.net/users/cbsites/
http://www.bayside.net/users/cbsites/pool/
timand...@snet.net
Ron/Lucky,
I use the "Dirt Devil" all the time but I slip off
the rubber bad to disable the spinning brush. I too vacuum and brush
on the same direction. Towards the rack. I don't know if that is
important or not.
Tim fm CT
timand...@snet.net
Frank,
I forgot to mention another suggestion that has worked very
well for me. I place two scraps of felt about 5" X 11" each on the
table where I break. One under the cue, and the other on the wood
apron of the table so my stick doesn't hit the table. It is especially
important to put it on the pocket if you are breaking from the side. I
wish some one had told me sooner about this because i found stick burn
marks on my leather pockets before doing this.
See ya, Tim
=^.^=
timand...@snet.net wrote:
That is the direction I brush and vacuum, also.
I'm not sure if *that* particular direction is important, but I think
it's important to always brush in the same direction, whichever
direction you choose.
Bev =^.^= clou...@primenet.com
http://www.bayside.net/users/cbsites/pool/
A Steamer Andy
I vary seldom vacume my table. Just brush it when
it needs it. I keep it covered when not in use. My
machine shop is downstares and I some times use
an air gun to blow accumulation from uner the rails.
I have shamonis (not sure of the spelling) cloth.
Andy
Jeffrey Weiss
apatt...@vax2.rainis.net (A Steamer Andy):
> I have shamonis (not sure of the spelling) cloth.
So, besides being the author of "The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Billiards", a
columnist in BD, and curator of the Billiard Archive, Mike's now got a sideline
business selling cheap imitation cloth?
What's next, Shamboti Cues?
--
jw (NYC)