self-levelling liquid on a slate bed to 'true' and level it

[taffy]

has anyone ever tried a self-levelling 'liquid' of some sort in order to level out a slate? I've a dip of 1.5mm on a slate starting nearer than the 200 on the left and finishing around the far end of the 100 hole.

I'm thinking of a a liquid that would go rock hard and how to key it? (a mild acid solution perhaps?).

I'd like to know if anyone has 'saved a slate' this way?

cheers

Taffy

[Sav]

Assuming the dip is caused by a crack (normally is) then I brace them which also prevets the situation worsening

[taffy]

it does have a crack Sav as you say but the crack isn't the reason for the dip, the dip is everywhere within the edge down to the lowest point where I described.

I'm now considering;
Self etching primer
filler primer
rub it down nice 'n steady.

also the primer will go inside the holes and as i've been using tape to tighten the holes it'll help there.

the trouble is that every time these tables are transported it isn't that the crack increases but that it flicks whatever is in the crack out.

Let's see!

Taffy

[Sav]

I've yet to see a sagging slate to that degree where the sag does not centre on a crack. Slate is  a naturally flat material after all?

[taffy]

The laddered wood underneath was offering no support so i withdrew the cheap and poorly angled thin nails and screwed in some "heavy gun" 3" self-drive screws. I then decided to use red oxide. So far I have put on 5 coats in varying amounts and the dip has gone with the rubbing down to do. I need to rub the red oxide down with extreme caution. I'll use a rubber block and P320 I think, wet'n with soap, spirit level -for its straight edge-at hand. We'll see!

I was in the market for Hainsworth 5/8" cushion rubber (L-shaped) but have received some Northern Rubber 7/8" L-shaped for big snooker tables. Can you tell me anything about how it compares etc?

cheers

Taffy

[taffy]

I had a Jelks slate with a surface crack (only) that was all bowed down to the edge of the slate, it was at its worst just left of the left 50 hole.

Photo 1; I wanted to put something flexible in the crack and thought of jointing compound out of the car workshop. That wasn't a good idea at all as it turned out as there is no flex whatsoever in the crack. I played about with the slate asking it to 'do its worst' but it was solid...and remains solid.

Photo 2; that led to my problem when painting the red oxide over the JC with the red oxide bubbling. So i had to scrape that off and back to the slate and paint in. Unfortunately, as anyone who has used red oxide will tell you, the viscocity at the bottom of a tin is different to when you first open it no matter how hard you try and especially if its been a couple of years!

So I created quite a bit of work for myself. and realised i should have spray painted the slate. so after considerable rubbing down effort, I bought some aerosol red oxide and sprayed it in as well as using (Photo 3;) Isopon's P38 body filler in the wrinkles I'd created.

I tried car refinishers rubber blocks to put the grit paper on, I used wooden blocks, I tried both wet & dry and 'dry' in and around P60-P100 grit. But what really worked was an air driven oscilating rubbing down tool with a long narrow pad that had a P60 pad on it that was self-adhesive and also clamped-on at the ends. This took all the work out of it and the red oxide didn't 'bung up' the grit paper. All the hand-held tools tended to do this. Then the bunged up oxide on the grit paper would start having a go at the paint still on the slate!

without a doubt, as I have a compressor and a spray gun, I should have sprayed the slate as one would the wing of a car. Brush strokes don't cut it!

AS for 'was it a good idea' absolutely yes! I'd red oxide another slate at the drop of a hat. that and the P38 make for an excellent job. I just did it wrong and I have learnt from my mistakes. The jointing compound and old tin of red oxide being the two i might have spotted.

One other thing, I rubbed down and off the edge of the red oxide onto the original slate but the P60 made a harsh 'hatching' here. Better to do an all over coat of the red oxide to finish and then hopefully if you are sure to go through to the slate again you might stop, spray and wait for it to harden before doing the rubbing down again. That wouldn't be that hard. It wasn't too bad and doesn't come through the cloth either but it looks worse than it probably is.

You just need to put plenty on and then be prepared to work it down. I put in - at the lowest point; about 3-4mm of red oxide which feathered down of course making paint quite suitable...

when you are rubbing down you have plenty of time to think and see what type of job you're doing and unless you aren't thinking, you should do a nice job. slow and steady gets the job done.

regards

Taffy

Attachments:

[taffy]

Here are the photos of the second slate I did.

photo 1; i got a large piece of 21mm plywood which was just 1mm smaller than the original Jelks ladder frame. the slate and cut plywood ready to go together.

photo 2; I used cling film over some body filler that i'd just mixed. I slapped it on narrow but tall, threw the clingfilm over it, grabbed the camera, took the photo and then dropped the slate!

photo 3; you can see the slate is sticking up 3mm in the front left corner. Slate is mounted on 4 x Husaberg cylinder liners, one wrecked and three for sale!

so the frame is self explanatory really. I kept the strength in the plywood frame by only cutting out the centre window so i'd got free access to 8 of the 9 holes.

this slate also had unseen problems for me. rubbing down the 3mm didn't level the slate because there was a hollow all the way up the middle from slightly right of the 200 to the left 20 hole. It just took longer but both tables - above and here - play faultlessly now.

regards

Taffy

Attachments: