New PLAYING member in Newcastle

[briangardner]

Collected my beautifully restored Sams table from Kent yesterday, and brought it home to Newcastle (Jarrow) and had my first BB shot in 30 years.

Can anyone out there help with the following:
1. I need a scoreboard for the wall - table is a mid-mahogony colour
2. Are there ANY playing members up here who could come and impart some knowledge / have a game?
3. Do most people cover their tables (when not in use) - and if so - what with?

I'm sure they'll be lots more questions as I appreciate the subtleties of what my wife reckons "looks an easy game".

Cheers All - Brian.

I thought you had bought a table off eBay and were planning to travel to Reading to pick it up, Brian?  :o
Does this mean you pulled out of the deal and bought one from Stelling Minnis?  (Sensible lad!  ;D)

Ok, your questions........
1. I got my scoreboard from Bar-Billiards Ltd in Ascot but it was virtually the last one they had left. They are no longer the UK's main table operator but are now in business as Ascot Pool. They sold off  most of their bar billiards spares.
You could try this firm who are based in Cardiff:  I bought a mahogany cue rack from them and found them okay.
www.mercuryleisure.co.uk/barbilliards.html
I see they do a 'budget' one for £39 in mdf which may prove to be a bit cheap'n'nasty, but the £79 one seems to fit the bill at round about the going price.

2. We have not heard of any serious play taking place further north than Yorks, so you face a long trip to Halifax/Leeds if you want to hook up with any good players !

3. Table cover..............Well you really need one to protect the cloth from gathering dust, and from fading in intense sunlight.  Flimsy green pool-table covers are relatively cheap and easy to source.  The other alternative is to do a measure up and visit your local hardware store for a piece of hardboard - again, should be relatively cheap.

Other bits of kit you might want to invest in are a brush (with firm bristles, like a clothes brush) and a decent spirit level.

Let us know how you get on!

[briangardner]

Thanks for the advice Tommo.

I went ahead with the Sams I won off ebay, and got it delivered to Peter Ludgate down in Kent. Proved to be more expensive to restore than I had hoped - several things wrong with it that I obviously hadn't spotted on ebay listing.............hindsight is a wonderful thing!!!

I'll try Mercury Leisure for a scoreboard, and have a brush and nice cue etc. Last night I nearly drove myself mental trying to level up the table - after about an hour of fiddling to and fro, I kept trying a couple of shots and the ball was going skew-whiff. FINALLY realised that the spirit level was knackered (didn't know that could happen) and resorted to my daughters i-pad spirit level app - which was brilliant.

The wife's a bit grumpy that the table is taking up more that the 6x3 footprint promised.........but hey ho.

Keep your ears open for anyone heading up here - or anything else a budding (tho I'm 51) new BB player needs to know.

Cheers - Brian.