New table is a bit of a mystery.

[DeanH]

One award, showing both sides, as per 100-uper info above

One of our tables in the club has ebony spots down the rails, they seem to coincide with the Baulk line, Pink and Black spots. Also one at each end for the centre line.

[Ricky2112]

Great info

Just a quick thanks again for the info guys. Really interesting facts about table and plates. Was I right in what I said about the Ivory spots?
Cheers Ricky.

[Ricky2112]

Hi guys thanks for your replies. My mistake the plate says 110 princes street. (EDIN R LIM TD) above address. I was told the table has had new rubbers fitted and they feel very hard. I measured the white against them and the centre of the white is touching the lower edge of the rubber. I played a league match tonight and it was a very tactical game but was ruined because of the throw of the cushions. The lad I was playing won our league last year and play the usual 2 cushion escape to rest in to a cluster of 12 red, his face when he missed the whole cluster by 4 inches was a picture. I have took some photos but they are on my phone so cannot upload them just now. This table is going to play havoc with our league games the guys take it very serious.
Soon as I get a chance I will put up pics of the plates and table.
Dean H its same plate as no.1 on your post. Seal and two medals.
Cheers Ricky

[100-uper]

That's great. Look forward to seeing the pics. Incidentally, the two medals depicted on your plate are actually the two sides of a single gold medal which was awarded to Taylor & Son at the Belfast Art and Industrial Exhibition, which opened in April 1895 and ran to October of that year. It was for a billiard table they exhibited there and marked their entry into the Northern Ireland market, as they set up a local agency at the same time, using this as a base to supply tables to the whole of Ireland.

[DeanH]

hope a good set of photos are forthcoming - plate and table general

[100-uper]

Yes, exactly so. The gender typo "Princess" would identify the plate to a time when they were not manufacturing full-size billiard tables, so confirming that the pairing could not be original. Hence the request for confirmation.

[DeanH]

110 Pricess Street Edinburgh

Are you sure the plate refers to "Princess" Street? I would be interested to see a picture of the table and plate if you can post it.

I have two photos of plates:
1. John Taylor & Son (EDINr LIMTD) 110 Princes Steet, Edinburgh, "Record" Low Cushions; Royal Seal and two medals
2. John Taylor & Son (late 110 Princess St) West Newington Place Edinburgh; RECORD Low Set Cushions, Estab. 1825 - Royal seal and two medals.

[100-uper]

Are you sure the plate refers to "Princess" Street? I would be interested to see a picture of the table and plate if you can post it.

Incidentally, the "Record" to which the cushion refers, was Joe Sala's Scottish record billiards break of 486 made on one of Taylor's tables in 1896, and they continued fitting this model to tables (their own, and other manufacturers) until the 1960s. So the table could be quite old, but not so old that it would be significantly different to one of more modern build.

[Geoff Large]

All tables Should have soft wood blocks that the rubber fits onto or Ramin as an harder wood , but we as fitters prefer soft wood to take staples and tacks without splitting , hard wood tends to split when using tacks or staples in it , although some have experimented and do fit hard wood it makes little difference to bounce .

the main body of the cushion is hard wood though .
or steel if steel blocks used ,

the difference will be block height or type of rubber used or age of rubber

John Taylor did not produce steel cushions .

but burroughs and watts upgraded many other manufacturers tables as an after fit upgrade option , and this is why you sometimes get orme and sons tables with steel cushions on them or thurston tables for example .

place a ball against the cushion and see where half way up the ball makes contact with the lower flat of the rubber , this should be a fraction above center of ball .

if too high then bounce is reduced , if too low ball bounces up .

if blocks are to high , then a re-rubber with blocks planed down or new blocks fitted will make a difference

also check cushion bolt tightness , try wiggling cushions top to bottom from side if any movement they are loose .

[Mark187187]

New table is a bit of a mystery.

It's probably down to the cushion construction. Sounds like an old table since lowering cushions was something which started happeninv as far as the 1850's. Modern tables have a firmer cushion. They use a moulded rubber rather than built up layers, and they often have a firmer rail behind the rubber, a harder wood, steel, slate etc. It could be one or a couple of these differences. A softer rail will be less reactive. A softer rubber will compress more and narrow the angle of the cue ball, a harder cushion would react sending the ball long.

[Ricky2112]

Hi, we have not long got a new third table in to or club which plays totally different to the others. Hope some one maybe even “Geoff “ can shed some light on why it is so different. The table has a plate on the end (JOHN TAYLOR & SON , 110 Pricess Street Edinburgh “Record “ Low Set Cushions ) the table also has what looks like 4 ivory spots one on each side cushion. I read that these were where ashtrays were fitted under the table in the old billiard days and these cups were later used to hold chalk.
The main difference a few of us have noticed is how the cushions react so differently. I play a lot of bounce games where I go for a lot of doubles and on other tables get a large percentage of them but on this table the cushions react in a way that I have no success getting the ball to double. I can be as much as 6 inches out. I usually have a great success in getting out of snookers from around 2 cushion escapes but I am miles out on this table, even one cushion escapes seem so difficult. The surface plays great even although it has very tight pockets they take the ball well.
My thought was maybe this is a steal block cushion with a different type of rubber on the cushions there is definitely a different sound comes off them.
Hope you guys might know something about this table.
Cheers guys. Ricky.