Recover and Refelt
New cloth, and an honest look at the bed underneath it.
Cloth gives up in the same three places on almost every table: the break spot, the top rail where hands rest, and the pocket mouths. By the time one of them goes through, the rest is usually thin enough that patching is false economy.
Recovering is also the one visit where the slate is fully uncovered, so the seams, the bolts and the cushion rubber get inspected instead of assumed. A table that has been drifting gets levelled while it is bare, which is the right order: new cloth over a bed that is off simply hides the problem under something you have just paid for.
Picking cloth
Woollen or worsted is the real decision. Colour is the easy one.
- Woollen cloth carries a nap, plays slower and forgives marks. It suits a family room table that gets used by everyone.
- Worsted cloth is smooth and quick, the surface a league or pool hall table usually carries. Expect balls to travel further than you are used to.
- Darker colours hide chalk; lighter ones show wear earlier. Neither plays differently.
- If a room gets strong afternoon sun, keep the table out of the direct beam or expect the colour to fade unevenly over time.
- Cushion rubber can be changed at the same visit, and is worth doing when balls come off the rail dead rather than lively.
Send the table size and whether you want it faster or steadier, and cloth options come back with the price.
How the table is left
The bed is read for level at the seams and at every pocket before the crew packs up, and again after the cloth is on. If a ball will not sit still on your table when we are done, the job is not done.
Jobs are scheduled into a morning or an early afternoon window, confirmed once the quote is accepted. Say early if the room is a garage, so the work lands before the worst of the afternoon heat.