Blog
Snooker & Pool Table Company Ltd was featured on Sports Weekly Snooker VT with a feature delving into the world of bespoke snooker tables. You can read the transcript below.
TRANSCRIPT:
I am always amazed that when you watch the tournaments for snooker and pool that you don't hear more about the table and only about the players. I mean after all that table started off as a bit of wood and some metal and the best people to ask are in there.
What are we doing here? Right, the first job we've got to do is drive around that i.e keep your hands away from the blades and we would be pushing across the machine i.e like that. Right the way across. Off. Back. And then you would go through the process again.
My name's Darren Andrews I'm a director of this company together with my wife, used to be previously my father's company which we've gradually built up over the years. Everything's changed to bespoke tables, such as the ones that are around us in my showroom. The actual business is more bespoke, so in other words we are more involved with giving people what they want and they can come in and — I had it a week ago, a lady come in said I want something totally different that nobody else has got and I said okay so I'm going to make something totally different. We made one for Paul Scholes we made a similar table to one in my showroom for Teddy Sheringham.
Right this machine, when you get to that you measure 95 mil, yeah, then we can take that down until you get to 95 on there. Now we'll put it in there yeah and then you've got to walk around the other side. That's it that will be exactly… look at that that is spot on… and let's spot all measurement.
The tables are not only manufactured for the UK we export worldwide which I also go and install the tables and I've been to places in the Middle East as Saudi Arabia, Iceland, Norway or Spain obviously Portugal but they're all private individuals all private customers it's not a corporate thing it's all it's all private individuals that want something that's a specialised item.
The bit of wood, then, it’s been overhanded that's the first machine we used to the thickness yes that took it down to exactly the right millimetre yes and now it's just what getting the right length on it? It's got to be now cut to fit within that body over there ready for its next process. And if you mess this up… you're in big trouble. Super.
A pool table takes approximately, from when it's when it starts it's manufacturing the mill to when it goes out is, probably about a week actual solid solid work um but we we currently have to manufacture a table and say to people it takes approximately six weeks because of the way the rotor works in the manufacturing industry.
And there you go, and there's no movement. It's final Journey. That's its final journey in there. What we do then is we put in a piece of plywood to make a ball run to go from this end all the way down to the opening at the far end now and then it has the pockets but I can show you one or prepared earlier. Right now the process you've done which we've done up there is these two struts, this is the ply centre I put in, yeah. Yeah. and then you do your cross bearers there and now and then adapt the pockets to it. So now whilst the top is fitted on to that with the pockets the board go in down there rolls to one end where you clear the balls out.
Well clearly a £600 pound cue does not make you a better player — I need more practice. Luckily I'm in the perfect place. Neil back to you.