Sam Expert:
Okay, Steve, one of the big differences about the SAM table is the top frame. These rails are aluminium extrusions. Most tables are made from wooden or composition materials. The beauty of aluminium is it can be engineered with far greater precision. That means it can be cut and mitred into the corners to fit very snugly. Then all of the components are screwed and bolted metal-to-metal. This reduces the wear and the movement. So you're going to get a much more consistent play field, even down to the pockets.
The pocket liners here. They don't have traditional pins in them. They are screwed with hidden screws to reduce any chance of bounce out or any damage to the ball. They're even moulded out of a tough plastic that angles the ball directly into the pocket.
Interviewer:
Oh, okay. So they don't, quite often you hit the ball hard into a pocket and then it catches the thing on the way in or whatever. So it can't happen with these.
Sam Expert:
The ball will go directly down the pocket every time.
Interviewer:
So all this surround around here, that's got metal inside?
Sam Expert:
That is aluminium covered in a formica facia for decoration. Even when that's then clamped to the cabinet, the clamps that do so engage with the top frame itself and not with a plate that's been riveted on or screwed on afterwards. Again, reducing any chance of movement.
Just to give you an example, this is a cut-away of the section. So you can see it's very light, and it's also very strong. Now the beauty of that is that it can engage directly with the cushions.
Interviewer:
Okay.
Sam Expert:
It's very easy to take off, as well, from a point of view of reclothing. That section fits very snugly into the aluminium profile, and then it's secured by the metal plate.
Interviewer:
Right.
Sam Expert:
Now the beauty of that, from a playing point of view, is that it's clamped underneath rather than bolted through at different points.
Interviewer:
Right.
Sam Expert:
That means that when the ball strikes the cushion, it will always have the same response. On traditional tables, they are usually bolted in three different positions. That means you can have a different torque on the bolt, and therefore you will get a different response off the cushion if the ball strikes it there to there to there to there. You will be guaranteed an accurate ball response.
Interviewer:
I've seen that. If you hit a cushion that's loose, you can hear it rattle sometimes. So that can't happen with these.
Sam Expert:
Rock solid and the same response all the way along, and you cannot over-tighten it and pull it too tight in different sections.
Interviewer:
There's no way of damaging it?
Sam Expert:
No. That's right. It will also always be at the right height. Often, you will have a variation, depending on how it was bolted on, in the cushion height, and it does away with the need for a decorative strip along here.
Interviewer:
Was that a requirement in most tables?
Sam Expert:
Mostly they're put on to take up any slack or any difference in the way the cushion has been bolted on.
Interviewer:
That's the thing you catch a cue on when you try to [inaudible 2:46] table.
Sam Expert:
Absolutely. You've got a nice, smooth cueing action across the top frame.
Interviewer:
How brilliant.
Sam Expert:
The principle of it is very much like what you'll find on a snooker table. The best snooker tables will be what's called a steel block. Basically, the steel is behind the wood so that the impact of the ball, instead of being diffused through the top frame, is returned directly out. This acts in the same fashion.
Interviewer:
Right. Brilliant. I noticed, when they brought the table in, that the frame is bolted through the slate, which I've never seen before.
Sam Expert:
Tournament tables are bolted through so that what you end up with is a playing field that is one contiguous part. The cushions, the slate, the cloth is one unit that is then levelled. There's no gap along the cushions. There's no possibility that they're going to be at the wrong height. Again, the ball will engage here and bounce in exactly the same way as it will over there. That means when you're levelling, you're levelling the entire surface and not just one section of it.
Interviewer:
Right. It has got special things on the feet as well, hasn't it?
Sam Expert:
Levelling is very, very simple, but unlike traditional tables, you simply need a spanner. You do not need to move the table to raise it, to use a jack or a trolley. All you do is put the 13 mil onto the thread on the foot and twist it, much as you would on a domestic fridge or a cooker or a freezer. It means you can be much more accurate with your level, as well, because you're not constantly lifting it and then putting it back down again. It's all about the accuracy.
Interviewer:
Yeah, and a level playing surface is just...
Sam Expert:
That's exactly what the player needs.
Interviewer:
Yeah, that's it. It's a real basic requirement of the game. So is there anything else we need?
Sam Expert:
When you play on a commercial table in a commercial environment, sometimes there will be a hinge top to that, but again, these are clamped in a far greater number of places. That also means that there's less movement as the top is lifted and lowered when you're reclothing or you're valeting the table. Again, because it's all metal-to-metal bolted, they can be tightened repeatedly, and they don't wear over time. So it will keep its consistency over the age of the table as well.
Interviewer:
It's a fantastic table. As I said, it's probably one the best table that I've played on. So if you do get the opportunity to play on one of these tables, grab it with both hands.
