Pool Table Cloths
Two types of cloth are available, Speed and Napped.
There is no ‘Standard’ or ‘Best’ option, cloth is a very personal choice. Each has benefits but both will play very well for a variety of reasons which we’ve described below.
The most popular choice of cloth is Speed.
The better quality cloths we use are Professional Pool Cloths from the world’s two main mills. These are Hainsworth and Strachan (includes the MIliken SuperPro Brand).
There are minor differences between the brands but all are of a good quality. With regular simple maintenance, including brushing and ironing (napped cloth), they can last for years in great playing condition
Speed Cloth
This is a pool cloth with a wool nylon blend offering a very flat, fast surface. American pool is played on Speed cloth. In the UK Speed cloth is used in a variety of environments as it is low maintenance and hard wearing. You can just use the brush end of the vacuum cleaner on it, to remove the dust!
It is a great surface for beginners just starting out in the game as the speed of the cloth ensures they quickly learn to play gentler shots to ensure potting the balls. Speed doesn’t describe the cloths effect on the balls. With such a flat surface there is little friction to slow the balls down and they run further across the surface than a shot played on Napped cloth.
Speed cloth is available in Simonis 760 (from the mill that produces most of the worlds tournaments cloth) and SuperPro (from Miliken). There are a variety of colours available:
Napped Cloth
This is a 100% wool cloth originally made for Snooker tables. With the playing area of English pool tables being smaller there are a variety of napped cloths available specifically for English pool with a shorter nap than its snooker equivalent. The ‘Velvety’ Look of the cloth is actually the one way directional nap. This allows better cue ball control due to the friction it creates. It offers the opportunity to put more ‘Spin’ on the cue ball.
If napped is your choice we would advise purchasing a brush and cloth cleaner spray to ensure the playing surface is kept in top condition. Napped cloth is available in 6811 (West Of England, Players Choice) 6811 Gold (West of England) and Smart (Hainsworth)
