Simonis Pool Table Cloth: 7 Questions I Wish I’d Asked Before My First $3,200 Mistake

Before you start: I’ve been handling Simonis cloth orders for 5 years. In my first year alone, I personally made six significant mistakes — totaling roughly $3,200 in wasted cloth and labor. Now I maintain our team’s pre‑install checklist. This FAQ is the result of those screw‑ups.

1. What’s the real difference between Simonis 860 and 760?

Short answer: 860 is tournament‑grade, 760 is a slightly lighter weight for practice tables. Should mention: 860 uses a tighter weave (worsted wool, 100% worsted), so it resists stretching and ball skid better. 760 has a slightly looser construction — it’s still good felt, but it won’t hold up to daily tournament play.

I learned this the hard way: I once ordered 760 for a club that hosted weekly leagues. Within 6 months the cloth had visible wear lines. The owner called me out, and I had to replace it with 860 at my cost. That was a $1,200 mistake I only made once.

2. How do I clean a pool table with Simonis cloth?

You can vacuum (low suction, soft brush) weekly, and spot‑clean with Simonis X1 Cleaner — that’s the only cleaner Simonis officially recommends. Don’t use water, soap, or any generic spray. The wool fibers absorb moisture and will get fuzzy.

Had 2 hours to decide on a cleaning method once when a client’s table got a coffee spill. Normally I’d test on a scrap piece first, but there was no time. I went with X1 based on a quick call to Simonis support. Worked perfectly. (Should add: X1 dries in about 3 minutes, so you don’t stop play.)

3. Is 860 Tournament Blue really different from other blue colors?

Yes — Tournament Blue is a specific Pantone‑matched shade that Simonis uses for pro tournaments. It’s more of a true navy with a slight green undertone, so it hides chalk dust better than standard royal blue. I’ve seen knockoffs that look close in the box but turn garish under fluorescent lights.

After 3 years of handling about 150 orders, I’ve come to believe that Tournament Blue’s consistency is part of what makes it worth the premium. The color batch tolerance is tighter than most other felt brands.

4. How long does Simonis 860 actually last?

If you maintain it properly — brush, vacuum, rotate table positions — you can get 3–5 years of heavy play. For home tables, I’ve seen 8+ years. But here’s the honest catch: the felt’s life depends more on how often you move the balls than on the cloth itself.

Looking back, I should have told my early customers to factor table usage into their replacement timeline. At the time, I just gave a generic “3‑5 years” without context. That cost me two warranty claims I later had to eat.

5. Can I use Simonis X1 cleaner on other cloth brands?

The manufacturer says X1 is compatible with most wool and wool‑blend pool table felt, not just Simonis. I’ve personally used it on a friend’s old Championship cloth without issues. But I always test on an inconspicuous corner first. Oh, and never use X1 on polyester or nylon felt — it can discolor those synthetics.

6. Why does Simonis 860 sometimes have a slight smell out of the box?

That’s the lanolin in the worsted wool. It’s basically natural grease from the wool fibers — it goes away after a week or two of play, faster if you ventilate the room. I had a client almost return a roll because they thought it was “chemical.” Nope, just sheep.

After that third incident in Q1 2024, I created a pre‑installation note that explains this. It saved me from at least 10 panicked calls since.

7. How do I know if I’m buying genuine Simonis cloth?

Real Simonis has a woven edge label every 12 inches, and the logo is embossed on the cloth itself (you can see it if you hold the cloth up to light). The packaging includes a holographic sticker with a serial number you can verify on simonis.com. I once ordered what looked like 860 from a discount reseller — turned out to be a Chinese imitation that had the wrong thread count. The whole batch was garbage, $1,800 straight to the trash. Lesson learned: always buy from an authorized dealer.