Portable Skittle Alleys
A permanent skittle alley is not always a feasible option especially for outdoor venues or sites with space restrictions. For community halls, leisure centres, sports halls, hotels, school fairs, fetes and the like, a portable skittle alley is usually a better idea.
Masters Traditional Games brings you 3 quality portable skittle alleys to cater for all requirements. There are two smaller alleys for children and fun events. And a larger 3 foot wide alley for more serious skittlers.
Adult Skittle Alley
This alley comes in manageable sections 3 x 6 feet for easy construction and storage. It assembles easily without requiring any tools - typical assembly time is 15 minutes.
At
the far end, the alley is enclosed on three sides by a ball catcher that
collects the flying balls and pins. Behind the pin diamond the alley is
lowered, forming a channel that helps to prevent the balls and skittles
rolling back into play.
Included within the price is special bump pad that goes around the inside of the ball catcher to protect the alley and reduce wear and tear on the pins and balls.
This alley comes with a 6 inch wide ball return down the whole side of the alley that allows balls to be conveniently rolled back to the throwing point. As pictured.
Click on the picture to enlarge.
The alley comes complete with ball catcher, bump pad, 3 x 4.5 inch resin composition balls & 9 Gloucestershire style rubberwood 4.5 inch diameter pins. If you prefer different pins and balls, please ring us to discuss and/or specify when ordering.
The skittle alley is a softwood frame overlaid with varnished, 12mm plywood. Dimensions are 91 cm (3 feet) wide with 3 standard lengths as shown below. The alley can be used outside but we would advise leaving it out overnight or in the rain. It should be stored using common sense - i.e. not in damp or very hot conditions. Note that portable alleys are not as wide as permanent alleys of the sort found in pubs and community centres. The pin diamond is also set slightly smaller than would be used on a larger alley. For these two reasons, it is probably not appropriate for serious skittle leagues.
Change to $  Change to  |
UK pounds (ex.VAT) |
Pounds (incl. VAT) |
Typical ETA in wkg days |
Add to basket |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
29 x 3 foot Skittle Alley with return gulley |
£1670.64 | £1963.00 | 20 + transit time | To order, or for a quote, ring or Email with address & zip/postcode.
| |
For an immediate quote and ETA, add to the basket & select your location. |
Delivery and packing is extra. For overseas, this will represent significant extra cost. Costs within England & Wales may vary from £50 - £200 depending upon location. Please email us giving your full address and we will get back to you with a quote.
Fun Skittle Alleys
 |
This alley is smaller and suitable for children and fun events such as fetes, community fairs and so forth. The alley is just a smaller version of the alley above. Therefore, the description of the Adult Alley applies with the exception of the following:
|
| Change to $ Change to |
UK pounds (ex.VAT) |
Pounds (incl. VAT) |
Typical ETA in wkg days |
Add to basket |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
20 x 2 foot Skittle Alley |
£509.70 | £598.90 | 10 + transit time | To order, or for a quote, ring or Email with address & zip/postcode.
| |
For an immediate quote and ETA, add to the basket & select your location. |
Skittle Scoreboard
A
customisable Skittles scoreboard is available for competitions and team
events. If you would like a scoreboard to accompany the alley, please
see the Skittles scoreboard page.
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The Origin of Skittles
Skittles, or Nine Pins, as played in an alley has always been a popular pub game and is the ancestor of related games including ten-pin bowling and various indoor skittles variations. The origins of the game are uncertain but in Germany, in the 3rd or 4th century, monks played a game with a kegel which was a club carried for self defence. In the game, the kegel represented a sin or temptation and the monks would throw stones at it until they knocked it over. The modern German term for skittles is Kegelen. There are also two 14th century manuscripts that show a game called Kayles and depict throwers about to launch a long club-like object at eight pins and a kingpin.
The typical form of Skittles is wherein balls are thrown or rolled from one end of an alley in an effort to knock down nine pins at the other end. Over the years, Skittles developed regional variations in the size of equipment, the rules and so forth. In the East Midlands, people play Long Alley in which the projectiles are rough balls or small capsule shaped logs called "cheeses" and a score is only made if the cheeses bounce a single time just in front of the pins. Old English Skittles or London Skittles, as played at the famous Freemasons Arms in Hampstead, is a majestic game in which enormous discus-shaped cheeses are flung so that they hit the skittles directly without touching the floor first.
From these old games, various miniaturised versions appeared which were more convenient for many pubs with limited space. These include Northamptonshire Skittles and the extremely popular Table Skittles or Devil Amongst The Tailors.
The most popular version of skittles, however, is West Country Skittles wherein 9 skittles are arranged in a square at the end of an alley that might be 24 feet, sometimes much longer. Each turn starts with all the skittles standing and consists of three balls being rolled down the alley. If all the pins are knocked down, then they are reset. So the maximum score in one turn is 27.
You can learn more about the History of Skittles from The Online Guide to Traditional Games.