|
|
Pool Table Construction
Question
Forum Responses
From contributor R: You might look in your local yellow pages for a billiard mechanic, or other billiard supply place. And then consider a kind of joint venture to get the job done, where you built the carcass to his specs, and he does the slate, cushion, felt, and pocket work. It's one thing to get this built, it's another to have it perform as a top notch billiard table. An experienced billiard mechanic would make a valuable contribution to a successful project. From contributor S: In my experience, barroom tables have a one-piece slate, about 3/4" thick. A one-piece slate can be lifted fairly easily to clear the ball runways when things get jammed. Typically, the cushions and felt on bar tables are very high quality - built to take a lot of use/abuse. The better (pool hall type) tables are a three-piece slate design and very heavy. The slates I've seen are 1 1/2" thick. These tables require a lot of setup - shimming, block sanding, etc. - then you install the felt. They are not easily/cheaply moved. You might be time/money ahead to purchase a used, high quality table and use it as a guide to build your own.
From contributor X: There's good pool tables and then there's excellent pool tables. All depends on price, quality, size, type, materials. If it were me, I'd buy a good used heavy slate (I prefer snooker) pool table and refurbish it to the quality the customer desires. Once assembled in the customer's home, it's not going to move. Truing it up takes plenty of time and the weight of slate takes manpower, at least four guys to handle each piece of slate regardless if it's 3 or 4 slabs for the table. Knowing the tricks of the trade helps, but it still falls back on what the customer can afford, and is willing to pay. Quality costs; don't give it away. Expect a yearly inspection on being true.
From contributor Z: I am curious as to why the customer is asking you to build a pool table? Is he looking for a specific design that he cannot find anywhere else? Or does he, for some reason, think that it will be cheaper than purchasing a quality table from a reputable manufacturer? Have you talked price yet? I know that I couldn't compete on price with the well known manufacturers of pool tables. I do like the idea of giving the customer the option of refurbishing an older table. If it is price that he is shopping for, that could be the way to land the job. From contributor O: Fine Woodworking did an article in the March/April 1989 issue about building a pool table. Join the Fine Woodworking website and you can download a PDF of the article. I bought some slate 6 years ago to build a table but haven't got started yet. I did get some nice carved cherry legs off EBay for $60 total. Cheaper than lumber would cost to make my own. The Billiard Congress of America has a book with general specs, etc. Would you like to add information to this article? Interested in writing or submitting an article? Have a question about this article? Have you reviewed the related Knowledge Base areas below? 
|
