pool table buying guide
DESCRIPTION
This buying guide will show you everything to look for when buying a pool table, from the wood corners to the slate surface to the felt and all the awesome accessories!TRANSCRIPT
Pool tables are a legacy investment.
Here’s what to look for.
A pool table should be a legacy purchase — something
you and your family will treasure for years to come.
Pool tables are exquisitely crafted, beautiful pieces of
furniture that will be the centerpiece of any room.
With proper construction and care, your pool table will
last for years to come. Make sure you’re buying the
absolute best with Greater Southern Home Recreation.
The Legacy Billiards pool table
features a solid hardwood
corner design called
“The Perfect Corner”
All wood gusset system.
Corners carry the tension and
weight of the table and this
construction yields a tighter
connection and a more stable and
level table over time.
No wood screws or metal
brackets. The table can be
disassembled and reassembled with
ease.
Be wary of “too good to be
true”
online deals. It’s easy to find a
good looking table that turns out to
be veneer/particle board.
Construction: Pay close attention to how corners, which
typically carry the weight of the table, are constructed.
Ask if corners include metal brackets and screws, or are
bolt-together like the Legacy Billiards table.
Cushions: Quality tables feature rubber cushions, which
provide rebound and bounce as you play. Good quality
cushions ensure your play will be consistent and accurate,
and should last for years. Low quality cushions will
create dead spots where balls will not “bank” or rebound
off the rail.
Wood type: Cabinets should be crafted from solid
hardwood. Ask what type of wood to make sure it can
withstand humidity and temperature fluctuations. The
most common woods used for pool table construction are
oak, maple and mahogany.
Finish: Make sure the wood is sealed with a high-quality,
lasting coating to protect the wood.
Beneath the felt on a pool table are 3 slabs of diamond-
honed, precision matched slate, which can be adjusted to
create a perfectly level playing field for increased accuracy.
Some tables feature a single sheet of slate, but these can sag
in the middle of the table. Single-slate tables can also only
be adjusted by leveling the legs.
The most inexpensive tables have no slate under the playing
surface which are impossible to keep level and have a
limited lifetime.
The playing surface should be constructed with three pieces of slate.
The slate should ideally be oversized, extending beyond the visible playing surface beneath the rails of the table. This provides additional strength and stability for the rails to attach.
On quality tables, the slate should be wood framed. This dampens the sound of the balls rebounding, gives more solid play, and allows the cloth to be stapled to the backing instead of glued directly to the slated surface.
Standard billiard cloth is a
wool/nylon blend that can last
up to 10 years. These fabrics are
excellent for novice players
and families.
Professional-grade cloth, made
from a worsted wool fabric is
designed with less nap and
produce less resistance for the
balls. This creates a truer, faster,
and more accurate game.
A standard 8-foot table is the most common size for home use. It’s
large enough to present a fun challenge, but still small enough to
accommodate children and beginners. You’ll need a total of 13 ½
feet by 17 feet available for this table.
7-foot tables are available for compact spaces and only require
13 feet by 16 feet to play.
9-foot tables, which are considered “tournament size,” require
a playing space of 14 feet by 18 feet.
The Aramith Fusion table features a functional cover to
transform it from a pool table to a dining table or
decorative space.
This style can also transform into a
Poker table, allowing for optimum
use of a smaller game room.
For functional and sleek, stylish storage, drawer upgrades
are available and can be attached beneath most pool tables
to store cues, balls and other playing accoutrement.
Greater Southern Home Recreation carries the top names in
billiards including Brunswick, Connelly, Legacy,
California House, Drawknife and Aramith.
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Atlanta: 1465 Chattahoochee Ave. NW, Suite 250
(404) 352-3088
Alpharetta: 5530 Windward Parkway, Suite 210 B
(678) 240-0007