DIY pool table





Billiards is a fascinating game that people of various professions love. Billiard rooms are not everywhere. But nothing prevents you from setting up a large table with green cloth at home or in the country and collecting fans of this game at home. How to make a billiard table with your own hands, what materials and tools are needed? We’ll talk about all this now.

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To start - about the game

If you decide to organize a small billiard club, first decide which game you will play. The size of the table also depends on this - or rather, on the size of the balls.

Balls are used in the following sizes:

• English pool - 51 mm;
• snooker - 52.5 mm;
• American pool - 57 mm;
• cannon - 61.5 mm;
• Russian billiards - 68 mm.

A billiard table, of course, it should fit well into the interior, but still aesthetics - the quality in this situation is secondary. But the following qualities are simply necessary:

• the ball should roll well;
• the board should easily receive and give the ball;
• Cloth should be very high quality;
• pockets - perhaps the most important detail, the closest attention should be paid to their manufacture;
• play should be comfortable.

What else is needed for the game?

Keep in mind that you will have to buy a few more things for billiards, and at the same time find a place for them. It is best to buy accessories in a specialized store. You will need:

• a ball for collecting balls;
• coasters for cue and balls;
• chalk for a cue;
• brushes and bridge;
• cue measuring 1.5–1.6 m.

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DIY pool table - drawings, sizes

To make a billiard table with your own hands, you need a drawing. This is what stops some people - making a drawing seems unthinkable. Do not rush to be upset. On the Internet you will find many options, and tables of various sizes are offered. The task is to choose the right one.

Room dimensions

The choice of option depends very much on the size of the room. In the billiard room there will be not only a table under green cloth. Still need to consider such factors:

• It is necessary to find a place for kievnitsa.
• In addition, players must move freely.

Important! The minimum size of the hall, so that on each side there is a passage whose width is equal to the length of the cue. But, of course, billiard players will feel more comfortable in a more spacious room, where there is a place for several chairs or a small sofa.

Length Width Height

The optimal length of amateur billiards is 3.5 m. However, in a city apartment it is not so easy to find a room where furniture of this size could be put. Therefore:

• The minimum length is 2.9 m.
• Fans of this game, not claiming to participate in major competitions, make tables even smaller - 2 m and even 1.8 m.

The width can be from 0.9 m to 1.2 m. The height is usually about 80 cm (minimum - 0.79 m, maximum - 0.85 m).

Important! The width of the game must in any case be exactly two times less than its length.

If there is no place for a full-sized billiards

I really want to play, but there is no suitable room? - Nothing wrong.

The way out can always be found:

• entertaining billiards;
• table with folding legs;
• transformer;
• training apparatus.

What is the difference:

• For an entertaining table you will need balls of small diameter. The table itself can be very short - from 1.2 m to 1.8 m.
• If there is a room suitable for the size, but the table cannot stand there all the time, well - make billiards with folding legs. You can store it anywhere, and put it in an impromptu game room for the duration of the game.
• You don’t even need to do the whole transformer. It is enough to build a countertop with pockets, and the corresponding part of a large dining table is suitable as a frame.
• Finally, the simulator is a small table with several pockets. It serves to practice blows. But you can’t play this. It is just a countertop that can be placed on any flat surface.

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What does a billiard table consist of?

Having decided to make a table for a billiard with your own hands, look what it consists of. He has:

• frame;
• the basis of the playing field;
• cloth;
• pockets.

Frame

The frame is the most important part. It must be strong, stable and reliable, because everything else rests on it. It can have a different number of supports - 4, 6, 8, it depends on the size of the table.

Materials

The classic material for the countertop is marble. This stone is easy to grind, the surface is perfectly flat. It is lighter than granite and much stronger than the hardest wood. In addition, over time, notches form on the wooden plate. On the marble surface, they appear much less often, and it is much easier to remove them. But making such a table will cost a pretty penny.

Important! If you still decide on this, the stove can be ordered at the enterprise where the monuments are made.

For elite models, ardesia is used, but it is difficult to get it, and this shale mineral is much more expensive than marble.

Wood tabletop will cost much less. True, a wooden plate has its drawbacks:

• it can lead from dampness;
• it is very difficult to find a solid board of the appropriate width, and it’s quite difficult to connect several boards so that the seams do not interfere with the game.

Important! Deciding to make a wood worktop, choose hardwood:

• oak;
• beech;
• hornbeam;
• larch.

Pine is cheaper than others, it is easier to get it. It is best if the legs and countertops are from the same material.

For the manufacture of cheap pool tables, laminated chipboard is now used. Benefits:

• it is possible to make the playing field from one piece;
• when recesses appear or the countertop leads, it can simply be replaced.

Important! A table top needs a panel of 18 mm or more.

Where to get the rest of the materials? - Useful tips

• Comparatively soft wood, such as pine, is suitable for the underframe.
• As for the sides, the same hardwoods are needed as for the wooden tabletop.
• If you are going to make only sides of precious wood - the consumption will turn out not so big, about 0.3 cubic meters. Of course, the material should be well dried.
• Pockets and nets can be bought. Branded ones will look much more spectacular than homemade ones, but they are not particularly expensive. For pockets you can also use 4 identical corners.
• The billiard cord is a special rubber. Rubber for the sides of the pool table with your own hands is an ungrateful matter. You can get it in two ways - buy it in a specialized store or pick up a cord of the same stiffness and similar cross section.
• Cloth can be bought in a specialized store for billiards, and in a fabric store.

Important! The second option for a home-made, besides, a relatively inexpensive table is more suitable. But keep in mind, you should choose only green cloth costume. Do not forget to buy also a lining fabric.

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Instruments

To make a table, you will need the most common set of carpentry tools and fasteners. Check if you have:

• medium grain sandpaper;
• waterproof impregnation;
• nitrol varnish;
• epoxy putty;
• self-tapping screws (approximately 200 pieces);
• furniture bolts (about 40 pieces);
• confirmations (15–20 pieces);
• glue for wood;
• rubber glue or “Moment 88”;
• staples for covering with fabric.

As for the tools, you will come in handy:

• roulette;
• metal square;
• clamps;
• a pencil is simple;
• marker;
• level;
• drill;
• drills (including the Faustner drill);
• saw;
• Bulgarian;
• jigsaw;
• screwdriver or screwdriver;
• spanners;
• pliers,
• hammer;
• milling cutter;
• plane;
• brushes;
• putty knife;
• furniture stapler.

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We start with the countertop

You can laminate the plate yourself. The main thing is to cut it correctly.

Important! This can be done directly at the hardware store where you buy it.

But in any case, you will have to independently bring it to the desired state:

1. Fix a metal square on the plate as a guide.
2. Resting against a square, level the edge with a jigsaw.
3. Do the same from the rest.

Surface alignment is done as follows:

1. Apply putty or nitro-varnish, fill all pores and irregularities.
2. Wait for it to dry.
3. Grind the surface with sandpaper, aligning it as much as possible.
4. Repeat the procedure a few more times until the surface is completely flat.
5. Cloth can already be pulled onto such a surface.

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Substrate Fabrication

For a standard table measuring 290 cm, cut two planks of the following sizes from a pine board or chipboard:

• 295x310 mm;
• 935x310 mm;
• 1793x180 mm;
• 2413x180 mm.

Important! If the table is larger or smaller, you will have to calculate the parameters yourself.

Farther:

1. Glue the strips of the same size in pairs with wood glue. PVA will do.
2. To make the surfaces stick together faster and more reliable, you can fasten them with self-tapping screws.

Important! Swollen or deformed wood is not suitable for the substrate.

3. You got 4 parts. Glue them together to make a rectangle, and fix the joints with screws.
4. Designate places for pockets - it’s best to do this, of course, according to the drawing of the pool table. The most suitable tool for such work is a jigsaw.
5. Now the substrate must be attached to the frame. To do this, drill holes with a diameter of 4 mm. To fasten the side, holes with a diameter of 22 mm are needed. For nuts and bolts, stepped holes must be made.

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Board Templates

For the sides you will need templates. Make them better out of cardboard. They represent the contours of the sides with sections.

Total templates need 3:

• for the short side;
• for the long side from the corner to the middle pocket, and vice versa.

Important! Templates must be tried on the playing field - the holes marked on them must exactly match those on the plate. Remember to measure the holes for the pockets. For straight lines, these sizes are 70/72, for angular - 76/78.

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Production of boards and legs

Wood for flanges must be free of defects:

1. Each side cut strictly according to the drawing.
2. Drill 3 holes with a Fostner drill.
3. Milling, also according to the drawing, cut out 2 grooves. One of them is needed for attaching a decorative strip that closes the joint of the outer part of the side and the playing field.
4. According to the size of the sides, cut the slats with a cross section of 9.5x9.5 mm. Their task is to hold the cloth and lining fabric.

Make the legs

The next stage is the supports:

1. Take 2 boards with a section of 100x40x750 mm.
2. Glue the core into a set 80x80 mm thick.
3. Attach 50 mm thick boards to the core.
4. You should get a support measuring 170x170x270 mm.
5. Let the fragment dry.
6. Round all corners and polish the supports.
7. Mount an adjustable support on each leg.
8. You can close the support with a decorative casing.

Adjustable support consists of:

• flange with nut;
• screw;
• thrust bearing.

Important! Legs can be bought ready-made or ordered in a carpentry workshop.

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Fasten the structure

You are almost at the finish line, if you have not abandoned the idea of ​​making a pool table with your own hands. Farther:

1. The whole structure is held together by the drawer - connecting boards, which can be smooth or carved.
2. The drawbars are connected to the legs using dowels - special furniture bolts with a diameter of 16 mm. You can use screws - it will be even more convenient and reliable.
3. For greater rigidity, a jumper is also used, which is made from a single piece of wood. The jumper is rigidly attached to the king, so it is not regulated.
4. You can attach decorative brackets to the tsars.

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Control assembly

Having prepared all the details, try to assemble the table.

1. Glue on the jumper bars equal in length to the strips of the jumper itself.
2. Attach the drawers to the support with furniture screws (furniture corners are also suitable).
3. Put the confirmations on the sides - Euroscrews under the rod key.
4. Apply a backing.
5. Install the game board.
6. If all parts fit perfectly, tighten the bolts.

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We bring the table to condition

After all the parts are connected and the screws are tightened, it is time to stick the rubber for the pool table onto the sides. Rubber glue or “Moment” is applied both on board and on rubber, it is allowed to dry a little (about 30 minutes), applied again, and then firmly but gently press the rubber to the board.

Important! The edges of the rubber and the sides should match, while the rubber should be slightly stretched.

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We process details

Wooden fragments should be treated with impregnation, and several times. Otherwise, your own billiard table with your own hands will very soon lose its reliability and beauty.

To do this job:

1. Apply impregnation to the entire surface.
2. Let it dry completely.
3. Apply a second coat.
4. Repeat the procedure 1-2 more times.
5. Cover the table with varnish in 2-3 layers.

Important! To give the wood details the desired shade, dye can be added to the varnish.

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Final assembly

At the final installation, it is necessary to install long legs on the supports, and then short legs with ties. Next, the process goes like this:

1. Lay the backing.
2. Screw in the nuts.
3. Place the game board.
4. Level it up.
5. Cover the plate with lining and cloth.
6. Fasten the cloth to the backing using a furniture stapler.
7. Cover the sides with fabric.
8. Install them on the countertop.
9. Set the pockets.

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Installing the pockets

It is still better to buy ready-made ones. If you decide to make them yourself, the most suitable material is a metal corner. The upper part must be cut with the “sun”.

Important! The pockets have a semicircular shape, and a more effective tool for this purpose than a hammer may not be at hand.

You can take any mesh, if only it was strong enough. For example, an ordinary mosquito is almost perfect.

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DIY billiards table

A pool table is a solid thing. However, the coating must sometimes be changed. For example, spots appeared on a green cloth, or one of the guests dropped ash on it. You will need:

• glue with which you can glue the fabric and particleboard (or other material from which the countertop is made);
• actually cloth;
• lining fabric;
• level;
• hammer;
• wallpaper nails.

Do-it-yourself repair of billiard tables begins with dismantling. It is necessary to dismantle pockets, remove nets, sides.

Important! If there is damage to the plate - they must be repaired (repaired with mastic and sanded). The table should be dried.

Then proceed as follows.

1. Apply adhesive to the countertop surface.
2. Apply lining.
3. Fix it so that there are no wrinkles and folds.
4. Flatten the air bubbles with a spatula if they appear.
5. Allow the lining to dry completely.
6. Trim the edges.

The most crucial moment is hauling a billiard table with your own hands.

Important! The piece must be solid and sized so that it hangs on each side by at least 20 cm.

How to proceed so that the repair of a billiard table with your own hands is of high quality:

1. Lay the cloth on the countertop.
2. Align it so that sections of equal width hang on each side.
3. Fix the fabric with wallpaper nails along one of the short sides.
4. Begin pulling and aligning the fabric so that the fibers run exactly parallel.
5. At the same time, fix the cloth along the remaining edges.

Important! Do not use a metal spatula to tighten the cloth.

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Stock footage

From this article, you learned step by step how to make a pool table with your own hands. We hope that you correctly assessed the amount of forthcoming work, your strengths, and came to the conclusion that you will cope with this task. So - soon an exciting game awaits you!