Dimensions of home poker table?

[BigBaitsim (milo)]

Building a table for my home game, usually 6 to 8 players, no dealer. I'm wondering what dimensions to use for this table. The fabric I have to cover it (some ultrasuede picked up for cheap on eBay) and the foam (1/4 from efoamstore.com) are both 54" wide and I was thinking of an oval table, cut from plywood. Thanks in advance!

-Milo

[Chad Florian]

I made mine from 4x8 plywood which worked out great. Cut semi-circles at each end then padded, covered and railed for a really nice oval table that seats 10 comfortably or 12-13 only slightly cramped.

-Chad

[slamdunkpro]

A full size hold'em table is 103" x 44". IF you are only playing 6 - 8 players you can get by with a stud table which is 84" x 42". You will need a jig saw to radius the ends.

Best way is to buy 2 sheets of BC grade plywood and get the store (Home Depot / Lowes) to cut them both down to the square dimension. Then glue / drywall screw them togther with the bad sides in. Draw a line (stud table) 21" in from each end then use a cheap yard stick as a trammel by driving a drywall screw half way through at the 1" mark , then drill a hole at the 22" mark that you can wedge a pencil in. Place the pencil on one of the lines at the edge of the plywood and the drywall screw should be in the center of the plywood. Then drag the pencil around to creat your arc - repeat on the other side. Voila' a nice stiff poker table top. Now just pad, felt and attach a rail.

[BigBaitsim (milo)]

Thanks! I was thinking of doing what you each suggested, but wondered about whether to buy one sheet or laminate two sheets together. The only think I have yet to buy, other than the wood, is the rail. The foam rubber one at casinosupply.com looks like the easiest and cheapest. Sound good?

[Chad Florian]

I used one sheet of 1 inch oak plywood and it is very sturdy. I also used the foam bumper from casinosupply and the poker speed cloth. The foam bumper is fairly easy. Just make sure you get it on the right way as the cut is at an angle. The tough part is connecting the 2 ends (assuming you go all the way around without a dealer chip tray). I just used super glue to hold the ends together and it worked nicely....
hth,
-Chad

[slamdunkpro]

Really? Was one sheet of 1 inch oak cheaper than 2 of 3/4 BC? I know I paid a fortune for the 9 x 5 sheets that I cut my full sized tables out of.

BTW Black Silicon rubber works great to attach the ends of the casionsupply rail.

[Chad Florian]

The 8x4 sheets were around $50 if I remember correctly... May have been $60. Plus I built my table to sit on top of my dining room table. I imagine if mine were standalone I might need it thicker... Mine might have also been 3/4" going by that weird-ass add 1/4" to the "real" measurment deal. Kind of like a 2x4 is really a 1 1/2 or 1 3/4 or something like that. It never really made sense to me. But then again it's all based on a system that's non base-10 and was originally derived from the size of the king's foot! I wish us Americans would adopt metric like the rest of the planet... Oops.. I got off on a tangent....

[ropey]

I also made a table top. Using 8x4 sheet of nice plywood, particle board would also probably work nicely. For the rails, I used a second sheet of plywood, and basically cut a 1"x4" oval strip to sit on top of the oval already cut. I used this to give the rails some shape...then I wrapped the 1"x4" with a soft padding that you can get from any craft store and wrapped that with leather/vinyl.

-ropey

[Hedge Henderson]

We've started building a poker table this week for our home game here. We regularly had eight, and sometimes ten, people playing on my old 42x62 gate-leg kitchen table. Eight was tight, and ten was positively cramped.

Since we rotate the deal, we originally conceived of a 60" round table but we soon decided that it wouldn't be enough space for ten players and a 72" round wouldn't fit very well in the dining room.

We ended up deciding on a 48x84 oval. It should provide plenty of room for eight, and be okay for ten.

We found some very nice 3/4" maple plywood on special at Home Depot for $30. We also purchased some 3/8" plywood for a 36x72 fabric-covered section in the middle. We decided to raise the middle to help keep spills off the cards and the fabric. It's also removable in order to convert the poker table into a dinner table.

For the felt and padding, we just hit the local fabric store. We decided on a satin-like cotton fabric. It ain't felt, but the cards slide perfectly and it was about one-fifth the price of the real casino cloth. It also came in a wide variety of colors (we chose black to contrast with the light maple).

The 3/4" has been cut, and the 3/8" center riser cut and covered. Preliminary tests show that people on the end won't have much trouble dealing. Instead of legs, we found an old student desk to use as the base. It's sturdy, and the drawers have plenty of room for the cash box, chips. cards, weekly log, and cigars.

So far, we've spent about $75. When we add the ten drink holders, it'll be about $100. We haven't gotten to padding for the rails yet, but we may in the future. This weekend will be the inaugural game. I expect a full ten players. Assuming y'all are interested, I'll let you know how the new table worked out.

[wayabvpar]

As soon as you get the technique and requirements down, throw up a web site and start selling these! /images/graemlins/smile.gif

[Hedge Henderson]

The table was more or less completed Saturday afternoon and we held the game Saturday night. It was very much a success. Ten players was very comfortable and we even had eleven people playing at the table for a short time, despite the shortage of a drink holder.

Since spills could be an issue, I broke down and purchased a hole saw to install drop-in drink holders. To prevent elbow creases, we picked up some pipe insulation at Home Depot to use as padding for the edge. It wasn't as large or as dense as the stuff from casinosupply.com, but it was only 1/12 the cost. It should last at least a couple of months and I didn't need a pneumatic stapler to attach it. Total out-of-pocket cost, including the hole saw, was $130, and our low-rent bunch was very pleased with the results. I'll see if I can't get some pictures.

I don't think I'll be selling them, though. My woodworking skills aren't very impressive, and there are much nicer commercially available tables out there.

[slamdunkpro]

I've got to do another table for our card room this weekend. If the weather is good I'll do it outside and photograph it step by step.

[slavic]

Then glue / drywall screw them togther with the bad sides in.

Are you using a backer board for the drywall screws? The joint seems like it would be awfull weak given the weight that would be resting on it. Would it pay to biscuit join hte center glue and then re-enforce the center? Or am I being too paranoid?

[slamdunkpro]

[ QUOTE ]
Are you using a backer board for the drywall screws? The joint seems like it would be awfull weak given the weight that would be resting on it. Would it pay to biscuit join hte center glue and then re-enforce the center? Or am I being too paranoid?

[/ QUOTE ]

You're thinking of a center edge joint. I'm talking about a sandwitch joint to make one sheet 8' x 4' by 1 1/2"

[GrinToday]

[ QUOTE ]
Now just pad, felt and attach a rail.

[/ QUOTE ]

Why do you place padding under the felt? I would think a hard surface would make the cards slide easier. Does it make the felt last longer?