Help from those who have made a padded rail for their Hold'em table

[PokerGoblin]

Hey guys

I built my first holdem table last night. I've built several octagons out of solid wood but this is the first holdem table I've attempted.

Everything went fine except for the rail. When applying the vinyl cover over the padding I was unable to get the vinyl to go on smooth... when I stretched it out inevitably I wound up with tons of wrinkles on the ends of the oval. And it looks terrible.

How do I remedy this? I have checked out some of the common web resources like PCPOTATO for example, but they basically say it's something you have to live with.

Has anyone been able to build a seamless rail without wrinkling the vinyl?

Thanks

PG

[SamIAm]

I'm pretty sure vinyl is a frequently asked FAQ over at chez Scott Keen. You'll probably get better answers there.
-Sam

What type of vinyl are you using? The most popular seems to be whisper and marine vinyl. I used whisper on mine, and it didn't give me any trouble, not one wrinkle. Did you staple it down going from one side to the other, to ensure an even stretch? Also, you can't cut out the middle of the vinyl until you've stapled it from the outside edge. (hopefully, that wasn't your mistake)

--Dave

[kodonnell]

I have done this on my 6' round table successfully.
My biggest suggestion would be to work from the middle outward. However you also need to make sure the vinyl does not stretch at all linearly (the direction of the rail itself), but totally in the direction around the rail.

Also, the pattern you staple in can affect wrinkling. The way I did it was to staple the middle of the piece first, then staple the ends. My next staple would be in between each of the first two staples. Then dividing again, and again, and again. Essentially, you do not want to staple next to one you just placed. If yours is one big round piece (seemless as I recall), I would staple the vinyl at 0 and 180 degrees, then 45 and 90. Then divide each section and staple in the middle. Keep stapling, dividing 2 previously placed staples until the vinyl lays flat on your rail.

This may be a bit confusing, but it is the best I can do to explain it. Hope this helps.

[Khabbi]

[ QUOTE ]
I have done this on my 6' round table successfully.
My biggest suggestion would be to work from the middle outward.

[/ QUOTE ]

Where is the middle of a round table? JJ

With a more serious reply...

I have made a table with a one-piece padded rail. It looks really good with no creases on the top (they are all hidden underneath). I got some tips from the various sites at www.homepokertourney.com (specifically the Junell table).

Basically, you lay your rail on top of the piece of vinyl and cut trangles at the ends. It's easier to see with pictures (see Junell's instructions at HomePokerTourney).

I actually started at the end of the table and worked towards the middle, pulling the vinyl towards the middle.

[ddollevoet]

I've built 2 tables with seemless rails. I've used both the Marine and Whisper vinyls. I haven't had any issues with wrinkles (at all).

I usually put the vinyl out in the sun for a little while beofre I start. I warms up the vinyl and makes it easier to work with. I pull the vinyl very tight before stapling.

[Socrates]

I made padded rails for my octagon. I made 8 individual rail pieces that I covered seperately. I then screwed them to the table from the bottom. If all of your measurements are correct, it will come out fine with no gaps.

[PokerGoblin]

Thanks for all the advice. I had visited some of the online resources but not a lot of them. There is some good information.

Warming it up is something I thought of after the fact. It probably would have helped.

Thanks Again

PG