We played last night on the 60" round at 28.5" high. We only had 7 players, but got a good feel for the table. The lowered level (from 30") is definitely nicer, as is the not having to reach, stretch, etc... I wouldn't play more 8 at the table though. 8 would be plenty comfy, 9 would be too tight. Doable of course...but just tight.
Now to add drink holders, a bumper, speed cloth, and a pedestal.
We played last night on the 60" round at 28.5" high. We only had 7 players, but got a good feel for the table. The lowered level (from 30") is definitely nicer, as is the not having to reach, stretch, etc... I wouldn't play more 8 at the table though. 8 would be plenty comfy, 9 would be too tight. Doable of course...but just tight.
Now to add drink holders, a bumper, speed cloth, and a pedestal.
That's great news ... thanks for passing it on.
As far as drink holders: the type that can slip under the padded rail could be used in order to maintain flexibility in number of players.
Speed cloth will be a problem ... 60 inches is the widest I've seen. (No room to fold under, and staple). Maybe someone know where we can get wider.
The "bumper" as you put it will add 4 inches to the diameter that may give a little more comfort if you happen to have a ninth player drop in.
There should be no problem making a simple round pedestal.
I thimpk we are getting close to a good home table for self dealing.
As far as drink holders: the type that can slip under the padded rail could be used in order to maintain flexibility in number of players.
Speed cloth will be a problem ... 60 inches is the widest I've seen. (No room to fold under, and staple). Maybe someone know where we can get wider.
The "bumper" as you put it will add 4 inches to the diameter that may give a little more comfort if you happen to have a ninth player drop in.
There should be no problem making a simple round pedestal.
I thimpk we are getting close to a good home table for self dealing.
Again thanks for your input.
Yeah.I am thinking under the table drink holders. The bumper won't add 4 inches to the diameter..as I will simply put it on the existing edge taking up some of the play room (which won't be an issue..there was lots) as well...alleviating the speed cloth-width issue. The only thing it will do is add a bit to the height..but again, I don't think that was an issue. There was waaaay less leaning on the table to peer across to see the cards.
Pedestals are no big deal...you are correct. I just gave a very nice custom one to my buddy that builds poker tables for a heads up table for his house. Shameless plug for Big Slick Custom Made hehe I will build mine from steel though.
The following is my opinion plus the opinions expressed on this thread along with the opinions of other home game poker players. All of whom may not totally agree with my conclusions. If you are thinking of getting a table (or having one build) for you home game this information may help.
The first thing to consider is size, often, the number of players that show up for a home game will vary. If someone can’t make it or someone brings a friend a little flexibility in available seating can make your home game more enjoyable.
Basic Shape
The casinos use the oval is shaped, to maximize seating in the available space while giving optimum benefit to the dealer. If your home game will have a designated dealer you may no be able to improve on this shape. However, in most home games the deal/dealer is changed with every hand. Octagon and decagon shaped tables tend to remove flexibility in seating. Therefore is appears the best shape for a home game would be round. No matter where the dealer is the distance is consistent and fewer players can spread out while more players can simply sit a little closer together. Cup holder’s ashtrays and built-in chip racks also remove flexibility; so small side tables may be the better option.
Size
It appears a round table with a diameter of 58 inches will seat 8 players comfortably while a diameter of 66 inches will seat 9 players. Both the above sizes will allow for an additional player thereby maintaining flexibility.
Height
The height of the table should not exceed 30 inches at its highest point and the larger table should be a bit lower. Therefore, if you are adding a padded rail 4 high the center portion of the table should be 26 inches high. This will make dealing a bit easier.
Good quality underlay comes in 72-inch width and 1/2 inch thick for a soft surface under speed cloth. Speed cloth however appears to have a maximum width of 60 inches.
Cup holder can be purchased that simply slide under the padded rail.
I am the owner of TG Poker Table Designs and I have communicated with Curmmy via email a few times and I completely agree with him on the idea of a round poker table. When I started building poker tables I assumed that round tables would be a more suitable option for home games and I expected to sell a lot of them. However that has simply not been the case. The benefit of a round table has been discussed quite a bit in this thread so I won't go through it all again. There are a few drawbacks though based on what I am hearing from my customers.
First of all many people who are in condos or apartments have an oval dining room table and if they put the poker table in there the folks on the sides of the room will get squished. Also in small homes many of the room are oval which simply does not lend itself to a large round table.
Secondly storage becomes an issue. Since most of us do not have a dedicated room for poker we must store our table. Many like to put there oval table behind a couch so it is hidden...once again something you can't do with a big round table.
Thirdly if you are having a two table game most rooms are simply not big enough to acomodate two round tables whereas you can usually get two oval tables in a good sized room. The room would have to be enormous to have two round tables.
The issue with building the tables is that wood does not come available in 5' widths. I contacted lumber manufacturers and asked if they would do it but I had to commit to buying about 20 sheets at a pretty hefty price tag. Since I sell so few round tables it would be a waste of money for me. Curmmy talked about the cutting two half circles out of a 4' X 8' piece which is an idea I had considered in the past but the challenge then becomes making sure no one will feel the seam in the wood. I have pretty high standards for myself.
Having said all of that I am willing to build a demo of this table at my cost and then assembling a few of you for game to talk about its design. I would then sell it as a demo.
I did my 60" round out of the one sheet..two halfs...and with the foam under the cloth you can't see of feel the seam. I used a 48" round underneath and screwed the two halfs to that. The only thing I am working on which is difficult is the bumper..making that seamless is appearing tricky...
this actually seems like a minor problem. can't you router out joints with a jig or bit to form a tongue and groove joint of some kind, then place a second piece of plywood under the centre joint area of the first to re inforce it? worst case might be a dove tailed joint for the bumbers which may give better strength on the curve. I'm not a carpenter though.
the wood is no biggie to create..as it will be covered regardless..seams don't matter there. the leather or vinyl covering to get that wide is an issue. I am figuring it needs to be a minimum of 74" wide to make it one piece...
I have someone who does industrial sewing so I sew two pieces of vinyl together to accomplish that. It actually looks really sharp and many of my customers like it.
Curmmy talked about the cutting two half circles out of a 4' X 8' piece which is an idea I had considered in the past but the challenge then becomes making sure no one will feel the seam in the wood. I have pretty high standards for myself.
A "biscuit joiner" or "plate joiner"would make the seam invisible but you would still need extra support, or one could buy a used banquete table. They come in 60 and 72 inch diameter.
I sew two pieces of vinyl together to accomplish that. It actually looks really sharp and many of my customers like it.
A simple solution, would be to get a new or used banquet table. These have a normally/standard sixty inch diameter and will seat eight people for dinner. (Costco has new banquet table on sale for less than $90.00.)
Once you have the basic table it can easily be changed into a poker table by simply adding a soft surface and the cloth covering. This is easily accomplished by adding, (a high quality) carpet underlay and speed cloth. Now you have a basic poker table that can be played on.
To finalize your creation all you have to do is add the padded rail. I would suggest the rail be made in four or five sections that would lie on the table with a minimal overlapping edge. These sections could be fasten together with hidden “draw catches”. This would allow each section to be upholstered individually, minimizing the amount of material needed. It would also will allow for the easy removal of the padded rail for repairs, or, to allow the table to be used for other purposes. Of course you can simplify matters by finding someone to make the padded rail for you.
Comments
Now to add drink holders, a bumper, speed cloth, and a pedestal.
That's great news ... thanks for passing it on.
As far as drink holders: the type that can slip under the padded rail could be used in order to maintain flexibility in number of players.
Speed cloth will be a problem ... 60 inches is the widest I've seen. (No room to fold under, and staple). Maybe someone know where we can get wider.
The "bumper" as you put it will add 4 inches to the diameter that may give a little more comfort if you happen to have a ninth player drop in.
There should be no problem making a simple round pedestal.
I thimpk we are getting close to a good home table for self dealing.
Again thanks for your input.
Yeah.I am thinking under the table drink holders. The bumper won't add 4 inches to the diameter..as I will simply put it on the existing edge taking up some of the play room (which won't be an issue..there was lots) as well...alleviating the speed cloth-width issue. The only thing it will do is add a bit to the height..but again, I don't think that was an issue. There was waaaay less leaning on the table to peer across to see the cards.
Pedestals are no big deal...you are correct. I just gave a very nice custom one to my buddy that builds poker tables for a heads up table for his house. Shameless plug for Big Slick Custom Made hehe I will build mine from steel though.
The first thing to consider is size, often, the number of players that show up for a home game will vary. If someone can’t make it or someone brings a friend a little flexibility in available seating can make your home game more enjoyable.
Basic Shape
The casinos use the oval is shaped, to maximize seating in the available space while giving optimum benefit to the dealer. If your home game will have a designated dealer you may no be able to improve on this shape. However, in most home games the deal/dealer is changed with every hand. Octagon and decagon shaped tables tend to remove flexibility in seating. Therefore is appears the best shape for a home game would be round. No matter where the dealer is the distance is consistent and fewer players can spread out while more players can simply sit a little closer together. Cup holder’s ashtrays and built-in chip racks also remove flexibility; so small side tables may be the better option.
Size
It appears a round table with a diameter of 58 inches will seat 8 players comfortably while a diameter of 66 inches will seat 9 players. Both the above sizes will allow for an additional player thereby maintaining flexibility.
Height
The height of the table should not exceed 30 inches at its highest point and the larger table should be a bit lower. Therefore, if you are adding a padded rail 4 high the center portion of the table should be 26 inches high. This will make dealing a bit easier.
Good quality underlay comes in 72-inch width and 1/2 inch thick for a soft surface under speed cloth. Speed cloth however appears to have a maximum width of 60 inches.
Cup holder can be purchased that simply slide under the padded rail.
First of all many people who are in condos or apartments have an oval dining room table and if they put the poker table in there the folks on the sides of the room will get squished. Also in small homes many of the room are oval which simply does not lend itself to a large round table.
Secondly storage becomes an issue. Since most of us do not have a dedicated room for poker we must store our table. Many like to put there oval table behind a couch so it is hidden...once again something you can't do with a big round table.
Thirdly if you are having a two table game most rooms are simply not big enough to acomodate two round tables whereas you can usually get two oval tables in a good sized room. The room would have to be enormous to have two round tables.
The issue with building the tables is that wood does not come available in 5' widths. I contacted lumber manufacturers and asked if they would do it but I had to commit to buying about 20 sheets at a pretty hefty price tag. Since I sell so few round tables it would be a waste of money for me. Curmmy talked about the cutting two half circles out of a 4' X 8' piece which is an idea I had considered in the past but the challenge then becomes making sure no one will feel the seam in the wood. I have pretty high standards for myself.
Having said all of that I am willing to build a demo of this table at my cost and then assembling a few of you for game to talk about its design. I would then sell it as a demo.
Lets see if we get some interest.
You can see more of my work at
TG Poker Tables Homepage
A "biscuit joiner" or "plate joiner" would make the seam invisible but you would still need extra support, or one could buy a used banquete table. They come in 60 and 72 inch diameter.
A simple solution, would be to get a new or used banquet table. These have a normally/standard sixty inch diameter and will seat eight people for dinner. (Costco has new banquet table on sale for less than $90.00.)
Once you have the basic table it can easily be changed into a poker table by simply adding a soft surface and the cloth covering. This is easily accomplished by adding, (a high quality) carpet underlay and speed cloth. Now you have a basic poker table that can be played on.
To finalize your creation all you have to do is add the padded rail. I would suggest the rail be made in four or five sections that would lie on the table with a minimal overlapping edge. These sections could be fasten together with hidden “draw catches”. This would allow each section to be upholstered individually, minimizing the amount of material needed. It would also will allow for the easy removal of the padded rail for repairs, or, to allow the table to be used for other purposes. Of course you can simplify matters by finding someone to make the padded rail for you.