We're thinking about making a hard surface cover for our pool table so we can use it as a buffet for our superbowl party.

We're looking for any advise. Hopefullly someone out there has made a pool table cover before.

Suggested materials? We'd like this to fold so we could reuse it later. A piece of plywood and a tarp may work, but how ugly is that? And, I would worry about it sagging and bouncing in the middle.

Obviously, it has to be waterproof. and it cannot damage the felt or dent the padding on the rails.

Go Patriots!

 

i just realized your post was never answered. i'm moving it to the Woodworking/Carpentry forum where i think it will be seen by people who can help you better.

i guess it's too late for this year's Super Bowl, but maybe you can still get it done for next year!

or, if you DID finish your project, tell us what you did & how it turned out!

thanks for your question!

 

Fluffy:


some friends of mine have a pool table, and they also have a ping-pong "top" that they put over the pool table, so they can play ping-pong. which made me think: why couldn't you use 2 sheets of plywood (or whatever you need to cover the table), hinged in the middle with a long piano hinge (i think that's what they're called). you could attach (staple or glue) foam rubber batting on the underside (to protect your pool table edges), and then to keep the batting secured and soften all the edges, use old sheets or cheap fabric to "upholster" the whole thing. then when you go to use it, throw something plastic over the whole thing (plastic table cloth, plastic painters drop cloth, etc) to waterproof it, and then over that, put an attractive table cloth that you've made to fit, with a 12" drop all the way around. you could use a really neat fabric for that, one with your favorite team's logo printed all over it, or a neat plaid, or just a solid color - and if you don't want to have to seam several widths of fabric together, buy a flat Full or Queen size bed sheet and make the table cloth from that.

and to keep the whole thing from "bouncing" in the middle, figure up what the distance is from the felt surface of the pool table up to the underside of the hinged plywood top and cut several strips of wood to lay railroad-fashion under the whole thing. you could wrap them in fabric, too, so they won't damage the felt.

so you'd have a flat surface, that won't bounce, that's waterproof if someone spills something, but looks nice because all you see is the table cloth.

then, after the party, you take off the table cloth & wash it. take off the plastic cover, fold it up, put it away. and take off the top, fold it up, maybe put a clasp on it to keep it shut, and maybe a handle or something to make it easy to handle, and stow it under a bed or upright against a wall somewhere.

that'd work.........right?

(sounds like a GREAT do-it-yourself project to me!)