I am attempting to rebuilt and improve a crappy pool table.The very outside of the slate is pretty curved all around.What can be done to straighten out the edges?
>>2969001I would use a jack and piece of 2x4 to get them level then put a 90° bracket under it and attach it to the piece with the 4 lag bolts in it
>>2969002You'll break your slate. Support them underneath with framework and then pour some sort of self leveling compound is how I would probably proceed. It looks like that slate has sagged over time due to being unsupported.
>>2969005The actual playing surface should still be pretty level
>>2969006Yes. Just looks like the edges have sagged over time.
The slate sits on four 1.5x3" MDF boards.I can buy a ~$200 1.5" thick MDF panel and place it under the slate, just need to find one locally. big box stores do not sell ones that thick.I can also buy premium quality oak studs, 2x6 (actual size 1.5x5something) and run them from edge to edge under the slate. they are more expensive, $68 each for an 8ft, I would need at least 4.Regular pine studs are too warped, and irregular.as far as to straighten it out, I can use the same oak boards, cut them to size, and place them over the slate, and secure them with clamps. leave it like that for a few days/weeks.metal L brackets might be cheaper than wood, I can do the same with those.What can I do to make the slate conform? wet it and dry it out? I have a good size dehumidifier, and a gazebo i can place over it.
>>2969001That looks like a playing cloth mounted directly on some mdf board. Where is the slate?All old 9' pool tables will sag over time. The way this is corrected is putting some thin spacers at the edges of the supports.Being a crappy table you hay have to add more supports where possible.Get a proper precision level or you will never get it right. A common level like the one in your picture is not precise enough.
>>2969016>Where is the slate?the MDF board is the slate. its a low quality table.>thin spacers at the edges of the supports.can you describe this further?>precision levelI have a proper straight edge, the level was a quick grab.>more supportsthats the plan. first i need to straighten it out. 2nd buy and add supports. good quality straight wood is expensive.so my second idea is to buy a 1.5x5x10 MFD board, and cut it to size. this might be cheaper, simpler and faster than attempting to straighten it out and reinforcing it. a proper slate is out of my budget, this is a cheap sub $1k Mizerak Dynasty.
>>2969021> can you describe this further?wood wedges. This pushes up the playing surface so you can correct the sagging.You push it in with a small hammer using light hits between the support and the playing surface and control the level while you do it.However in a table with no real slate your best bet is to add as much supports as possible, because that slim mdf playing surface has no rigidity.Use whatever wood you have to reinforce the structure underneath creating more points of support and go through a procedure to get the whole thing leveled inserting wedges. Maybe there is some product that could make the surface a little harder, idk.That is what i would do.
>>2969021>first i need to straighten it outYou cant. It will sag on its own weight.Get the table in its final place in the room.Level the feet and make sure they dont move.Reinfocre the structure underneath creating more supports. It doesnt have to be perfect or quality wood. You just need to get it close enough, being careful you dont put a support in a place where you are not going to be able to mount the rest of the table in the end.Finally just go in a specific order levelling each part of the playing surface wedging the new and the old supports.Once all is leveled fix those wedges in place with a nail.One alternative to the wedges in the new supports is to simply to create those supports with a couple of inches of clearance of the playing surface and put threaded inserts on the support so you can screw upwards a bolt with a pad to fine tune the amount you want it to correct.tldr. The whole thing is flexible and you will never get it to be flat on its own. Add more supports and create a way to regulate how much each one pushes the surface up while you measure the level.
>>2969021>the MDF board is the slate.that's . . . not how it works. you just have a wooden pool table, there is no slate.
>>2969031well thats what it is. its a MDF top pool table. im calling it a slate cause thats what the top of the pool is called.anyway, i think my best course of action is to to buy a 4x8 3/4th inch veneered birch panel, put that down first and glue the slate on top of that using liquid nails and a lot of weight. that should straighten it out.il'l then reinforce the edges
>>2969034You are mistaken, it's only, called a slate if it's actually slate.
>>2969016>That looks like a playing cloth mounted directly on some mdf board. Where is the slate?Oh shit, I retract my earlier statements about jacking it up breaking the slate. Didn't realize it was MDF and not slate from the crappy photo size on my tablet...
>>2969053>You are mistaken, it's only, called a slate if it's actually slate.This. Words have meaning... You can't just call MDF slate.
leave in some flaws to strengthen your home advantage
I picked up a 4x8 MFD board, and some 2x10s.I'm going to reinforce the top with these.I'll screw them down, and then sand over the high spots. Then I'll place the MFD board on top, cut holes for pocket, and nail the "slate" on top of that.
I'm gonna leave it like this for 2 weeks
>>2969878>edges of wooden board are curving down...so I'm going to add even more weight on the edges and really bend them down
>>2969001Get a different felt color, something unconventional. Back-under lighting around the interior edges overhanging the board. Outer edges that can cradle cues, to forgo storage rack.
>>2969883It's lying on top of a MFD board. Edge to edge. I placed more bags on the centerBefore this it was lying on the ground for a few days, that helped take the bow out some.
If it has sagged over time, just flip it over. It will sag back in the other direction over time.
