I lol'd at this line.

Looking good sir. Those cupholders look like they have very small lips, and will require a fairly accurate hole size and location. I think you're making the right decision to involve a more experienced carpenter for this phase. Good luck, can't wait to see more pics!

Keep the updates and pictures coming, table looks good.

I am interested to see how you level the table insert with the racetrack. I assume the racetrack is made with 3/4 inch and the insert is 1/2 but adding the felt and foam would raise the insert slightly above the rail

Your assumption would mean that I was smart and had planned ahead. But now that you've got me thinking about it, I'm going to put the padding I cut off around the playing surface underneath the racetrack. I want to have a little drop off from felt to racetrack, but not as much as I would have had before you mentioned this. I ordered 3/16 padding fwiw.

My gf's dad and I cut out the cup holders today and they look great. He also gave me some good advice for finishing the wood. I'm still at their house so no pictures until tomorrow. The upholstery should arrive tomorrow too.

LOTTA PICTURE SPACE:::

ok, I got my upholstery today. I love the way everything looks together but I didn't have the help of a friend I thought I would today, so It was slow, solo, work and I only got the felt done.

worked on my kitchen floor for this since my garage is a compact dirt floor to start with, with a bunch of my mess on top of it. I happen to have a 40lb tv on it's way out the door to help me hold down the glue.



a pic of very early in the felt stapling process. I didn't take any pictures between now and the next, but I went around and around the edge pulling the sheet tight and splitting the difference between each successive row of staples till I had a near-continuous row around the edge.





I guess tomorrow when i'm less tired I'll snap a pic of the bottom of the center piece.

I'm going to do at least one, probably two more layers of poly on the ractrack.



I'm not going to put padding under the racetrack, as the lip looks like it's gonna be about what I want. This picture is about the average of what the lip is before I have anything screwed down.



the tool my gf's dad used to cut the holes was a violent beast but it did the job. It did grab the wood a bit on the inaugural hole, but not enough so the cup-lip won't cover. Plus it was a warning to go slow when the knife first hit the wood.





All in all, I'm very pleased so far and i'm excited to see my finished product, either tomorrow or wednesday!

Also, any advice on the making the railing easier to do would be appreciated.

Colors look good. I was going to say that even if you put foam under the track it won't be enough to raise it noticeably at all. Good job for first time out.... Ahh... My first time. Coming up on 5 years ago. As for the rail, I have put a few tidbits in here and there, I'd suggest anchoring staples at six points on the outside, then stapling each section with the "split the difference" method. I've started a new way of doing mine tho, anchoring the staples and then doing the inside of the rail first. Makes it much cleaner and easier to pull tight on the outside edges. If this interests you let me know.

Get a second person to help you; it takes a lot of pulling to keep the vinyl tight. Looking good!

A compressor, a nail attachment and a friend.

Harbor Freight (if you have them) will sell you a compressor cheap enough that you can pay for it by skipping a few lunches, and you'll be done with the felting in 10 minutes.

About $70 delivered:
http://www.harborfreight.com/3-gallo...sor-95275.html

The 20% off coupon isn't valid on compressors...

...and they're pretty handy to have around the house for the next project -- like attaching the $5 paint attachment to it and doing your varnish on your next table. [...and subsequently being lazy and throwing away the airbrush tools instead of cleaning it because it's almost cheaper to replace.]

I've cut out the foam and have started glueing it to the rail. I'm gonna be doing the two long sides solo, going with slidey's inside out method, then a friend is coming over later to help with the ends.

I've also decided to use the piece of 3/4" plywood, that I cut out to make the rail, as a cover that slips inside the rail to protect the felt and racetrack. Imma have to shave the edges about a 1/4", and use some leftover felt padding to keep it from scratching the racetrack, but it should be a pretty nice table top after some heavy sanding, staining, and finish.

Pictures later.

well. My "help" came over wednesday, knew not **** about uphostelry, and didn't feel like working after working all day, so we didn't get hardly anything done. Fastforward to today, the mess is still all across my kitchen and I'm sick of it so I resolve to finish myself.

You guys weren't kidding, the rail is by far the most difficult part of making these tables. I'm pretty happy with the results.

















The inside edge of the ends of the rails is damn near impossible, unless I was missing some trick. But I got them done to my satisfaction. Just have some minor things to do and it'll all be done.

I think it looks really good.

Good work!

/Erik

Classy, IMO. The felt and the stain colors look very nice with the brass cupholders. Good job!

Agreed. Nice job.

Ive said it before, the rail work is really all about technique. I can do these now in about 45 minutes, no bubbles or issues. First time out is just tough no matter what. It came out looking really good. I like the color combo.

How much did this cost all up?