I am looking to buy a poker table and I'm trying to weigh all of my options.

My budget is a max of $500 since I play 2-3 times per year, but I want this table to last... AKA I dont want to buy a rinky $125 table and have it break, and have to cough up more money for a better one. This is what I've found so far

Table 1 - $200

Table 2 - $300

and I'm leaning toward Table 2 (even though I'm not a fan of racetrack), but it seems there must be a better site to buy from other than amazon.com.


Know any good sites that sell? Has anyone ever built one? If so was it cost affordable / nice?

I built one for about $300 and it's great. I borrowed tools. I used borrowed instructions. Choose your style and build.

buying a table < building your own

if you have (or know someone) with minimal carpentry skills and tools you can build a much better table for the money.

i really would like cup holders in the rail and not on a race track. it seems like doing something like that would be beyond what im capable of, handy man wise.

Check out the scottkeen forum they can help you with anything over there. I'm currently in the process of building a table and it is a lot easier than I thought. I have little woodworking skill, but have found this very manageable

Here is a sneak peak of what I'm doing. I'll show the finished product when I'm done. Hopefully within a month or so

Doing a 56" round w/raised inlay with a solid 60" red oak top. I will have a black suede rail, with a custom cloth that is mostly black.


Table about a week ago. I've bolted everything together since.


Solid red oak top. I'm going to do the finishing on this last which is why it looks the way it does.


Raised rail with the inlay I'm putting in and stain.

Dont mean to burst the bubble but both these options you've chosen are terrible. As a custom builder it's tough for me to see people spend money on products like this. As stated before, use the money on quality materials and make your own.

I've got to second slidey1. Those tables are not worth it.

I have a table which is better than either of the ones you linked, but still a fairly cheap piece of crap, and I spent $50 on it. No way would I spend $200-$300 on something like what I have, much less the tables you are considering.

Think local, because shipping jacks the price up on something like this. Check Craigslist for someone who is selling a used table, or find a builder who might be in your budget. A friend of mine bought a locally-built table that was much better than mine in your price range. It is nothing like the quality of slidey1's work and what jzpiano is working on, but it is a solid table with decent workmanship.

By the way, those cup holders in the rail are waaaaay too shallow. You will use them for a while, then decide they are a liability and use side tables. At that point, they are only good for putting circle-shaped indentations in your forearms. Trust me, I've been there.

Nice looking table. That inlay is awesome. Where will it go? Where did you get it?

skeetm0n,

Think about how many players you want to cater for. Most people automatically think of 10 people and an oval table but that gives a compromised solution for most home games, especially for rotating dealer.

If 8 people is OK, then a 56" round is perfect.

If you want to seat 9 people then I'd say 60" round, but it's starting to get a bit big.

I like cups in the rail, but it does sort of limit you to a given number of players.

Thanks. I got the inlay at rockler. It is going to be a raised rail that is in-between the felt and the rail. I got the idea from a table done by irish7511 on the scottkeen forum. Here is a picture of what he did

not bursting my bubble at all, this is the kind of advice im looking for. much appreciated

this a good point, i doubt i would ever have a full ring game, it would most likely be 4 to 8 players and circle is much more conducive to a rotating dealer.


when building it yourself is it hard to put cupholders directly into the rail? also, how do you stencil the felt? like if i wanted to draw a logo or something on the middle of the table

im having trouble finding a good tutorial on how to build a circle table... one that does not have a race track around it. can anyone link me to such a DIY tutorial?

My suggestion would be to lurk around the scottkeen forums and just look through table builds. That should be enough to help you get a feel of how to build one. There is a vast range of tables for any ability there.

48" Round raised rail w/cupholder in the rail
http://www.scottkeen.com/forum/viewt...ht=round+table

60" Round w/racetrack/ cupholders in racetrack
http://www.scottkeen.com/forum/viewt...ccac2a2b380ed5

As far as cupholders, check out this thread as it shows you how to put them in the rail with the foam so there is no indentation (when you put a drink in the cupholders without support the foam temporarily indents). Should give you an idea of what it looks like when you put cupholders in the rail.

As far as felt and having a logo on it. The best way is to have the cloth dyed, but it isn't a cheap option. I just ordered a custom cloth that ran me $200 + $50 designer fee for a 54"x54" piece. I don't have it yet, so I can't comment on quality, but I ordered it from the place I did because I've only heard great things about them. If you want more details let me know and I can shoot you a PM when I get it in (1-2 weeks).

Also here is a link to FAQ about building tables that might help you if your starting to think about building something.

http://www.scottkeen.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=514

If nothing else, you can always post on ScottKeen that you want a table built and you may find a builder nearby that can get you just what you want at a decent price. I build quite a few tables and charge my locals in the $500 range for a cupholder/speedcloth table. I just do it basically as a hobby and don't want the hassle of shipping those beasts

Option 1: 93lbs

Option 2: 170lbs

Very cool detail.

Yeah that table honestly turned out sooper sick.. My hat was definitely off to him for that thing. I've got a 9 footer coming along soon but I loved that Irish table.

Yeah it really did. If mine is even half as sick as his I will be a very happy person.

so this story had a bit of a weird ending. i went over to the scottkeen forum and created a thread looking for a table

http://www.scottkeen.com/forum/viewt...=356527#356527

i posted a picture of another table that i found in another thread on the forum as an example of what i was looking for. some guy then posts on the thread that he made the aforementioned table for a buddy, and his buddy was looking to get rid of it. the problem is that im in boston and hes in NJ near NYC. coincidentally my roommate from college who lives in NYC is coming to visit me this weekend, and after some negotiating, agreed to meet up with this guy to get my table and bring it to me.

That's actually quite awesome. Funny world.

ScottKeen~The eHarmony for poker table builders

Great to hear you scored that table in such a cool way, congrats!

It looks like a great table for a 6-handed game.

That is an awesome conclusion, I am pumped.

I have also found some great pictures and instructions browsing through Perfect Man Cave's poker section, don't know if any of you are aware but here it is.

Congratulation on the table that looks excellent, I am excited for you.