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My wife and I are purchasing a home and have decided to turn one room into a Billiards room. We like the set of furniture that comes with the table and it seems like a good product to the untrained eye. I would love some guidance before acting.
I have this exact table. We bought it about nine months ago.
Yes, it is not one of the trusted brands (Olhausen, Diamond, even Brunswick), but it is nonetheless a sturdy table, and it looks like it belongs in a home.
The chairs and table are great, but in my case they take up a little too much space, but not unmanageably so. Shorter players or observers will need to take care with the two player's chairs, as those will tip forward if you're not careful. The wall-mount rack is nice. The house cues are trash, the balls are trash, and the plastic racks (triangle and diamond, as in) are cheap.
The table looks great, and plays very well. Costco will connect you with a local billiards retailer for delivery and professional set-up. I chose not to spend the extra $50 for them to assemble the side table, stools, chairs, and to install the wall rack, but I recommemd that you spend the extra 1% -- they also haul away all of the trash, which is worth the $50 by itself. Definitely upgrade the balls. The retailer should offer a discount on their stuff, so I nabbed wooden racks and Aramith Premium balls. I would also recommend upgrading the felt, as the provided felt is woolen and pills up every couple weeks of routine play (I have to vacuum it), and it is very slow compared to e.g. Simonis felt.
The table tennis top is also nice, but I rarely use it (and it is kind of a pain to store and place, but not that hard, either). Mostly, I bust it out when the younger nieces and nephews show up, to protect the felt. I left it as a pool table when we hosted Thanksgiving (because our tree is up in that room, and table tennis would have meant broken ornaments, etc.), and everybody followed the strict no-food rules, so that was fine. (Also, my siblings know how precious the table is to me, so they supervised and mostly it was the teenage cousins playing on it.)
It is 3-piece slate, but as noted they professionally build the table in-place, including leveling and gluing the slate. Make sure you have the room ready, and the space you need; I found that my initial placement is off by about a foot, so while I could shift it myself, I expect I'll be calling up the local retailer to have them move and re-level it (and upgrade the felt while they're at it).
Yes, it's worth it, but remember what you're buying and why.
If you want a tournament-quality table, or something you would later sell, it's not the right choice. If you want a reasonably good quality table that looks good in your home, it's a great deal (provided you minimally upgrade the balls -- the provided balls leave burn marks on all but the softest shots; I thought the assembly team were just being salespersons when they said that would happen, but after they left I shot once with those balls, and softly, and it left a small but noticeable mark, so I immediately headed to their storefront and got the Aramith set).
Remember that the pub table and stools can be put wherever, so that's basically a free 2-top.
Don't buy into the hate for 'furniture tables.' Yes, that's what it is, but also yes, it's sturdy, and mine remains level, and the rails are responsive and true. The pockets are a little weird, in that I rattle tons of shots, but I suspect that's more me sucking than the table being pissy. Side pockets feel huge, corners feel tight; I can shoot past a side pocket down the rail (on those rare occasions during which I make correct contact).
Also remember why you're looking at Costco. Their return policy, their member service, and their guarantees, plus assuming you are using their Visa, you get cash back on the purchase.
(Full disclosure: my wife works for Costco, so bias with respect to the company, but otherwise this is an objective review.)
tl;dr:
If you expect to rid yourself of the table within the next 5 years or so, maybe skip this one and get a table that retains value.
If you select this table, know that it functions perfectly well for both pool and table tennis, but definitely upgrade at least the balls, probably the racks, and collect cues/paddles according to your needs. I also strongly recommend upgrading the felt.
As with any table, make sure you have the room. I sacrificed a shitty corner and some tight sides for mine (read: my room is technically not big enough for this table), but godsdamn if I don't have my own table. The beer savings alone is worth it.
Again, as an owner of this exact table, I am not remotely dissatisfied with it.
Awesome response. I agree with the viewpoint of it being a simple solution as opposed to a solid investment. I do find it concerning that you recommend spending additional monies from day one to get it set up. One other question...
How big is the room you put your table in? My room is 23 ft 5 in. by 12 ft 10 in.
I'm a bit worried about the 12 foot width of the room.
That's too narrow. My room is 13' wide, and it is too narrow, but I can deal with jacking up against the wall if it means my own table (and those are relatively rare). If I bother getting shorter cues for any reason, that problem will be mostly handled in my case, but in your case we're talking 6" shorter (assuming you center the table) just to jack up as badly as I am...
The extra funds are easy to justify. With any table, you'll most likely want to replace the balls, even if the table is brand new, so that's only $200 or so depending on the set. The felt can wait, but trust me, you'll want it, and they'll try to sell you on it when they're building the table. They'll cut you a deal, and you should seriously consider it, but remember that any table would require refelting and re-leveling after a move, so that cost is built-in, as it were. The racks were more for personal taste, and obviously those could wait for whatever appropriate gift-giving event or holiday.
You do you re: room width. 12' is too narrow for an 8' table (see various room diagrams for recommended minimums), but if you bite the bullet and get short cues, or otherwise deal with it, you'll at least have a table. I don't know if a 6' table could comfortably squeeze into that space, so there's that.
As for the investment, I figure if we move we'll figure it out (i.e. if the buyer wants it, I'll get a new one for our new house, and if they don't, I'll either have it moved or take the hit by selling it), but for the foreseeable future I have my own table.
Yup, this is looking like I need an 8 foot table and a consult. The room is not fully enclosed as it has a 4 or 5 foot wide hallway on one side along with railing for stairs (meaning it's not a solid wall all around it. I will also probably just get shorter cues. It shouldn't be that difficult to get used to. I know i'll get killed here for saying this but i'll also be getting a ping pong cover for protection and utility. Thanks for all your help.
That package includes a table tennis topper and a table cover (which does not cover the table tennis topper), and anybody who pitches you shit for that is being a jackass. I had hopes that my kids would want to learn either game, but so far they are disinterested, and that's okay, too.
We're stuck doing some remodeling ourselves, due to a new refrigerator that doesn't quite fit into its space, and when we do that it'll save me the width of that wall (about 6") in the troublesome corner, but I have actually thought about pushing the entire side wall out a couple feet to match the exterior of an adjoining room, which would eliminate all of the problem spots for my table. That would be expensive as hell, and is a bit of a pipe dream, but we can afford it, and the space might well be worth it.
My feeling is that you're looking for a home table, so it needs to work with the home. If it's in a full-on gaming room, you can go nuts and get anything from a solid Valley barbox to a decked-out Diamond, but if it's going in the living space it probably needs to look the part, and your spouse gets some significant input as well.
Incidentally, my wife originally wanted to put our table into the 'dining' room, which is maybe 11' square. It would not have worked for any table, and thankfully I was able to talk her out of it. Don't settle for a table where it really doesn't fit, but do make minor sacrifices as needed.
One of the things that annoys me about this sub re: this question, is that the comments suggest everybody thinks we can dictate our home's layout. The reality is, of course, quite different. Unless you build your own house, you don't get that luxury. Yes, ideally your table will fit in an appropriately-sized room, with plenty of space for every conceivable shot, but if your home doesn't have that perfect space, or life decisions dictate that the 'perfect' space is devoted to couches, etc., then you make the sacrifices you can.
Our house has a room with plenty of space for a table, but that space is far better suited as a living room with attached dining. We put the table in the only other unclaimed space which could reasonably fit it, and yeah, the sides suck sometimes (especially on the fireplace insert side), and that damned corner blows, but otherwise the table fits, and dammit, that's my table.
It took me twenty years to find myself in a position to be able to get a table, and godsdammit I'm not letting a minor inconvenience ruin that, but also yes, I love pool, so I'm also not making so many sacrifices that it becomes a chore.
Anyway, it's a good table, and you wouldn't regret it. Whatever your decision, I wish you well.
No, you are paying for a piece of furniture, not a pool table.
Get a nice quality used table ffor $500. Another $750 to move and set up, $1250 total and a much better end product.
There are lots of nice looking wooden tables for sale used. They are like pianos... giveaway prices.
Call up a couple table mechanics and ask them what they can get for you in your area. I can get 20 used tables a week in my average sized city...half of them would meet your requirements.
Ok. Is there anywhere in particular you would suggest searching for a table?
I mean if you really like it I think it is ok, it is a 3 piece slate 8-inch table. I would, however, check how much the "furniture" would cost you alone. Because a used high-end pool table would cost you about 1k to 1.2k. However, it does include a lot of stuff and shipping and handling, just make sure it is assembled professionally because assembling a pool table really requires some degree of knowledge, but I think it is a good deal.
Only if you plan on never playing on it. If y'all have the space to make a poolroom, drop the $1,000/$3,000 to buy and install a real table. A Brunswick or maybe an Olhausen
Ok where would you suggest looking for a used table?
If I’m not mistaken American heritage has some odd pocket cuts and shelf lengths. I’ve always heard to stay away and spend the money on a more reputable table
Craigslist or Fakebook maybe