BBO Aces Pro Alpha Poker Table - Feedback (1 Viewer)

[Kam]

Looking online for a better way to articulate the base color scheme. I found a couple different color palettes for oceans, so I think I can reference these to get a little closer to what I was thinking, really handy and awesome this stuff is out there for reference: https://www.schemecolor.com/deep-blue-sea-color-palette.php

I just came here last year to buy some CDI 98's, and now I'm googling ocean color palettes... >.>

 

[Kam]

“Decided to go in a different direction…”

Went further down the felt design rabbit hole than I thought. The boss/wifey pulled me back. After spending quite a few hours doing some mark ups and trying to do the ocean color palette gradient and trying to link to my cash set, going to go with a more neutral/ generic felt. Benefit is longer term if there’s MOAR sets in the future, then it won’t conflict or look strange to have, lets say a Tiger in the ocean…

I went back through all the forum posts I could find for custom tables, and for BBO I kept going back to @Sneakygreek’s table from BBO:

The boss and I really like the geometric design, so going to keep it relatively simple with the customization, so just asked for a clean name to match the betline style:

Here’s the draft:

 

[Kam]

Also - thanks to @Sneakygreek for answering my questions and giving his feedback on his BBO table

 

[Kam]

Felt printed:

 

[OTGladiator]

Hey all,

Time to bite the bullet and invest in a long term / high end poker table. Started 20 years ago on a cheap folding octagon table topper with the crappy plastic trays for chips that folded in half with a carry case that I’d take to home games (yes, with my 11.5g plastic dice chips and metal slugs…), then ended up with a Fat Cat poker table for 16 years that I just donated to someone else.

I’ve been through the forums looking at the different vendors/ pricing etc, and keep coming back to Gorilla for what I’m looking for. It really looks like decent barrington type options around $200-$350, then Triton $1500-$2000k then 3-4 higher end players in the market at the $2k+++. I looked at the Barrington LED table in Costco for $230, awesome deal but time to level up…

Plan to have a custom felt to match the chip theme (still in work).

The USB sockets seems pretty frivolous for the cost, so I’ve been flip flopping on that. Do folk find people use them (if you have them)? This will be for home games, and think it’ll be 4-6 hour type sessions.

I like the idea of the swing out cupholders, had more than one beer knocked over onto my old table.

Here’s the outline below - interested in feedback/ thoughts if anyone has experience with Gorilla.

Also - is this vendor known to offer any PCF type discount or Black Friday /Cyber Monday deals?

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Cheers

Kam

Hey Kam, this looks like a really good table. I wouldn’t think USB chargers are worth the add on they charge. I’m in the market for a new table also, so I’ve been looking at all the options, too. That’s definitely one I’m going to skip. Definitely think the cup holders are a must though.

 

[Kam]

Update, table is built!

 

[Kam]

Delivery scheduled for Dec 31st! So just over 4 wks from order.

 

[acezag]

Beautiful table, and your wife is smart - sometimes less definitely is more. It will be cool to see the setup pics.

 

[Kam]

Should be a big mail day tomorrow…

 

[Kam]

Thanks to everyone for their feedback and input. Delivery day!

 

[Lts923]

Thanks to everyone for their feedback and input. Delivery day!


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Sure is pretty! Whatcha think so far??

 

[Kam]

Feels pretty solid so far. Massive upgrade from what I had before. Glad I went with a darker and less busy felt design, chips stand out:

Happy I sprung for the extra upgrade on the LED switch, can change brightness/ colors etc.

Really like the carbon fiber weave fabric on the rail and wide brass cupholders.

Biggest surprise is the felt. Last table I (re)felted with speedcloth and the cards were almost dangerous how fast they spun out when you dealt. Will take a little getting used to/ more effort or technique when pitching as the surface is definitely more ‘gripy’ than speedcloth.

Like a madman, I just dealt through my different setups seeing if there was any difference. Faded Spade were the worst (stopping early/ need more effort) and Copags the best in terms of how easy to glide across. Dunno if it’ll bother me until we’re 5 hours into a session, but my wallet will be happier if the Copags prove best with this surface

 

[Kam]

Got the BBO Heavy Duty Travel bag, going to use it to store/ protect the felt in the garage. Seems pretty decent, perfect fit, has carry handles. Pretty happy with it and glad I added it to the order:

 

[warma]

Thanks for recording your journey- lots of good decision points covered here for future table shoppers. How are you planning to store it? (On side on floor, mounted on the wall..?)

 

[Kam]

Originally was planning to wall mount it. However the only available wall space I have isn’t even/flat and there’s different distances from the wall.

Played around with the idea of maybe a solid hanger like this (into the stud) using the storage bag straps, but the table is a heavy ‘sum b#tch. It’s ~145-160 lbs I think. It’d be pretty awkward to lift up and over without putting all the weight on one hook.

So I’ve decided to keep it simple, and will put it in the bag and rest it on some foam to try and protect the rail. Went to Home Depot last night, ended up buying this from Amazon (will cut to size).

 

[upNdown]

I’m so intrigued by the bag. I have the pub table which I think is 66x44 and that thing is heavy as hell. Granted I had to carry it alone up a flight of stairs and through some doorways, so maybe it seemed heavier than it was. But my point is that your table from the same company is much bigger - it must be heavier than hell, and I’m having a hard time imagining a bag (with handles) strong enough to hold it. That must be some bag.
But I love the idea of the bag for transporting it, because I was very worried about scuffing anything, just getting it into my room.

Edit: Ah, now I see that we don't have tables from the same company. I bought Gorilla. You bought BBO.

 

[Kam]

I’m so intrigued by the bag. I have the pub table which I think is 66x44 and that thing is heavy as hell. Granted I had to carry it alone up a flight of stairs and through some doorways, so maybe it seemed heavier than it was. But my point is that your table from the same company is much bigger - it must be heavier than hell, and I’m having a hard time imagining a bag (with handles) strong enough to hold it. That must be some bag.
But I love the idea of the bag for transporting it, because I was very worried about scuffing anything, just getting it into my room.

Yeah on my last table I had a black plastic/vinyl type cover with an elastic edge so it’d wrap around the table, but it was pretty thin material and was only good as a dust cover when the table was setup. It ended up getting ripped up at the edges when I left it on it’s edge.

The handles I think on this are good to help the initial lift, but it’s still pretty awkward. Think I’d still just grab the edge of the table to move it. Hard to move if you’re alone with one carry handle as the whole table pivots at a weird angle.

They might sell smaller bags as well - worth checking out. It was a small factor in my decision since I don’t think Gorilla sell something similar.

GL!

 

[Kam]

Minor update, got the upholstery foam from Amazon. Should do the trick for a simple way to protect the rail and keep it on it’s side with the weight distributed evenly.

Temporary spot just now until I clear space against the other wall and will cut to size. Thought it’d actually compress more given the weight of the table.

 

[upNdown]

It was a small factor in my decision since I don’t think Gorilla sell something similar.

Oh, you bought BBO. I missed that. Since the tread is titled Gorilla, its confusing.

 

[Kam]

Oh, you bought BBO. I missed that. Since the tread is titled Gorilla, its confusing.

Yep - fair point. Going back to last year I had planned on Gorilla, but there was a deal with Black Friday for BBO big enough that it swung my decision. I’ve edited the thread title so if folk are searching in the future it’s BBO.

 

[Kam]

Finally shuffled some stuff around in the garage. Table in it’s permanent resting spot. Forgot how heavy it was to manuever. Foam works, not a fancy storage solution, but it’ll do (rail is on inside against foam/wall):

 

[M_T_Pokkets]

Hi there - quick question: I am also about to pull the trigger on a BBO table. I was told by a sales reps that I can get a design printed on "suited speed felt" or their "velveteen felt". Going by you felt pics, I would assume you got their velveteen felt and I am VERY curious if you can report on how that has been for your farthest dealers tossing cards at the table? I've been on a cheap red fibered felt for 20 years and it definitely kills all card momentum across a table. But I'm also trying to avoid the air hockey effect of suited speed felt if possible. Any and all views from your personal experience would be super helpful! Thanks

 

[Kam]

Hi there - quick question: I am also about to pull the trigger on a BBO table. I was told by a sales reps that I can get a design printed on "suited speed felt" or their "velveteen felt". Going by you felt pics, I would assume you got their velveteen felt and I am VERY curious if you can report on how that has been for your farthest dealers tossing cards at the table? I've been on a cheap red fibered felt for 20 years and it definitely kills all card momentum across a table. But I'm also trying to avoid the air hockey effect of suited speed felt if possible. Any and all views from your personal experience would be super helpful! Thanks

Hey @M_T_Pokkets - yeah I got the velveteen. My previous cheapo table I refelted with decent speed cloth - so I’ve played with both. I was initially a bit surprised about the difference, definitely more textured fabric feel to the velveteen and you do need to change the dealing pitch technique a little and add some more juice.

I wouldn’t have any concerns, I’d buy velveteen again.

I think what plays a bigger factor is how confident your players are in dealing than the fabric to be honest. We still have to slide/pass a few cards if folk are dealing from the ends, but that’s a dealer skill issue, not fabric. I noticed a slight difference in what decks you play with as well - but so minor you can adjust really quick.

I’m also really happy with the design print quality, not sure how clean and vibrant the design would be if it’d print out on suited cloth as well.

GL!

 

[M_T_Pokkets]

Thank you SO much for your quick reply. I might be making the purchase in the next few hours and I will use this info. If by chance you see this as well, a couple more follow up questions:

First, how is the BBO table constructed when it comes to the idea of re-felting? Like, easy to remove the armrest and access the felting surface, you think? And also, I'm concerned about the "grabbiness" of what you've described, but it might just be a trigger from my experience owning an old-school felted table for 2 decades. Maybe you can tell from some of these pics the type of felt I've been dealing with personally, and offer a perspective on how your BBO velveteen surface would compare to this type I have. Again, I'm looking for a sweet spot for table-end dealers where cards can travel decently, but don't do the air hockey thing I've experienced on suited speed felts. You can see ours is some kind of "short hair" felt that can leave a color streak when rubbed one direction vs the other. If what you're using is certainly less grippy than this type, I would take your word for it. Thoughts?

 

[Kam]

Hah! What a question. I’ll take my best stab at it.

I shared some lessons learned from my old table, where I bought a generic felt from a fabric store and left a streak / handprints etc (the red one below) - horrible choice and was like superglue to cards. Ended up ripping that off, putting professional volara foam and speed cloth on top:

https://www.pokerchipforum.com/threads/face-side-of-suited-speed-cloth.126942/

For the BBO, it’s hard to say, but looking at your 3rd picture, it looks ‘rougher’ or more textured that than the BBO. I don’t have any real close ups of pics I can find, but you can’t really leave obvious ‘streaks’ in it like yours, so I think it’s shorter fibers. Here’s some quick pics I had on my phone, only ones that were kinda close to the felt:

I can’t speak to how easy it’d be, but I’m sure folk have refelted their BBO tables. The table is pretty solid, assume there’ll be bolts underneath to remove the rail etc. @T_Chan is a vendor here that can also do custom felts/ print designs if you want to try something different in the future.

 

[Kam]

Thank you SO much for your quick reply. I might be making the purchase in the next few hours and I will use this info. If by chance you see this as well, a couple more follow up questions:

First, how is the BBO table constructed when it comes to the idea of re-felting? Like, easy to remove the armrest and access the felting surface, you think? And also, I'm concerned about the "grabbiness" of what you've described, but it might just be a trigger from my experience owning an old-school felted table for 2 decades. Maybe you can tell from some of these pics the type of felt I've been dealing with personally, and offer a perspective on how your BBO velveteen surface would compare to this type I have. Again, I'm looking for a sweet spot for table-end dealers where cards can travel decently, but don't do the air hockey thing I've experienced on suited speed felts. You can see ours is some kind of "short hair" felt that can leave a color streak when rubbed one direction vs the other. If what you're using is certainly less grippy than this type, I would take your word for it. Thoughts? View attachment 1527107View attachment 1527108View attachment 1527110

Ok, went down and grabbed some pics for you, looks like mainly hex bolts and some minor screws if you did want to take apart:

Here’s a better close up of the felt:

I say go for the velveteen.

 

[M_T_Pokkets]

Oh yeah, super helpful. The bolting from underneath do indeed make it look pretty easy for re-felting. And nice macro pic of the felt, I can certainly tell a difference on your fabric surface vs our red felt hairs. Thanks for going the extra mile and getting in-person pictures late this evening

Last question: did you end up with their "strong as hell" legs? I'm curious how you feel they hold up to a person leaning on a table armrest? I'm hoping BBO has somehow achieved a folding table design that doesn't dip/rock very much against the weight of a guy doing a two armed lean-against

Either way, thanks again!

 

[M_T_Pokkets]

Shoot - thought of another question: any awareness of how much waterproofing their velveteen is, perchance? Either what they may have told you, or any kind of spills you've experienced personally? No worries if you can't offer much on this one, of course.
Thanks again!

 

[Kam]

Yep, I got those folding legs. There is still a slight ‘wobble’ when you set the table up without any players around it and if you push on it from one side on purpose.

However I would say this thing is a solid beast. It’s really hard to move and setup by yourself, think it’s around 165lbs. There’s no flex in the table itself, and unless you get a fixed pedestal table, it’ll always be there.

Once we have a table of players around it, I didn’t notice any wobble or shake etc, even with everyone leaning on it.

As for spills, I think since my table still has the new car smell, everyone is being careful - so no spills yet. I think if you’re relatively quick with paper towels it’ll be fine. There’s also a bunch of threads on here of how to clean your felt (a small wet bissel fabric cleaner machine is the magic trick) - so even if your felt gets stains and dirt from use, it should all clean up with some effort.

GL and share some pics if you go ahead with your new table.