Foam for playing surface - 1/4 vs 1/3? (1 Viewer)

[MonoPete]

I'm finally going to get around to building my first table.

Unfortunately, lots of items are out of stock.

I'm looking at YAT, and they have two foams available that caught my eye:

2-A Density Volara - 1/4" Thick Closed Cell

1/3" High Density Poker Foam (Open Cell)

The 1/4" Open Cell is out of stock.

Which of these two would be the best choice? Is there another site/sponsor I should consider for a different foam?

 

[poislb]

Might be the best 1.60 spent

 

[poislb]

I’ve used the closed cell in the past, hate it... can’t grip the cards and chips bounce all over the place

 

[boltonguy]

I went with 2-A Density Volara - 1/4" Thick Closed Cell from YAT and am happy with it.
When you spray 3M adhesive before laying down the foam, dont spray too heavily - my first time I had standing puddles of 3M adhesive and it caused the foam over the puddles to expand a bit leaving irregularities in what would otherwise be a flat top surface. Had to rip it off, sand away the gunk and lay another piece down with a mist of 3M.
From what I understand it will "remember" an imprint if something heavy is placed on it for an extended period.
I have not had this happen as I make sure not to leave heavy stuff on the table overnight.

 

[cpiaaq]

I went with 2-A Density Volara - 1/4" Thick Closed Cell from YAT and am happy with it.
When you spray 3M adhesive before laying down the foam, dont spray too heavily - my first time I had standing puddles of 3M adhesive and it caused the foam over the puddles to expand a bit leaving irregularities in what would otherwise be a flat top surface. Had to rip it off, sand away the gunk and lay another piece down with a mist of 3M.
From what I understand it will "remember" an imprint if something heavy is placed on it for an extended period.
I have not had this happen as I make sure not to leave heavy stuff on the table overnight.

This is the foam I used on my table. It definitely remembers imprints, but they go away after a while.

 

[StatTracker]

A 1/3" foam should be your second choice in terms of thickness. Do not go any higher than 1/3" as it will hinder stacking and accuracy. In terms of foam types, I personally avoided Volara because if you leave a rack on it overnight, it will leave a lasting indentation. This was a huge turnoff for me.

Try to aim for 1/4" open cell with a spill proof surface, as the open cell provides more initial flexibility while maintaining the same long term padding of closed cell. Sidenote: if you cannot get a spill proof playing surface, go with closed cell, as any liquid in your foam will cause long term, difficult to repair damage.

Consider this site, which is the one I used for my most recent build. The foam will need a day to rest&unroll before adhesion due to the way it is shipped. This site also has foam but I have not used them for any purchases.

 

[WedgeRock]

For my two tables that I built, I went with 1/4" closed cell (for its water reselling characteristics). Heavy objects will leave a mark, but they've always returned to original form with time.

The 1/4" volara can have a little bounce to it, so on the second table, I added a layer of headliner over the volara... It deadens any bounce.

 

[MonoPete]

After reading more on this site.. I'm pretty sure I want to go with the 1/4 HD open cell - but I can't seem to find it in stock anywhere. BYOPT has a 1/4" foam, but the only specs say it's 50lb. I'm not sure if that's the quality I should be looking for, or if it's just a cheap choice.