Table Top Material in a Pinch? (2 Viewers)

CantSpellPoker

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Having a few buddies over tonight and there’s a decent chance that some cards fly. None of them are serious players, but in my limited time here on PCF, I’ve gotten snobby enough that I’m unwilling to play on my wooden dining table or on my hard-as-a-rock octagon table top with built in chip racks.

So I’ve bought a sheet of plywood and plan on cutting it to match the dimensions of my table. From there I’m hoping to find any type of foam material to stick to the wood and then some felt to go over the foam.

Problem is, the game is tonight, so I can’t order anything online. I’m not expecting perfection here, it’s not like I need Volara foam and gaming suede.

Do you guys have any recco’s on material I can buy locally (ie at a craft/furniture/hobby store) to make a poker table top on a time crunch? Specifically foam for underneath and felt on top? I’m not a “craft”/DIY guy in general, so I’m fairly clueless.
 
Army blanket

Go to the craft store and see what they have. Quilt batting works for foam.
 
Get some 1/4" closed cell foam. Many hardware stores will have it on a 6' wide roll. Buy enough to cover your table. Cut it to fit and lay it on the table. Then lay some kind of synthetic velveteen fabric on top - try the craft stores and feel for something without too much nap. Ideally it will be wider than the foam, but in a pinch get what you can. Lay it on the foam. If the velveteen is long enough you can tuck it under the table and clamp it to the underside somewhere (I use 2" clamps). If not, I guess you could tape it down all along the edge with painters tape or something.
 
Some have mentioned using a smooth upholstery fabric or outdoor fabric.
 
Thanks for the suggestions everyone. I enlisted the help of my parents, and was able to come up with a pretty decent solution, I think.

3/4” plywood cut to the dimensions of my table. Went to Hobby Lobby and found rolls of 1” thick foam (thicker and softer than I’d like, but it’s just fine). Then bought a couple yards of textured cotton fabric.

Glued the foam to the wood, wrapped the cloth over it, and stapled the hell out of the underside. All in all, I’m pleased with how it looks. And now I have a makeshift topper that’s portable. Tested it out and the cards actually glide really nicely, and it’s plenty soft (actually too soft) for chip shuffling and card squeezing.

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Turned out nice but that 1" foam might make for some wobbly stacks. If you decide to change it at a later date I would suggest automotive headliner. I think it's sold at JoAnne fabrics if you have one near you.
 
Turned out nice but that 1" foam might make for some wobbly stacks. If you decide to change it at a later date I would suggest automotive headliner. I think it's sold at JoAnne fabrics if you have one near you.

Good call. If I do it again I’ll actually give myself more than 24 hours notice and probably order the proper stuff off YAT.
 
A little late for the OP, but for anyone else looking for a last-minute solution...

In the past, I have used a blanket with a tablecloth over it. A little duct tape holds it in place if necessary (taping the cloth to the underside of the table, so there are no unsightly residue marks left on the kitchen table.

Now I have a bit of foam from joanns that I just roll up and can pull it out as needed (for heads-up games with Mrs Zombie, pulling out setting up a whole table is too much work). It also fits in a suitcase for traveling (when we hosted the Meet in the Suite event in Las Vegas).
 
Another option is the padding that goes under carpet. I buy the more expensive brand, it’s 3/8 inch closed cell and works great. No wobbly stacks. Then just grab some fabric and clamp or tape to table if you’re in a pinch.
 
Another option is the padding that goes under carpet. I buy the more expensive brand, it’s 3/8 inch closed cell and works great. No wobbly stacks. Then just grab some fabric and clamp or tape to table if you’re in a pinch.

I did the same thing for my table but used the cheapest carpet underlay I could find at Home Depot. It has bits of cardboard in it but you can't feel them through the cloth. Works great so far!
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I did the same thing for my table but used the cheapest carpet underlay I could find at Home Depot. It has bits of cardboard in it but you can't feel them through the cloth. Works great so far!
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Good to know, I figured for the extra few cents to upgrade for material wasn’t a deal breaker for me.
 

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