To Build or To Buy? (1 Viewer)

[drbradley]

Looking to upgrade my standard 8ft fold out table. I've looked at plans and videos online and feel like I am certainly capable of building a solid poker table. But I feel like it would eat up a ton of time. Anyone have experience building one who might be able to speak to just how long it might take an average person to build? Or is it just worth paying a bit more for a decent, though not fully custom table?

Thanks in advance for any advice!

 

[Goldfish]

It just took me 4 hours to change the base in my table. I can’t imagine building a table from scratch, but my handiness level is like a 2 on a scale of 1-10. I say leave it to the pros, which we have a lot of on this forum.

 

[UnicornFlash]

@bsdunbar1
@Irish
@T_Chan

 

[kmccormick100]

I’ve built two tables now, I feel like the quality is on par with $1000 tables, but for like $3-400 worth of materials and about a full weekend worth of time. If you have the skills and tools I say go for it, it’s an educational and fulfilling process. That said, for ease and reliable results, there are some great builders on here.

 

[pokrfce]

I built them from scratch years ago, base and all. Time-wise, a solid 15-20 hrs of work, depending on how complicated you want. Base tables with no bells or whistles could probably be done sooner.

One caveat, that isn't 15 straight hrs to completion. Any stains, paints, glues you use would need time to dry/cure. The 15 hrs is an estimate of actual man hours.

I would also say, at least for me, I cared way more about getting the table right than getting the table done. As a result, I spent more time on some things that I probably needed to. If you enjoy the process, the pride you have in playing on a table you built yourself .. priceless.

 

[Irish]

The timeframe really depends on a lot of different things. Two guys that are handy with tools can build a nice full felt table in a day. If you're by yourself, more likely a full weekend. The more complicated your build, the more time it takes. Racetracks or any other finishing work like wood pedestals requires a good deal more time.