Moving a pool table

[SteveB]

I need to disassemble a pool table and move it 175 miles. It is a 3 piece 4 x 8 table, 7/8" thick slate, IIRC. It is about three years old.

I figure it will evolve as I disassemble it, as I can see underneath that bolts hold the rails on as well as the legs. It is all hardwoods underneath for a frame, with no particleboard.

Can anyone who has moved one of these give me any pointers?

In particular:

Is the felt glued to the bed, and will I have to destroy it to get it off? Or is it merely glued at the pockets and along the edge?

When I get the felt off the bed, how do I break the joints? By lifting slightly, or should I score the seam with a razor knife first? The joints are supported from underneath with 6" wide strips of hardboard so I cannot score it from underneath. The leather ball pockets have some staples that will have to be removed and restapled, but no biggie there.

For transport, is it better to get two by studs and lay them so that each sheet is supported well, and none ride on top of the other? I would use packing blankets between the boards and slate. Or would standing on edge and making some sort of frame be better?

The road I need to transport it on is city streets for about five miles, Interstate for 175 miles, then city streets and a mile of dirt road. It is not really bad, but it is not totally smooth. I will take it easy on the rough areas.

There are no stairs or other obstructions, and it will be easy to put two four wheel dollies under each piece to roll them from location to trailer, then trailer to location. All the rails and legs and undercarriage will be wrapped in blankets and packing blankets as it has a nice wood finish on it, and I'd like to keep it that way.

I don't foresee this as a complicated thing, but wanted to hear from anyone who's done it, and can give me some basic cautions so I don't make basic mistakes. I am not sure of setup, and may have a professional service set it up, and maybe recover it in green. It is now burgundy, and I believe green is the color for a pool table.

Thanks in advance for the help.

Steve

[HeyBub]

Grand Pianos are moved thusly:

1. Remove legs on one side.
2. Tip piano to dolly on the side with no legs.
3. Remove other leg(s).
4. Transport in vertical position.
5. On arrival, reverse the process.

[aemeijers]

I think you have the basic concepts down, and you definitely want to have a pro put it back together and reskin it. IIRC, the felt is stretched and stapled at the edges, and the bumpers have chines like a window screen frame, holding the felt under the trim. If I understand correctly, you have to use new felt to put it back together anyway, since the excess (where you grab to stretch it) gets cut off as part of the assembly process. Just for laughs, I'd call the local pool table company, and ask what they would charge to take it apart and crate it for shipment. Possible they may have the crates and skids from a new one sitting around, that could be adapted to yours. If it has leather pockets, that indicates it is either antique, or a high-end model. TOH had a recent segment showing a similar table being spruced up by a pool table artisan, and then reinstalled on site.

-- aem sends...

[Bill]

Pool tables can be quite different, so might want to ask here...

forums.azbilliards.com (The "Main forum" has the most posters on it.)

[S. Barker]

That'd be a real nice answer if HE'd asked about a piano.

s

[Joe]

FWIW, I've moved several pool tables, none of them disassembled. For one job we used a sturdy open trailer over maybe a dozen miles of public road at reasonable speeds. For another, a U-Haul van did the job nicely (along with a lot of household stuff) for a couple hundred miles of interstate and city and country roads. The key element is having a lot of friends with strong backs to assist. Without those, I'd call a moving company. HTH

Joe

[Colbyt]

Did this once and I will never ever do it again. Post back to this thread with your thoughts afterwards.

The side rails are attached to the slate bed with bolts that can be removed from under the table. The pockets you have figured correctly.

On the one I moved the felt was only perimeter glued an came off fairly easily. They say it can not be reused. We did and have played on the table for over 10 years. I used Elmer's spay adhesive around the perimeter when I restreched the felt. New felt runs about (or did) $200. Covering the rails is a job for a pro and 10 years ago I think the price was $45 per section (there are 6 on a table).

The slate is attached to the rails with large screws and counter sunk. Those holes and the joints of the sections are skim coated with drywall mud before the cloth goes on. We just used a utility knife to break the skim coat at the joints and a screwdriver to dig it out of the countersinks.

The slate is killer heavy. Now that I am almost 60, I doubt that I could lift my half of one piece. By the time we carried the 3 pieces down the stairs to the basement we were worn out. The pocket cuts outs do provide a decent hand hold. We hauled it laying flat in the bed of a pickup with carpet under and a mover's blanket between each layer.

Slate can be fragile when bumped. I would be a little concerned about using a dolly.