Holy Crap - It's set up!

Ok, this is a short post.  I just wanted to show off a picture of my new pool table!  I've been wanting one for quite a while now.  I have spent  many hours scouring the classifieds and doing research into what type of table I wanted.  In the end the size of the table really governed my decision.    Due to the stair well configuration in my place, a small table would be the only thing that I'd be able to get downstairs into my "man cave".  In this case a 3.5 x 7 foot table is what would work in my space.  Not only did it fit down the stairs but it also allows me plenty of room around my table as well, and easily accommodates a 5' cue around every side.  

The table you see here is a Dufferin 3.5 x 7 and was originally covered in a purple felt.  Although it looked great in the former owners basement, the purple felt just wouldn't work for me.  So before setting it up in my basement, I put in an order for some Championship Cloth in a Khaki color which you can see in the photo above.   Ordering the cloth though, was just one step in the process towards getting my man cave set up!


I actually had to spend a bunch of time emptying out the side of my basement that I would dedicate towards housing my new table.  It meant purging a great deal of junk and relocating a bunch of other junk that I still have yet to go through.  Sometime over the course of the next month I'll sit down and wade through the rest of it to make another purge.  


Once I had the space empty I knew that i had to put some sort of floor covering down so that me and my company would have something comfortable to stand on while playing some 8-ball.   So last week I ordered some very cheap carpet and underlay and brought it in to my basement on Friday.  I've always known that I wouldn't spend a lot of time and money finishing my basement so I decided to install the carpet myself.  In this case I just kept things simple, and cut everything to fit and just used double sided carpet tape to secure the carpeting to the floor.  It doesn't look anywhere near professional but it will do the trick for what I need it to do. 

Next up would be the lights.  Another friend came over and helped me out with the electrical and  within about 3 hours we had a new light hung where the table would sit, relocated some track lighting for where my dartboard will eventually be relocated, and hung another chandelier style light in the corner. It looks pretty cool given the surroundings it lives in. 


Lastly the toughest part had to be done.  Another great friend came over and helped me to get the table set up and re-covered with my new cloth.  That entire process took about 8 hours (including some help from my electrician).  The hardest part was putting the new cloth on the rails and the table.  Surprisingly, setting up the frame and making sure it was all balanced went extremely well.  

Now I have my new toy set up and I look forward to the many hours I'll be spending on it to  improve my game.  The next challenge will be to keep my cats off of it so they don't wreck the beautiful new cloth that we painstakingly installed onto the table. Not to worry though, I do have a cover for the table. :o)