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Billiard Table Buying Guide
Step 1. Room Size
Check your room size so you don't waste time looking for wrong table. Tables are measured in Feet.
7Ft x 3'6 Min 4.9mtr x 3.8mtr
8Ft x 4 Min 5.20mtr x 4mtr
9Ft x 4'6 Min 5.50mtr x 4.3mtr
10Ft x 5 Min 6.10mtr x 4.6mtr
12Ft x 6 Min 6.70mtr x 4.9mtr
Step 3. What to look for
90% of used tables are sold online from eBay or Gumtree. We recommend gumtree as it can be a much faster way to make a deal without waiting days for auctions or by it now overpriced tag like eBay.
Best Brands to look for: Alcock, B&B, B&K and Astra. Few older brands are not bad either, but may require costly works like new cloth and rubbers.
What to look for: Photos always look better then the actual product. 1. Cloth for holes ( small holes will not effect play pending on size). Also if the cloth is very fluffy then its a poor quality cloth like carpet and the balls will roll very slow on it. 2. Ball Bounce. Hit or throw a ball against the cushion to see if it bounces back naturally. If it makes a thump sound without natural bounce then the rubber may need replacing. You can also pinch or lightly twist the rubber with your fingers and if they are hard or you feel crunching then the rubbers are no good. Other signs to help will be sunlight hitting the tables and you may be able to see fade lines in the cloth. Direct sunlight breaks down the rubbers. In pictures, look to see if there is a window in the room.
3.Slate: Slate is grey in colour and very heavy. Always have a look under the table if possible and check for hairline cracks. If slate is cracked, don't buy!
99% of sellers would not know the above and we would never suggest a seller would sell a faulty product. If you are not sure, please feel free to contact us!
Step 2. New or Used
This depends on your budget, decor and use of the table.
Buying new? If you can afford to buy a new table, keep in mind if you don't buy a well known brand then you will lose more when its time to sell. A new 7ft starting price should be $2,000 - $3,000. Do not buy cheap Chinese tables from eBay as they do not deliver a true billiard experience and have no return value. These tables are known in the industry as defected new stock from a manufacture in China cheap and nasty. They come with multi slate ( Aussie made tables 7ft and 8ft are 1pc) which give a true playing top and can be transported at half the price.
Buying a used table? Buying a used table can be costly if you don't know what to look for. You can pay $200-$1,000 for a excellent table and brand name. We like to help customers find real value and a good investment. Just Billiard have help lots of buyers find bargain tables and most times when they sell they made money or lost very little!
Step 4. Table access for removal
Okay Beauty!! you have found the table you want to buy. But now it needs to be transported, installed and leveled. You must factor into your budget the cost of this service.
Avoid tables in 2 story homes as the cost can be very high as more man power is required. Ask owners if it was hard or easy for the table installers to deliver table. Check for stairs over 5 can be a real issue. Ground level 1 step is what we call easy access. Harder the access, the more it will cost to transport it. Get in contact with us direct by phone or click here for online quote which will have a few questions.