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Poker Table Project

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	In March 2002 a few friends and I started a weekly poker game. During the same time my brother had acquired a poker table while moving into a new apartment. I had prematurely made a trade with him for my kitchen table (much to my wives objection) prior to seeing the poker table. Once the table arrived I was quite disappointed with the cheap craftsmanship and size of the table. With an octagon shape and an overall diameter of 4' it would hardly host 8 players comfortably. After some research it was apparent that I would not be able to come up with the $800 or more for a decent table. Also, most of the tables were still under 4'6" in diameter which, in my opinion, was too small for 8 players. Without the proper tools and experience I decided to build one (I mean, what the hell, I built an arcade machine on the same premise and it came out pretty damn good in my opinion). Since I had replaced our kitchen table already, I decided to build just a table top and place it on the kitchen table when game time arrived.
	The center piece is constructed from a 4' circular piece of 5/8" MDF. 1/4" cotton padding is applied before the felt with spray adhesive. The four 1/2" support pieces gives the center piece the appropriate height for the pine strip that will surround the center playing area.
	This is the topside of the playing area. The felt attracted quite a bit of dust and such during the project. Nothing that some masking tape wont clean up later.
	Since the overall diameter of the table will exceed four feet. The base was cut out of two 4'x8' pieces of paneling. The circular playing area will be situated on top of the two pieces of paneling so that the 1"x1"'s will be perpendicular to the seam joining the two pieces. Ensuring the proper consistent length and 22.5 degree angles on the sides resulted in a near perfect octagon shape.
	The playing area is then secured with screws from the bottom of the paneling. Cupholders will reinforce the seam that is left exposed.
	Red felt was then laid out over the table and the circular piece cut out from the middle.
	The felt is then trimmed and attached to the paneling using spray adhesive.
	We then used two 8' pieces of 1 1/2"x1/4" pine to surround the perimeter. The pieces were finished with cherry red stain.
	A close-up of the center ring. The screws will be concealed decoratively later.
	The outer perimeter is made from crown molding stained in the same fashion as the center ring.
	A close-up of the outer molding. They are secured from the underside of the paneling using 1/2" screws. They will also be secured to the cup holder pieces and joined at the ends with wood glue.
	The cupholders are cut from 2 8'x6"x5/8" pine. This provides a separate playing area for each player. Later the same day I shook up the stain to finish the cupholders and neglected to check whether the lid was tight and created a cleanup effort which lasted two days and cost approx. $100. It sucked.
	Using a 3 1/2" hole saw, the holes for the cupholders were made. Proper clutch adjustment on the drill will ensure that you keep both your hands attached to your arms during drilling.
	The table after finishing the cupholders. They are secured from the bottom with 1/2" screws. The cupholders will host a circular piece of cork which will absorb moisture from any drinks. Now for the chip slots....
	The chip holders are constructed from 6 pieces of 1/2" cove molding and two pieces of 1/2" decorative molding.
	The chip holders are assembled using wood glue and finishing nails. Unfortunately we ran out of cove molding just short of finishing the eighth holder.The last will be built another day.
	The table with the chip holders (short one). After placing the table on top of my kitchen table, it was apparent that the height would be too high for comfortable play. I built a base out of some leftover 2x4's and sheared it with the leftover paneling. The base separates from the table when it's not in use allowing the table to be stored upright conserving space. The only thing I would do different if I had to do it again would be to build the base pieces out of something thicker than the paneling I used. It would make the table considerably heavier, but sturdier. I would also research building a pedestal stand increasing legroom for all players. With the large diameter of the table, it might prove to be too much for a pedestal.