Pool tables are a legacy investment.

Here’s what to look for.

A pool table should be a legacy purchase — something

you and your family will treasure for years to come.

Pool tables are exquisitely crafted, beautiful pieces of

furniture that will be the centerpiece of any room.

With proper construction and care, your pool table will

last for years to come. Make sure you’re buying the

absolute best with Greater Southern Home Recreation.

The Legacy Billiards pool table

features a solid hardwood

corner design called

“The Perfect Corner”

All wood gusset system.

Corners carry the tension and

weight of the table and this

construction yields a tighter

connection and a more stable and

level table over time.

No wood screws or metal

brackets. The table can be

disassembled and reassembled with

ease.

Be wary of “too good to be

true”

online deals. It’s easy to find a

good looking table that turns out to

be veneer/particle board.

Construction: Pay close attention to how corners, which

typically carry the weight of the table, are constructed.

Ask if corners include metal brackets and screws, or are

bolt-together like the Legacy Billiards table.

Cushions: Quality tables feature rubber cushions, which

provide rebound and bounce as you play. Good quality

cushions ensure your play will be consistent and accurate,

and should last for years. Low quality cushions will

create dead spots where balls will not “bank” or rebound

off the rail.

Wood type: Cabinets should be crafted from solid

hardwood. Ask what type of wood to make sure it can

withstand humidity and temperature fluctuations. The

most common woods used for pool table construction are

oak, maple and mahogany.

Finish: Make sure the wood is sealed with a high-quality,

lasting coating to protect the wood.

Beneath the felt on a pool table are 3 slabs of diamond-

honed, precision matched slate, which can be adjusted to

create a perfectly level playing field for increased accuracy.

Some tables feature a single sheet of slate, but these can sag

in the middle of the table. Single-slate tables can also only

be adjusted by leveling the legs.

The most inexpensive tables have no slate under the playing

surface which are impossible to keep level and have a

limited lifetime.

The playing surface should be constructed with three pieces of slate.

The slate should ideally be oversized, extending beyond the visible playing surface beneath the rails of the table. This provides additional strength and stability for the rails to attach.

On quality tables, the slate should be wood framed. This dampens the sound of the balls rebounding, gives more solid play, and allows the cloth to be stapled to the backing instead of glued directly to the slated surface.

Standard billiard cloth is a

wool/nylon blend that can last

up to 10 years. These fabrics are

excellent for novice players

and families.

Professional-grade cloth, made

from a worsted wool fabric is

designed with less nap and

produce less resistance for the

balls. This creates a truer, faster,

and more accurate game.

A standard 8-foot table is the most common size for home use. It’s

large enough to present a fun challenge, but still small enough to

accommodate children and beginners. You’ll need a total of 13 ½

feet by 17 feet available for this table.

7-foot tables are available for compact spaces and only require

13 feet by 16 feet to play.

9-foot tables, which are considered “tournament size,” require

a playing space of 14 feet by 18 feet.

The Aramith Fusion table features a functional cover to

transform it from a pool table to a dining table or

decorative space.

This style can also transform into a

Poker table, allowing for optimum

use of a smaller game room.

For functional and sleek, stylish storage, drawer upgrades

are available and can be attached beneath most pool tables

to store cues, balls and other playing accoutrement.

Greater Southern Home Recreation carries the top names in

billiards including Brunswick, Connelly, Legacy,

California House, Drawknife and Aramith.

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Atlanta: 1465 Chattahoochee Ave. NW, Suite 250

(404) 352-3088

Alpharetta: 5530 Windward Parkway, Suite 210 B

(678) 240-0007