7 Easy Steps Of Disassembling A Slate Pool Table
Disassembling a pool table needs the right tools. A standard home pool table usually has a wooden frame, heavy slate bed, as well as leather drop pockets, which are easy to disassemble. On the other hand, the coin-operated tables, tables having the ball return mechanisms, and the tables with a fiberboard surface are harder to disassemble. The 7 easy steps for disassembling a slate pool table are mentioned below:
- Remove The Staples: With the help of a staple remover or with a flat head screwdriver remove the staples, lie on the back beneath the table and then remove all the staples which are holding the pockets in place. It is important to wear protective eyewear, as the staples can easily fall into the eyes causing serious injury.
- Unscrew The Bolts: Once all the staples have been removed, then take a wrench to remove all the bolts right from the underside of the rails. Usually, there can be 3 bolts for each of the rail. Place the bolts in a safe place in a Ziploc bag so there is no worry of losing any bolt in the process of disassembling the rest.
- Remove The Rails: Without all the bolts, the rails must be loose, and at that point, it can easily be pulled off. There are 3 different types of railings on pool tables. The first one is individual rails that can be simply pulled apart from the others. On the other hand, in the case of 2 horseshoe-shaped rails that are connected on each side of the side pockets, it can also be pulled apart. The rails which are connected together will need help so that the user can flip them simultaneously at the same time. These pieces are usually heavy so be careful not to break the side pockets while flipping them. Once all rails have been removed then disconnect all the pockets.
- Remove The Felt: Check whether the felt is stapled or is glued with the table's frame. If the felt is stapled, then remove them with a staple remover or needle-nose pliers. If in case they are glued in place, that time carefully pull it up but not at a time, in the backward motion. If the user pulls it forward or upward, then there will be a tendency for the felt to stretch and will create bulges when it is re-glued.
- Fold The Felt: After the felt is removed, then fold it neatly. Avoid depressing the folded edges, as this will create the lines in the felt when it is reused to the pool table.
- Remove The Slate: In order to remove the slate from the pool table’s frame, the user needs to use a drill having a screwdriver bit. Usually, there is one screw at each of the corners of the slate, but in some cases, they are located right at the center beam. The screw heads are sometimes covered with the beeswax for creating the even surface above the screw. In that case, the user needs to dig the wax out of the hole all above the screw head as this will help to locate the spot. Take the flat-headed screwdriver to the wax and then remove the screw.
- Removing The Legs: Finally, remove all the legs from the pool table. At this point, the pool table is sufficiently disassembled.