How a professional pool table move works

A slate pool table is built to stay put and play true. That is why it is heavy, and why it is not moved like a dining table. At Alpha Billiards, a move means taking the table apart, protecting the parts, getting them to the new room, and putting the table back together so it is level and ready to play.

This page is the process. For what changes a quote, see what affects a pool table moving quote. To book the work, call (708) 415-1403 or use the pool table moving page.

Why the table comes apart

The slate is the playing bed. On most 8-foot and 9-foot home tables it is three pieces. Some 7-foot tables are three-piece as well; a few are a single slab. The cabinet is not meant to carry that weight through a stairwell in one unit, and the slate can crack if it is racked or dropped.

Rails, pockets, and cloth also have to come off in the right order so they go back on correctly. A move that leaves the table “mostly together” to save time is how felt gets torn and slate gets broken.

Disassembly

We start by looking at the table and the path out — doors, turns, and stairs — before tools come out.

Then the table is taken down in order. Pockets come off. The rails are unbolted. The cloth is taken up as needed so the slate is free. The slate sections are separated, marked so they go back in the same layout, and protected for the carry. The cabinet and legs follow.

If you have already taken the table apart, tell us that when you call. We will want to know how the slate was packed and whether all of the hardware is accounted for. If you have not taken it apart, leave it assembled. A half-finished DIY disassembly is harder to sort out than a table that is still together.

This is also the service people mean when they search for pool table disassembly or disassembly and reassembly. It is the same job as a proper move, not a separate shortcut.

Transport

Slate rides protected and on edge or otherwise supported so it cannot flex. Rails, frames, and small parts are packed so they do not mark each other. We take the table from the old address to the new one — across town, to another suburb, or farther in Illinois when that is the job.

If the destination is a garage or storage, say so. The table can be delivered in pieces and set up later. If it is going into a finished room, we plan the path in, not just the path out.

Reassembly, seams, and leveling

At the new location the cabinet is set and made stable first. The slate goes back in its original order, is supported and leveled, and the seams are filled and dressed so the playing surface is continuous. The cloth is stretched and finished, the rails and pockets go back on, and the table is leveled again as a complete unit.

A table that is merely “set down in the room” is not a finished move. If the roll is off, or a seam can be felt through the cloth, the table was not set up. Leveling is part of this work; if you have a table that was already moved and does not play true, that is also something we handle on the repair page.

If you wanted new felt or new cushions at the same time, this is when that work is done, so the table is opened only once.

Can you move a slate table yourself?

People do try. The usual problems are a cracked piece of slate, a bent or twisted cabinet, missing bolts, and cloth that was cut or stretched badly on the way back on. Slate is brittle as well as heavy. A basement stair with a tight landing is a common place for that to happen.

If the table is already important to you, this is not a good do-it-yourself project. If you have already moved it and something feels wrong — a bounce at a seam, a roll to one side, a rail that does not sit down — call and describe it. We can often correct a poor setup; we cannot always repair a cracked slate.

Getting a quote

We need the size of the table, the two locations, and a sense of the stairs and access at each end. Photos help. There is no published moving rate on this site; we quote by phone.

Call or text (708) 415-1403. Alpha Billiards is at 955 Lively Blvd, Wood Dale, IL 60191, by appointment only.

Questions

How long does a move take?

It depends on the table and the path. A main-floor table with a straight shot out the door is a shorter job than a 9-foot table with basement stairs at both ends. We can give you a better sense of the day when we quote.

Will you move a table that is already in pieces?

Yes. Tell us how it was taken apart and how the slate is sitting now. If parts are missing or the slate was stored on a damp floor, mention that too.

Do you level the table at the new house?

Yes. Reassembly and leveling are part of a complete move. If you only want the table delivered into a garage in pieces, say so when you call.

What if I also need new felt?

Tell us when you book the move. Doing a refelt while the table is already apart is usually the clean way to handle it.

Do you move tables only in Wood Dale?

No. We move tables through the Chicago area and, when the job calls for it, across the state. The shop and showroom are in Wood Dale. See the service area.

Get a quote

Call or text (708) 415-1403. For the questions we will ask, use what affects a pool table moving quote. To book, you can also go through pool table movers in Chicago.