The Ping Pong Table ($217), of course! They can be had for <$300, but with a few modifications, they can really be serviceable, if you have room: 5 feet by 9 feet, is the standard size.
The Ping Pong Table ($217), of course! They can be had for <$300, but with a few modifications, they can really be serviceable, if you have room: 5 feet by 9 feet, is the standard size.
Pro's:
- Affordable, typically <$300;
- Durable: tops are made of particle board, and if cared for, they will last 20+ years;
- Large enough for most types of mini's games, being 5-feet by 9-feet, plenty of room for RPG'ers to spread out, with all of their books, and still have room for a 2D/3D map in the center;
- Can accommodate a Chessex Mondo Mat for ginormous dungeon/hex outdoor crawls and battles!
Con's:
- OEM undercarriages are wonky, and won't last if setup/taken down, frequently;
- Not terribly stable with the OEM undercarriage;
- When the undercarriage goes, it can also damage the particle board toppers.
How to address the Con's...I replaced the OEM undercarriage after a couple of years, with
folding table leg assemblies from a local hardware store. I used
Construction Adhesive to glue some 3/4" plywood squares to the underside of the particle board toppers, as I needed more depth to attach the folding table leg assemblies to the particle board, to allow long enough screws to avoid the legs coming off, without poking through the particle board toppers! I needed two sets of folding table legs on each half of the Ping Pong Table, as one set, in the middle, made the top too unstable -- with two sets of table legs, each half of the Table was very solid.
To keep the two 'floating' table halves from moving during normal use, I attached some
steamer trunk hasps: one half of each hasp on each Table half, such that when I latched them together, each Table half was securely attached to the other, making the whole table that much more secure and stable. This also allowed me to use one-half of the whole Table, if needed; the folding table leg assemblies allow the Table halves to be stowed, when not needed, and they provide a carrying grip when moving the Table halves -- just grip the leg assemblies which are securely attached to the particle boards.
Unfortunately, I only have a couple of photos of my old Ping Pong Table's features and modifications.
I retired mine after more than 25 years of use, as I purchased a custom built, solid hardwood table -- see the last paragraph for more details.
But wait -- there's still more!Like an old
Ginsu Knife commercial...
After the top particle board surface became damaged, I bought a burgundy vinyl fabric at the local fabric store (Jo-Ann's Fabric Store), to cover the two table halves with. I had to use double-sided carpet tape to seam two pieces of vinyl together, on each half, as it was not wide enough. I pulled the vinyl fabric taught,
stapling it to the underside, to create a decent, taut, burgundy vinyl surface. This is actually quite easy, and quite effective, to do! A ground cloth was thrown over the top of the vinyl covering, for mini's games. Any color vinyl fabric can be used, and there are a lot of them to choose from... They are easy to apply, with basic crafting skills, and they look great,
dressing up the Ping Pong Table surface.
Such a vinyl fabric is water-proof, unless you put a hole into it; it will last decades, with proper care; it is easy to replace, if necessary, as you just remove the staples from the underside holding it in place.
I worked with a carpenter, designing/making custom-built gaming tables which led me to replace my Ping Pong Table with an expensive,
solid Hickory hardwood gaming table, but I fondly remember my Ping Pong Table, which was eminently serviceable. Thought I'd share my version of how to modify a standard Ping Pong Table for gaming, both RPG's and for mini's gaming. Cheers![/list]
Pro's:
- Affordable, typically <$300;
- Durable: tops are made of particle board, and if cared for, they will last 20+ years;
- Large enough for most types of mini's games, being 5-feet by 9-feet, plenty of room for RPG'ers to spread out, with all of their books, and still have room for a 2D/3D map in the center;
- Can accommodate a Chessex Mondo Mat for ginormous dungeon/hex outdoor crawls and battles!
Con's:
- OEM undercarriages are wonky, and won't last if setup/taken down, frequently;
- Not terribly stable with the OEM undercarriage;
- When the undercarriage goes, it can also damage the particle board toppers.
How to address the Con's...I replaced the OEM undercarriage after a couple of years, with
folding table leg assemblies from a local hardware store. I used
Construction Adhesive to glue some 3/4" plywood squares to the underside of the particle board toppers, as I needed more depth to attach the folding table leg assemblies to the particle board, to allow long enough screws to avoid the legs coming off, without poking through the particle board toppers! I needed two sets of folding table legs on each half of the Ping Pong Table, as one set, in the middle, made the top too unstable -- with two sets of table legs, each half of the Table was very solid.
To keep the two 'floating' table halves from moving during normal use, I attached some
steamer trunk hasps: one half of each hasp on each Table half, such that when I latched them together, each Table half was securely attached to the other, making the whole table that much more secure and stable. This also allowed me to use one-half of the whole Table, if needed; the folding table leg assemblies allow the Table halves to be stowed, when not needed, and they provide a carrying grip when moving the Table halves -- just grip the leg assemblies which are securely attached to the particle boards.
Unfortunately, I only have a couple of photos of my old Ping Pong Table's features and modifications.
I retired mine after more than 25 years of use, as I purchased a custom built, solid hardwood table -- see the last paragraph for more details.
But wait -- there's still more!Like an old
Ginsu Knife commercial...
After the top particle board surface became damaged, I bought a burgundy vinyl fabric at the local fabric store (Jo-Ann's Fabric Store), to cover the two table halves with. I had to use double-sided carpet tape to seam two pieces of vinyl together, on each half, as it was not wide enough. I pulled the vinyl fabric taught,
stapling it to the underside, to create a decent, taut, burgundy vinyl surface. This is actually quite easy, and quite effective, to do! A ground cloth was thrown over the top of the vinyl covering, for mini's games. Any color vinyl fabric can be used, and there are a lot of them to choose from... They are easy to apply, with basic crafting skills, and they look great,
dressing up the Ping Pong Table surface.
Such a vinyl fabric is water-proof, unless you put a hole into it; it will last decades, with proper care; it is easy to replace, if necessary, as you just remove the staples from the underside holding it in place.
I worked with a carpenter, designing/making custom-built gaming tables which led me to replace my Ping Pong Table with an expensive,
solid Hickory hardwood gaming table, but I fondly remember my Ping Pong Table, which was eminently serviceable. Thought I'd share my version of how to modify a standard Ping Pong Table for gaming, both RPG's and for mini's gaming. Cheers![/list]
23 March 2010, 04:12:48 PM