When you buy a pool table you suddenly have the need for pool cue, ball, brush, rack, and chalk storage. When purchasing the table you opt to buy a few of the standard items that they sell in the store but lets face it, they are usually very “pub-ish” if you know what I mean. So, when the kids asked for a pool table for Christmas my wife said she was on-board as long as we don’t make the front room of our house look like a pub. Sounds simple enough but it was very easy to see that the overwhelming majority of “pool cue rack” type searches still had a pub-like feel. We had a 38″ coffee table in the room which we were planning to list for sale in the days ahead but my wife mentioned that she really liked the table so I simply asked if she would consider re-purposing it to function as a pool cue/ball/chalk/brush/rack storage unit, while also still serving the original purpose of being used as a standard table to put snacks and drinks on, and she said go for it… so I did!
First I designed a template, using fusion 360, to cut a 1-1/2″ wide x 29-1/2″ long curved slot. I then used my CNC machine to cut the template, using 5mm plywood stock. I clamped the template to the coffee table and used a plunge router to route a 1/2″ deep channel, for ball storage, into the surface of the table on what will become the front-facing side.
I then drilled a set of 6 1-3/8″ holes to be used for cue, and bridge, storage on the back-facing side of the table. I added a few simple rack-hooks in the front for holding the 8-ball and 9-ball racks. A quick sanding to give the table a distressed finish, followed by a quick coat of polycrylic satin, and it was ready for use. Best of all – it is a truly unique piece which you won’t find in any store!
Thanks for looking! If you have a need for a custom piece of furniture send us an email and we’ll get you a quote!