A billiard table is usually the predominant feature of the ultimate games room. To find the best billiard table, take your cue from Bob Simpson, owner of the Pool Shoppe where billiard tables dominate in the swimming pool off season.
The Pool Shoppe specializes in Olhausen billiard tables, one of the last manufacturers of their kind in North America. The Olhausen line includes 29 styles, 10 standard finishes in either pool, billiards, or snooker tables and a custom design department that allows purchasers to choose from a wide selection interchangeable components.
Simpson explains that off-shore manufacturers tend to use wood of lesser quality and the all-important bumpers don’t measure up to what Olhausen offers. The American company that has involved four generations, produces tables in finishes that match most popular furniture and accommodates special orders for colours to match your own decor.
The tables are topped with tournament quality slate, standard on every Olhausen. The tables won’t warp thanks to the bed liners incorporated into the tables.
“If we install that table on a hard cement surface, it will never go out of level,” says Simpson, adding that tables installed on floors that have some movement could have their level distorted.
Olhausen tables start at from $2,300 to $2,400 and go up from there. Simpson explains that the entry level tables have the same structural integrity of the high-end tables. The difference is the wood and details of the cabinet. There are add-ons like a table top that turns it into a dining table and a ping-pong table top as well. As the manufacturer claims, “Olhausen makes furniture everyone can play on”.
Commenting on the superior quality of the tables, Simpson explains, “When you buy an Olhausen billiard table, you get a lifetime warranty.”
To round out the ultimate games room, The Pool Shoppe carries a selection of poker tables, chairs and bars as well as all the accessories needed to get you into the game, including more than 300 cues in stock.
A visit to The Pool Shoppe showroom is the best way to explore the games room options. For a sample, visit the website at www.thepoolshoppe.ca.
