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Tuesday 22 October 2013

New Tables

For the last 20 years and more I have been creating my playing surface by placing TSS tiles on pasting tables - the same set of tables I bought in B&Q for £7 each back in 1992. These guys have given sterling service, but age (and storage in a damp garage) has caught up with them.

So I trawled the internet for replacements that would be sturdier, more level and not cost the earth. Finally I settled on some ex-hire tables from B E Furniture Ltd. Three tables, plus £30 courier delivery, came to £102. A bit more than the pasting tables, but excellent value when you compare these products to what you can pay.

Service was excellent - the tables pitched up within 48hrs via Fedex (and not some guy in a white van). They are exactly as described - solid, sturdy and providing a level and secure playing surface, using a tubular steel frame supporting a heavy duty plastic top. 

No more need to slip wargames magazines under the terrain tiles to get them to level up! As B E Furniture say, they are a bit scuffed and scratched in places, but they are completely undamaged and fully serviceable for my needs. 

There were also options to explore which weren't available with my cranky old pasting tables. Two of the new tables give a 6' x 5' area. I could put six 2' x 2' tiles on top, play on a 6' x 4' table and have a nice 6" wide shelf on each side for reinforcements, casualties and other paraphenalia. Or, I could use my Games Workshop Battlemats to give a 6' x 5' playing table.

Only problem was, the curved table corners and bevelled edges created a bit of a gap.

Solution - a bit of white tape from the man drawer will keep things in order.
This was just a quick job to prove the concept - a minute's work.

And there you go. I'm pretty pleased with my new playing surface.
Choose the right tape to avoid that sticky residue when you unpeel it.

And of course nine TSS tiles can be placed on top to give a 6' x 6' table. So better tables, and now I have more options as well.

I reckon these babies will see me out, so the cost is well worth it. Many gamers will only need a couple, but I wanted to able to have a larger set up if needed.

I heartily endorse these products!


3 comments:

arthur1815 said...

Keith,
Thanks for the link to a really useful site! I haven't got room for tables as large as yours, but two of their folding 4'x 2' tables would suit my purposes, and would also fit into my loft cubboards for storage out of sight.

Al said...

Great stuff Keith, could do with a couple of these myself

Steve J. said...

These look really good and sturdy Keith. Something similar would be very useful for me but moving the existing dining table out of the way is always an issue.