Possibly the most misunderstood part of pool table buying is how to really go about getting the best deal you possibly can. Heck, I sure didn't really know how to go about it. And boy, did I want a pool table. Playing pool is great fun and I've spent many hours at the local bar..uh, I mean pool hall sharpening my skills. I decided that I had to have a pool table for myself. However, after buying a pool table, it becomes pretty clear that there is a right way to go about it and wrong way.

Ebay is your friend. But not for the reasons you might think. Everything in the world is for sale on Ebay. And guess what, that's great for market research. Look at how much pools are selling for. Watch the pool table sales for a week or so. This will be a great way to get a feel for what they sell for and the different types of pool tables available in the marketplace. And, after you've watched a whole bunch of sales happen, you might want to start bidding on pool tables for yourself. In full disclosure, I haven't personally bought a pool table from Ebay. Therefore, I'm not sure what sort of shipping and handling charges would be charged for a pool table. Cross country shipping could conceivably get pricey. However, it is a great research tool for everything you could imagine.

Now, this is THE best way to buy a pool table- if you can do it the right way. Why pay for a brand new pool table when you could buy one that's almost as good but just has had a prior owner. However, as is the deal with all used equipment (of any kind): buyer beware. There is a right way to buy a used pool table. If the deal looks too good to be true, it just might be. If I'm selling a pool table for 50% off retail and it looks brand new, it might have come into the owner's possession under dubious circumstances or it might have a defect that isn't patently obvious to the inspector. Make sure you know all about used pool table buying or all research will have been in vain.

by: Ryan Tenney