Building a homemade pool table light

commodeair

Registered
Was considering on making my own pool table light using 8' florecent light bulbs. I was wondering if there a plans out there on the internet. I tried searching but couldn't find much. Thanks
 

shayla

BODY - MIND - SOUL
Silver Member
I tried to find someone to build one for me, and thought I found someone a few years ago, and then he just never returned my call. I just said to hell with it and just bought a Diamond Light for my 9 footer. Its fabulous!
 

TheBook

Ret Professional Goof Off
Silver Member
Go to Lowes if not a Jimmy Johnson fan go to HD. Buy 2 4ft fluorescent lights that use the thin bulbs. I think they come with 3 or 4 tubes. You don't want 8 ft tubes and I don't think they sell them. Buy a sheet of particle board for the top, cut to the size you want and frame with 1 x 6 boards mount your lights inside and hang above the table. Get some lamp chain to hang it. Don't put the tubes in until the light the frame is installed. Also make sure you have a cover over the table when working above it. Also don't stand on the table. When you start to work on it you can figure out the rest of it. Plans aren't required just use your imagination and creative ability.

You can stain the side boards, cover with tile, apply wall paper, moulding, cut out a design, cut balls in half and glue on and etc.

Have fun doing it. If you don't like it you can always change it. The lights will still be there.
 

Jason Robichaud

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Tools I have. Ideas I need.

I have a black Gold Crown with bright metal work.

Thanks Jason and Book.

No book, just tips. I got all my material at homedepot and it didn't cost too much. I used 4 - 4' lights instead of 2 - 8 ft. I made the light 2'x8' and even got the screen for lights like the diamond light.

I made the light 8" h (got them to rip the wood down to 8") I used 1/4 plywood (furniture grade). Got 4' of 2x2 oak (cut 8") and 4 - 8' 1x2 oak.

I have attached a drawing. I only have ms paint, so it isn't much. Sand the wood with 80 grit then 150 and 220. Paint black and you have one nice light. You can cheat with the work and just glue the 1x2 to the 1/4 plywood, but the tongue and grove makes this light stong.
 

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smoooothstroke

JerLaw
Silver Member
Get a woodworker (furniture) to build you a cabinet.Something like 6ft x2-1/2ft .I would go 4 to 6 inches deep.He can dowel in a groove inside for the plastic defuser.You can instal light fixtures inside and hardware to hang the light.

I don't know where you will find the defuser screen but I have found it online before.
 

DogsPlayingPool

"What's in your wallet?"
Silver Member
Definitely go with the T8 bulbs and not the T12. They use less juice and if one bulb goes bad that's all you have to replace.

If you are going with an 8' light, I would use 4 four footers (8 bulbs total) rather than 2 eight foot fixtures.
 

Jason Robichaud

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Get a woodworker (furniture) to build you a cabinet.Something like 6ft x2-1/2ft .I would go 4 to 6 inches deep.He can dowel in a groove inside for the plastic defuser.You can instal light fixtures inside and hardware to hang the light.

I don't know where you will find the defuser screen but I have found it online before.

Homedepot have the defusers. They carry plactic for around $20 each and metal for $40.
 

Grilled Cheese

p.i.i.t.h.
Silver Member
Where does one find the kind of light diffusers that Diamond uses? Or Brunswick?

All I typically see at the home improvement stores are those flat, thin ones that were popular for bathrooms and kitchens decades ago. I think those block too much light. Don't like the way they light surfaces. The Diamond ones are like a square grid - the idea is to spread the light around, but there's still plenty of direct light. The flat sheet ones get no direct light from the bulbs.
 

JimS

Grandpa & his grand boys.
Silver Member
Mine is done with 8ft bulbs, six of them. Made for me by a friend.
 

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swrooster

A HOTDOG ROAD PLAYER!!
Silver Member
Looks Good...

Mine is done with 8ft bulbs, six of them. Made for me by a friend.

I'm going to get or make one similiar. I bought 4 parabolic lens grids from a Diamond Mechanic. Hard to do on monthly visits back home.
 

DogsPlayingPool

"What's in your wallet?"
Silver Member
Where does one find the kind of light diffusers that Diamond uses? Or Brunswick?

All I typically see at the home improvement stores are those flat, thin ones that were popular for bathrooms and kitchens decades ago. I think those block too much light. Don't like the way they light surfaces. The Diamond ones are like a square grid - the idea is to spread the light around, but there's still plenty of direct light. The flat sheet ones get no direct light from the bulbs.

They have the ones you are talking about at either Lowes or HD (can't remember which, maybe at both). I've seen them. They're actually plastic grids that are coated a silver/chrome. I think they come in 4 foot lengths so you would obviously need two of them for an 8' light. So you need a cross member in the middle to support the two pieces.
 

PUTT4DACA$$H

Member
Silver Member
I also have a black Gold Grown and was too cheap to buy the Diamond light.. I used a pocket hole jig called the Kreig jig available at Lowes for building the faceframes that make up all four sides of the light box. this jig allows for the poplar rails to be connected with butt joints and glue and screws. I previosly had a light with 2- 8 foot fixtures, then when i moved I built a light with 3- 8 foot fixtures(6 bulbs), and now when I moved to this house I built this light with 4 -8 foot fixtures, and the light difuser panels from I think home depot. I used the difuser panels the wide 4 foot way and it took 3 full panels and then I cut the last one to fit. this light is now hung almost TEN feet off the floor from a 22 foot ceiling height. I wired in a regular light switch that I use one of my house cues to tap on and off. More light than necessary but no shadows and also for the first time on any of my tables the light is NEVER been in the way of shooting, even straight- jacked -up -vertical masse' shots. The woodworking is fairly simple, the lumber can be bought s4s from lowes and the whole project cost about half what the diamond light cost. free labor of course
 
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Philthepockets

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
If your budget will stretch to it you could use T5 fluorescents, they are compact, low energy but extremely bright and available in many bulb colours.
I use 3500K's in mine and the colours look great.
 

JimS

Grandpa & his grand boys.
Silver Member
They have the ones you are talking about at either Lowes or HD (can't remember which, maybe at both). I've seen them. They're actually plastic grids that are coated a silver/chrome. I think they come in 4 foot lengths so you would obviously need two of them for an 8' light. So you need a cross member in the middle to support the two pieces.

I got mine at Lowes. They are as you describe.

My light would not be difficult to build. The top is a piece of 3/4" plywood. The sides are made of 1/2" (I think) oak venier plywood and have a groove cut so the top slides into them with clue and nails to hold it, and then they used cherry that the guy had in his garage for the end caps and some oak trim around the edges. Then the plastic grids described above. They used 3 electronic lights.. no ballast to hum (actually they used regular ballasts and I had to take them out and put in electronic inners in the lights as I couldn't stand the hum!)

It's a heavy but great light. It's been up there for almost 10 years and the bulbs are still working!
 
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JimS

Grandpa & his grand boys.
Silver Member
Very nice set up. :thumbup:

May I ask what cue case you have there?

It's a one-off 2x3 that I found on ebay a few years back. I took out the interior, which was formed hard foam set up like a regular box case, and inserted hard case tubes. I stand it up, unzip the top half and remove the cues like a hard case and have acres of storage space.
 
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