Want a good pool table, here are some hints on what to look for, but before I do that ask yourself "What are requirements of a pool table"
1. It must be able to be levelled so the balls play true,
2. the bounce must be at least 3 times with a hard throw from cushion to cushion (Cushions are made of timber and rubber in a particular shape and covered with billiard felt and they go in between the pockets where the balls go down)
3. The pockets should be the coreect shape and size (3 1/4 inches on English Billiards - The most played game in Australia and 5 1/4 inches for American Billiards)
4. The balls must match the cushion height (2 inch balls for 7. 8 and 9 ft tables English Eight Ball 2 1/16 for 10 and 12 ft tables English snooker and billiards and 2 1/4 inch for American Eight Ball.
5. The table should remain rock solid when leant against or slight push.

These are the basic requirement, but there are many more requirements and desirable features that you should look for. If you only look for the minimum you may not get a good pool table at all.

For a Good Pool Table

Good design thats pleasing to the eye
A good finish. Just being good is not good enough, it should also be very tough otherwise when it gets older the value will rapidly reduce.
A good frame. The frame should be precision made so that the slate is properly supported on all types of floors. The frame should be well designed and strong and not be required to be glued or screwed to the slate. If it is a 7 ft or 8 ft table and the table is levelled carelessly or the timber warps, you will never be able to level the table again. 9 ft pool tables are usually screwed to the slate, but those tables are heavier and less likely to be moved. Also if required the slates can be taken off.  Older designed pool tables using many parts held together with bolts and screws are the most like to give trouble levelling. Some people find this so hard that they just give up. Even the Distributors often can't level the tables properly and pass the buck to the customer. If you don't have a good frame, you probably won't have a good table.
A good bounce.  Without a good bounce your table won't be very good to play. It is an important part of the game to take a shot and have a ball rebound in a predictable manner off the cushion. Along the length of the table there should be a minimum of three bounces off cushions with a hard throw from one end. As you are playing you want to be able to bounce the ball your hitting and the white cue ball so you can either get the ball in the pocket and place it ready for the next shot. Master players can place their next shot ready for potting into the pocket and leave their competitors ball in a bad position. When new most tables have a reasonable bounce, but many lose it fairly soon ranging from a few weeks to a few years. The best pool tables have a long lasting bounce. We at Heron Billiards give a ten year warranty on the bounce which is the nominal life of the rubber. Of course it can last much longer, even up to 20 or 30 years. If it does the bounce will remain on our pool tables with a professional cap (Cushion assembly)
Legs & Feet.  There should be at least 6 legs so that the centre of the pool table will not sag, 8 legs on tables over 9 ft. A 1 mm sag in the table means the ball will not play true,  This is one of the reason the design and manufacture of the frame is so important. The legs should have easy to use leg levellers and each leg should take an equal weight. See our instructions at
  http://www.heronbilliards.com/Levelling-and-care-of-your-Pool-Table.html

That is not all, legs can be fixed in various ways, On a full size snooker table many are fixed as part of the frame with bolts through the side. People who flat pack pool tables usually use this method. These type of fixings make the table much harder to level properly. On smaller tables the price they are sold for often does not allow for proper fixing or levelling and is done soley for the importers benefit. On box frames some manufacturers use side leg bolts to hold the frame together. This gives rise to instability as the table gets older. The most common way for local manufacturers to make 7, 8 and 9 ft tables is to make a box frame with leg plates, (which also strengthen the frame) for the leg to attached using a centre bolt. So long as the top of the leg is concave this is the best method, but if it is not concave this can lead to wobbling and stressing the centre bolt.

Legs must use laminated kiln dried timber for strength and longivity otherwise cracking can and probably will occur. There is no way you can see many of these things so you need to rely in part on the integrety of the supplier. But you can ask the question and see the response. If they answer like a politician, then run a mile away. Because at Heron Billiards we are the manufacturers we can actually show you all of these things.

The cloth. There are many grades of cloth so just saying English, American or Chinese does not tell the whole story. The best cloth to get is the most expensive, because you don't want to regret your purchase later. Most of the cloths on sale in Australia are of reasonable quality, but some are better then others. We at Heron Billiards recommend Strachan 6811 as giving the greatest satisfaction. This is the cloth recommended and must be used in major competitions, it also has the least number of faults and generally lasts longer in a playable condition. Different grades can be used for different climates. Too thick and heavy in a moist climate will slow the game, but last longer.

The slate.  The best slate is not as a result of the best manufacturer, although this is important, but where they come from. The best slate is Italian and is a natural God given asset for the Italians. There is slate found in most countries, but pool table slate is best from Italy because of its consistant texture and machineability.

The slate is sliced from the ground by large machines and often is naturally true, To make it perfect with a fine tolerance the slate is diamond honed to perfection. In Brazil and China the two other largest suppliers of slate the slate has hard and soft spots that are harder to machine and particularly with chinese slate has a high metallic content much of the time.

Other components. These are many and varied. With the Chinese able to deliver a reasonable quality at a low price the best English and American components have a much smaller market share. Things like corner brackets, nets, empire rails, scoreboards and cue racks are sold at unbeatable prices from China or India.