Speed Cloth Buying Guide: How Much to Buy and How to Fit It

If you are asking "how much speed cloth do I need?", the answer is a few measurements and a bit of simple arithmetic. Get them right and one cut of cloth turns a dining table into a proper poker surface. Get them wrong and, because the cloth is cut to order, there is no easy way back.

This guide covers how speed cloth differs from felt, how to measure, and how to fit it, with worked examples in metres.

Speed cloth versus felt and suede

People often ask about speed cloth vs felt, so here is the practical difference.

Felt is a soft, fuzzy fabric with a visible pile. It grips cards and chips, so cards drag when you slide them and chip stacks stay put. It is also quick to pick up lint, dust and spilled drink.

Suede-style cloth has a smooth, slightly napped face. It feels luxurious and is common on traditional card tables, but it can mark and hold on to crumbs.

Speed cloth has a smooth, low-friction surface. Cards glide across it, dealing is quick, and chips slide without snagging. That is where the name comes from.

If you love the feel of classic felt, stick with it. If you want fast dealing and an easy-to-tidy surface, speed cloth is hard to beat.

What "suited" and "water resistant" mean

Two words in our product names are worth unpicking.

Suited means the cloth carries a repeating card-suit pattern rather than being a plain single colour. It adds a bit of casino character without any extra effort. Our Suited Speed Cloth collection has two options: the plain version and a two-tone version. The plain cloth comes in red, blue, green, black, platinum grey, white, gold and purple. The two-tone cloth comes in red, blue, green and grey.

Water resistant means liquid is slow to soak in, so a quick wipe will usually deal with a small spill before it marks. We say water resistant, not waterproof. It is not designed to be submerged or left sitting in a puddle, so mop up spills promptly and keep drinks off the playing area where you can.

You can see both cloths here:

Both are sold by the metre and cut to order. The plain cloth can be supplied either "On a Roll" or "Folded" in every colour. The two-tone cloth comes on a roll or folded in red, blue and green, and on a roll only in grey.

Measuring your table (round, oval, rectangular)

Our cloth is 60" (150cm) wide, and you buy it by the metre. So you are really working out two numbers: the length of cloth you need to order, and whether the width of your table plus allowance fits inside 150cm.

Step 1: measure the playing surface. Use a tape measure and work in centimetres.

Rectangular: measure the length and the width, edge to edge.
Round: measure the diameter straight across the middle.
Oval: measure the longest length and the widest width, each at their maximum point.

Step 2: add an allowance. The cloth needs to go beyond the edge so you can pull it tight and fix it. A common convention is 10cm on every edge, which is enough to wrap round the rim and fix underneath. If you would rather let it drape over the sides, add more, perhaps 20cm per edge, and decide how far you want it to hang.

So the sums are:

Rectangular or oval: length + 2 x allowance, and width + 2 x allowance.
Round: diameter + 2 x allowance (in both directions).

Step 3: check the width. The smaller of the two numbers must be 150cm or less, because that is the width of the roll. Run the cloth so the smaller side sits across the roll and the larger side is the length you order.

Step 4: round up. Cloth is cut in 1m increments, with a minimum length of 1m, so order the next whole metre above the length you calculated. The extra gives you a little spare for mistakes.

Worked examples for a 60" (150cm) wide roll

All three examples use a 10cm allowance per edge. Swap in your own measurements.

Example 1: a 180cm x 90cm dining table

Length: 180cm + 10cm + 10cm = 200cm
Width: 90cm + 10cm + 10cm = 110cm
The width of 110cm is under 150cm, so it fits across the roll.
Order: 200cm, which is 2m of cloth.

For a generous overhang, use 20cm per edge: 220cm x 130cm still fits, so you would order 3m, the next whole metre above 2.2m.

Example 2: a 120cm round table

Diameter: 120cm + 10cm + 10cm = 140cm
Both directions are 140cm, which is under 150cm, so it fits.
Order: 140cm, which rounds up to 2m.

Do not add much more than 10cm per edge here: at 20cm you would need 160cm, and the width would no longer fit the roll.

Example 3: an oval 8-seat table

Take a typical table that measures 240cm long and 120cm wide at the widest points. Always measure your own.

Length: 240cm + 10cm + 10cm = 260cm
Width: 120cm + 10cm + 10cm = 140cm
The width of 140cm is under 150cm, so it fits across the roll.
Order: 260cm, which rounds up to 3m of cloth.

There is only 10cm to spare across the roll here. If your oval is wider than about 130cm, you will not be able to cover it with a single piece of this cloth at a 10cm allowance. In that case, check the numbers again before you order rather than hoping for the best.

Our guide to a poker table top or a poker mat compares the two, and the 8 Seat Poker Table Top Mat with Betting Lines, RED is the mat in our range.

How to fit it (stretch, staple, or drape)

There are three common ways to fit speed cloth. Choose according to your table.

Stretch and staple. This gives the neatest result on a proper table with a board you can fix to.

Lay the cloth face down on a clean floor, then place the board or table top face down on it.
Pull the cloth up over one edge and put in a staple in the middle of that side.
Go to the opposite side and pull the cloth firmly, not violently, and add another staple in the middle.
Repeat for the other two sides, then work outwards from the middle staples towards the corners, pulling evenly as you go.
Fold the corners neatly, as you would wrap a present, and fix them.

Stretch without staples. If you do not want to put holes in a table, pull the cloth tight and tape the edges underneath with strong tape, or use a cord or elastic round the underside. It is less tidy than stapling but leaves the table undamaged.

Drape. Simply lay the cloth on top and let it hang. It is the quickest way to cover a dining table for the evening and it can be folded away afterwards. The trade-off is that it can shift during play, so a non-slip layer beneath helps. Add more allowance if you want an even, deliberate overhang.

If the cloth arrived folded, lay it flat for a while so creases relax, and check the pattern runs straight before you fix anything.

Cleaning

Keep it simple and gentle.

Spills: blot straight away with a clean, dry cloth or kitchen towel. Dab, do not rub.
Marks: wipe lightly with a slightly damp, clean cloth.
Dust and crumbs: brush off with a soft brush or lint roller.

Avoid harsh chemicals and strong solvents. Water resistant does not mean waterproof, so do not soak it.

Before you order

Cloth is cut to order, and cut-to-order cloth is excluded from our change-of-mind returns. In plain terms: if you order the wrong length, we cannot take it back because you changed your mind or mis-measured. So measure twice, write the numbers down, and do the sums again before you add it to your basket.

Before you order, check you have measured the longest length and widest width, added the allowance on every edge, confirmed the smaller dimension is 150cm or less, and rounded the length up to the next whole metre.

Read the details on our Delivery & Returns page. If you are still unsure, our FAQ covers the common questions, or you can get in touch and we will happily help.