Where's the table function?
Alright! The table is done! Well, the table part is done. I'll be needing to build some terrain, but that can wait a little bit.

Bean-Counting
More expenses this week, I picked up some border trim (for the guardrails on the edge, I don't want to hear calls of "Mini overboard!") I also grabbed some astroturf for the table surface itself. I could have used felt or something else cheaper, but this indoor/outdoor carpet looks grassy and will last a very long time. It will also put up with all sorts of wear and tear. I expect I'll be using the table as a workbench as well, so having a tough surface will be very useful! Now I only have to worry about all my miniatures getting knee injuries. (American football reference, astroturf is sometimes used in stadiums and has a different traction or feel to it and has been blamed for a lot of knee injuries.)

Stabilizing the patient
I put some brackets underneath the table to hold 2x4 boards that would slide out and support the extensions, then slide away when you wanted to fold the extensions down. The truth be told, this will probably still need some fiddling, as some of the boards don't slide as smoothly as I'd like. They work for now, however, and that's all I need. I presumably won't be needing to fold the extensions up and down very frequently, or very quickly, either, so it's not a big thing.

Roll 'Em!
After completing the supports for the extensions (a job much more easily done with the table upside down) I righted the table. This was a bit of an effort, since it's a rather large table even with the extensions down. I also didn't have a lot of space to work in. (One of the reasons for building the table is so that I'd have more storage space to put away stuff that's currently sitting on the floor, primarily pieces and bitz that will eventually become terrain. I had to move it all the way to one side, tilt it up on one corner and wiggle it further back, then let it down on it's side. Then I had to move it over some more, tilt it up and wiggle it again, then finally put it on it's wheels. Now that it's on the wheels, it's MUCH easier to move! Whew!

Red Bull Gives you Wings!
Well, something like that. With it upright, I flipped up the extensions and slid the supports out. Well, I tried to anyway. A couple of the boards were very stubborn as I mentioned before. I had to climb underneath and fiddle with them for a bit, but they work a little better now.

Surfacing
While I had the extensions up, I rolled out the astroturf and started trimming it up. I started at one corner and screwed that down, then trimmed from there. You can see a few spots where it bunches up a little bit, but it doesn't bunch very high, so I'm not too worried about it.

Border Patrol
I then went around and started adding the border guards. I got them in 3 8 foot sections. I took 2 of them and wrapped them around each of the extensions. (2 feet plus 4 feet plus 2 feet= 8 feet.) I then folded the other one in half and cut it with some kitchen shears. I used each of those pieces for the "long edges" of the 4x4 table. This does mean that there is no border on the "short edges" when the table is in 4x4 configuration. Until I figure out a good way to have a temporary guard that I can put up or take down easily for those edges, it's good enough for me.

Final Product
Here's a final picture of the table, with the trim and surface on and the extensions down for storage or for smaller games. This is a picture from one of the "short edges" of the table. Note that the center is hollow and has a floor. This will allow me to store larger terrain pieces or entire different boards underneath the table in the future. One thing that I am considering is having a series of board surfaces (such as ice or desert or city or space hulk) in 2x4 foot sections. I could have say, Ice on one side and desert on the other. When I wanted a game on that type of terrain, I'd slide out the pieces needed for the size of the game and simply lay them on top of the astroturf surface. Simple, rugged, flexible. Just the way I like it.

What's next?
Well, the table itself is done. Now there are two steps left. One is to baptise it with a game, and the other is to make a bunch of terrain with all this stuff I have laying around!

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