Kettler Carrara Foosball Table

KETTLER CARRARA Foosball Table & Features

Kettler is a German company, and with that fact comes the expectation of good engineering and high-quality product, and of course the price to match them. This table is produced in Italy, but that can only emphasize the presumption about it being a high-quality table. After all, Italian cabinet makers have a reputation for skill and expertise in making foosball that is only matched by their neighbors, the French.
Carra is a foosball table intended first and foremost for outdoor use. This doesn’t mean that you can’t put it in a game room. But that would be a waste. There are many other tables that can sit inside, this one should be kept where others would suffer dearly. If for no other reason than that it can withstand the elements.

• Gameplay

The gameplay on this table is an excellent experience, and there are several reasons for this. So let’s check them all going from the bottom upwards. This table sits on legs with leveling feet. When you look at them, you might presume that they are not very good because they are rather small. But this is not an issue, it is by design and advantage. By being smaller, they can more easily make full contact with the surface, and thus provide greater stability than larger feet. The nuts in them are quite long, providing the ability to properly level the table on any surface.
The playing surface is made of particle laminate with melamine finishing. This ensures that it is perfectly flat, but also that it has almost no friction that would slow down the ball and gameplay.
When it comes to friction, rod bearings are the nylon type which offers both longevity and weather resistance. Rods themself are a telescopic type, meaning that they do not poke out on the other side of the table and there is no danger of accidentally hitting the opponent’s rod.
Men are not counterbalanced, which is not really an issue, but it does limit its potential for use as a practice table for professional players. After all, this is a table intended for home use. Rod handles are wooden but come with rubber inserts, which further improve the grip and relieve the stress you might experience after hours of play. Personally, I don’t understand why more table makers do not offer this kind of handle.
This is a 1-goalie rod table, and also comes with both corner and side ramps that prevent dead balls.

• Durability

The table is made of laminated engineered wood which is covered with the melamine layer. This makes it completely waterproof, but only if this top layer is not damaged. The cabinet sits on steel legs that are additionally powder coated. This type of finish makes them very resistant to corrosion, even in a salty environment. The table comes with a protective cover which further improves its resilience to the elements.
Overall, this is a table that can last you for many years or even decades with a bit of care.

• Design

The melamine finishing of the main cabinet comes painted with a pattern that imitates the color and veining of Carrarese marble. Which is also the inspiration for the name of this table. The cabinet also features the traditional boxy utilitarian aesthetics. Both of these could be somewhat off-putting for some people. When it comes to fitting it in some particular style of the patio area, black powder-coated legs should make it more likely to fit in both dominantly dark palettes, while the cabinet is suited more for a lighter choice and dominantly whites.
The faux-marble color does give it a peculiar styling, which is not universally attractive. Personally, it is not my cup of tea, but it doesn’t mean that you will not like it.