Remove old felt from rails. Use a staple puller or flathead screwdriver to remove the staples from the ends of the rails. Cut the old felt along the top of the rail if it does not come off immediately.

Gently remove the wooden feather strip. Each rail has a thin wooden "featherstrip" running alongside it, which is typically not attached by any adhesive or nails. If it won't come up easily, Use a thin flathead screwdriver to pry it up without breaking it.

Place a new strip of felt over the rail. Unlike the table top, this felt should be "face side" down. Keep an overhang of at least 4 inches (10 cm) on each end, and 1/2 inch (1.25 cm) over the feather strip groove

Use a tapping block and hammer to wedge in the center of the featherstrip. Lay the featherstrip back in position, but do not press it down. Have an assistant stretch the felt tightly between the center and one end of the railing. Place a tapping block over the featherstrip, then use a hammer to gently tap the block, pushing the featherstrip down into the stretched portion of the felt, but stop about 2 inches (5 cm) from the end, where the corner pocket will be located.^[15] Stretch the other half of the felt, and repeat this process for the remaining length of the featherstrip, again stopping 2 inches (5 cm) away from the other end.

* Do not strike the featherstrip directly, or you may dent the table.

Pull felt toward the cushion and tap in the ends of featherstrip. Pull the felt at the ends of the table toward the rubber cushion, then tap in the remaining portion of the featherstrip until it is firmly in place. Trim and fold the felt as necessary to remove excess material and cover the ends of the cushion.

Reassemble the outer rails. Once all your rails are complete, bolt them to the table again. If you're having a hard time finding where the bolts should go, you can push a screwdriver through the bolt holes as guidance. Never try to cut holes in the playing surface from the top of the table, as you may cut in the wrong place.