How To Make A Ping Pong Table - DIY
If you’re the DIY type and have plenty of time on your hands then you may be interested in getting hold of plans on how to make a ping pong table yourself. The bad news is that unless you’re an unusually gifted woodworker the end result is going to be inferior to even the cheap ping pong tables available from most respected manufacturers.
There are a number of reasons for this. Firstly the High Density Fiber Board that you are going to require for the surface of the table is usually only available in sheets that are smaller than the required 9 x 5 feet for a regulation size table. This means that your either going to end up with a table smaller than regulation size or one that features unsightly seams and joins and is considerable weaker than a professionally manufactured table. Another problem with an undersized table is that finding a ping pong net that fits correctly is going to be problematic. When you’re thinking on how to make a ping pong table in your home workshop, consider how you’re going to go about cutting the board. There aren’t many home workshops that can handle boards of the dimensions required to make a regulation sized table. Another limitation is when considering how to make a solid, durable and foldable undercarriage for the homemade ping pong table. There are plans available for the construction of the undercarriage, but the project is far from simple. A fixed undercarriage is a solution to the complexity of building a foldable ping pong table. Most homes simply do not have the space for a fixed ping pong table, thus storage is also going to present its own challenges. There are also problems in getting a home made ping pong table surface to allow the ball to bounce in a way that will emulate a professionally built table, even if you do use specially formulated table tennis paint.
So if you evaluate all the potential pitfalls in trying to build your own table tennis table or ping pong (as it is known in the United States) table the consensus amongst experts in both the DIY fraternity and the table tennis fraternity seems to be, don’t. Aside from the time needed, the expertise and products required mean that the task is best left to the professionals. One last point is that given the cost of the raw materials involved it’s probably going to cost you more to try and build your own table than purchasing one of the cheap ping pong tables available at retailers nationwide and the end result isn’t going to be a table built to regulation standards. The problems become even more difficult to overcome if you’re considering an outdoor ping pong table which requires specialist knowledge if it’s going to be properly waterproof.
If you’re looking to save money then clearly building your own ping pong table is not the way to go about lightening the burden on your pocketbook. A useful cost saving tip is to look out for used ping pong tables for sale. Perhaps one shouldn't be asking how to make a ping pong table, but rather where can I get one at a reasonable price.
