How to Make a Table Tennis Table

Table tennis (also called pingpong) is an indoor game that improves your dexterity and hand-eye coordination as well as serves as a fun pastime for family and friends. Though professionally built table tennis tables often cost several hundred dollars, you can make your own that is nearly as good and significantly cheaper. With a little ingenuity and some basic construction skills, making a table tennis table is quick and easy. The official table regulations are 9-feet long by 5-feet wide by 2 1/2-feet high, but these dimensions vary greatly on many homemade tables.

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Large piece of plywood
• Four 4-by-4 foot pieces of lumber
• Green spray paint
• White electrical tape
• Wood screws
• Power drill
• Circle saw
• Measuring tape
• Table tennis net

Constructing the Table

1. Cut the plywood to the dimensions of 9-by-5 feet. If you cannot find a big enough board, use two boards and secure them together using a cross-brace. To do this, measure and cut a 2-by-4-foot piece of wood. Line up the 2-by-4 so it is running parallel to the width of the board, and screw it into the end of the board, making sure the 2-by-4 overlaps the board by a few inches. Screw the other board to the 2-by-4, making sure the ends of both boards connect.

2. Cut the four 4-by-4-foot boards to a height of 2 1/2 feet. If you are using two pieces of plywood to create the table, you will need two additional 4-by-4s cut to the same height.

3. Screw one 4-by-4 to each corner of the table surface using wood screws and a power drill. Use more than one screw to secure the legs in place. If you are using two pieces of plywood to create the table, secure the two additional 4-by-4s on opposite edges of where the two boards meet.

4. Spray paint the surface of the table green. Allow the table to dry for at least 3 hours.

5. Use the white electrical tape to outline the edge of the table.

6. Find the middle of the table's width and length by using the measuring tape. Lay a strip of white electrical tape along these lines as well.

7. Set up the net so that it is evenly and tightly stretched along the midpoint of the table's length. Refer to the directions on the net for complete setup instructions, but remember that the net is best secured by making sure the vices at each end of the net are fastened firmly to the table.

Tips & Warnings

• It is a good idea to cross-brace the legs of the table using spare 2-by-4s. You can make a temporary table tennis net by attaching two small dowels or pencils on either side of the table's mid-length with wood glue and then running a string tightly between the dowels or pencils.
• This table design is not intended to support a person or other heavy objects.