So, you love the world’s fastest table sport but don’t have a small fortune to spend on purchasing an Air Hockey Table? Here’s how to make one yourself in a few easy steps.
What You’ll Need
Materials
- Wooden Frame
- Two long sides: L 90”, W 2”, H 3”
- Two short sides L 46”, W 2”, H 3”
- Two long sides; L 87”, W 1”, H 2”
- Two short sides; L 43”, W 1”, H 2”
- A white marker board with L 87”, W 43”, H 0.5” for a smooth surface
- Scrap wood with H 2”
- Pine board with L 87” W 43” H 2”
- Leaf blower
- 4ft long tube with a 3” diameter. This measurement depends on the size of the leaf blowers’ outlet
- An 8” by 8” PVC sheet with a hole for the tube
- PVC muff
- Two 8” by 8” plywood pieces
- Wooden beams of L 13”
- Two 13” by 13” fabric pieces (get strong ones)
Tools
- Jigsaw
- Wood glue
- Wood screws
- Nails
- Hot glue gun
- Tape Measure
- Drill with 1mm drill bits.
- Duct tape
Build Your Table
Frame: The beams should have 45-degree edges so they fit perfectly together –it’s best to let a professional do this. If you have your white marker board, place it on level ground then place the smaller beams on it and the bigger ones against it to make sure they’re the right size.
Attach the smaller beams to the big ones. Glue all the sides together then leave it to harden. Pre-drill the corners then screw in some screws.
Drill Holes: Draw a 1” grid on the marker board. Drill holes at each intersection for air circulation.
Attach Pillars: Place your scraps 2” from the edge of the board and give 3” space between each one. Glue the scraps to the board using regular wood glue then place the pine board on them to keep the scraps upright while the glue hardens.
Attach the Surface: Cover the holes closest to the margin of the white board with tape to keep them from being blocked by the glue (do this on the reverse side). Apply the glue to the edges and slide it in with the pillars facing downwards. Push 5 nails into the short side and 10 nails into the long side of the board attaching it to the smaller frame.
Make your Air Inlet: Glue the muff to the tube using hot glue then connect the tube to the leaf blower’s outlet using duct tape so it’s detachable. Drill holes into the two pieces of plywood making sure the holes are bigger that the hole in the PVC sheet. Drill a hole through the pine board to fit in your air inlet. Pre-drill the plywood; one with four holes and one with eight. Do same for your PVC sheet. Glue the one with four holes to the pine board and screw it down. Place the PVC sheet and the piece with 8 holes on top the first one, make sure you align the holes then screw them down.
Attach the Pine Board: Remove the tape from the white board and clear out the debris. Apply wood glue to every pillar and the margins of the frame then gently slide your board into place. Put some heavy stuff on it and leave it to dry.
Make the Goals: Drill holes into your frame work 12 Cm away from the middle then cut between the two holes with a jigsaw making it level with the playing surface. Next, Nail down the 13” beams over and under the cut with the strong fabric between them to create the puck catcher.
Conclusion
If you’ve followed the steps accurately, you should have your homemade Air Hockey table. You can line the framework with aluminium or plastic bounce off strips to get the rebound effect store-bought tables have and design your table.
Please note: The measurements may not work for you so feel free to adapt them to fit your needs and materials.