We are on a quest to add some really fun things to our backyard, and this DIY tetherball set was an easy weekend project that our whole family loves!
After re-discovering tetherball at our friends’ home several weeks ago, the kids begged us to get a tetherball set for them. I checked them out on Amazon, and when I saw the price (around $100), I knew I could make one for less. I did! I saved more than half by making our own, plus it’s incredibly sturdy and durable. We absolutely love it, and our family has already spent a lot of time outside enjoying it.
Easy to do, and half the cost!
It really is so worth it to make your own. It only took about an hour to put together, then 24 hours of drying time. Totally an easy weekend project! When you add in the facts that you can not only save more than half of the ones at the store and that it’s way more sturdy, you’ve got a winner!
If you’re wondering about ages, even young children can enjoy playing, all the way up to adults. My five year old boys are totally obsessed with it, and they could have easily played last summer as well, at the age of four. I love that my kids can play together, or even one of them alone.
Here’s the price breakdown:
(these prices may vary where you live, or where you purchase them)
Tire – free
Pole – $15
Rebar – $1.50
Wire – $2
Cement – $6
Hardware – $5
Ball – $15
= $45!!
I saved more than $60!! Woot!
Here’s how to make your own DIY Tetherball Set:
SUPPLIES
- tire (no bigger than a car tire–not SUV) (we found ours at a local junkyard for free!)
- 1 5/8 x 8 ft. 16 gauge galvanized steel line pole
- (2) 1 ft. pieces of rebar
- cement (180 pounds–we used 3 bags, 60 pounds each)
- 5/8 x 3 in. round swivel eye bolt snap
- 1/4 x 2 5/8 in. eye bolt
- 2 washers, lock washer, and nut (all 1/4 inch–we bought a package that had all three in it)
- 18 gauge galvanized wire
- tetherball with rope (this is the one we got–it glows in the dark!) (affiliate link)
- drill (impact drill with bit made for metal)
- supplies to mix cement–shovel, container, water (we put ours in a large bucket)
DIRECTIONS:
1. Drill holes into one of the ends of your line pole, in a cross pattern. (The ends are the same, so it doesn’t matter which one you do.) Ours are about 2 inches from the bottom pole, and then 5 inches above that. To determine how far apart to drill your holes, measure the inside of your tire. It’s going to be buried in the cement, so you don’t want it to poke out the top or the bottom of your tire. Slide in the rebar, and use the galvanized wire to secure them into place. On the other end of the pole, drill a hole for the eye bolt, and secure it with a washer and the 1/4 inch nut.
2. Set out your tire on a large garbage bag. Mix your cement (we used a shovel and an inexpensive container that we bought at The Home Depot), making sure to follow the directions on the bag. We used the Quikrete brand, which dries pretty fast–within 24 hours we were ready to play!
3. Shovel the mixed cement into the tire, spreading and evening it out as you go. Set up a tall ladder right next to the tire (or something else you can steady the pole and keep it in place with). Push your pole with the rebar end first down into the cement, making sure it’s centered, and that the rebar is completely covered. If you get cement on the tire, don’t worry–once it’s dry, you can scrape it right off.
4. Use a level to make sure it’s standing completely straight, then use the galvanized wire to tie it to the side of the ladder so it will stay that way while it dries. You’ll see we had lots of helpers! Our kids loved to help, and an extra pair or two of hands on these last steps really are necessary.
5. Let it dry! We added the kids’ names into the cement after 3-4 hours–don’t do it right away, you’ll need the cement to be semi-firm to hold. My husband was the overseer of this part, and let the kids do it themselves. If I had to do it over again, I would just have him do it–it’s a lot more difficult for kids to do it, they generally aren’t strong enough to write it deep enough.
6. After the cement is totally dry, clip the snap bolt onto the eye bolt at the top of the pole, and tie the rope onto the swivel portion of the snap bolt. You don’t have to use a snap bolt, but it makes it a lot easier if you want to remove the ball.
You’re done, and ready to PLAY!!!
OTHER IDEAS YOU MIGHT LIKE
Laura S. says
My son loves tetherball and he would love this. I was just wondering if having it cemented in the tire (as opposed to the ground) kept it from wobbling enough.
Simply Kierste says
It’s actually very sturdy, and we’ve had no problems with it tipping. In fact, it’s pretty hard to move! :) My little kids have no problem, but even my husband and I can play without it wobbling. It’s one of our favorite things!! xoxo
Laura S. says
We ended up making this for my son. Thank you so much for the idea. He absolutely LOVES it!
Teresa Bessman says
We just made a tetherball set for our 3 littles. They love it. I like it because if I want to move it in the yard, I can..
Old Salt Farm says
Yay!! I’m so glad!! And yes, I love that it’s moveable if you need it to be. Enjoy!! xo
Samantha says
Do you think it would work to put just a one foot chunk of wider pipe in the cement as a receiver for the long pole so that the long pole could be removed? Kind of like a heavy duty stand that they make for deck umbrellas.
Old Salt Farm says
Yes!!
trisha says
Where did you find the metal bar?
Simply Kierste says
Home Depot!
Lee says
We had one of these as a kid. Seems to be exactly the same. Wait til the kids pull it down on its side and catapult themselves. Sorry mom!
Simply Kierste says
Yep. I can totally see my kids doing that!! Lol!!
Tabby says
Thanks for the clear instructions. Everyone I know has one of these and I want one for my grandchildren, and now I can make one with them. I see people moving them into and out thier garage by tilting the tire a little and rolling it along. If you have a tall enough garage/short enough rope, kids can play in the winter when the cars are out.
Simply Kierste says
You are so welcome!! And totally–if you don’t have a ton of snow like we do, you can definitely play through the winter! :) Thanks so much for stopping by!! xoxo
Amy says
Great idea. How have you liked the tetherball? It’s gotten mixed reviews on amazon.
Simply Kierste says
We love it! We’ve had it now over a year, and it’s been great for us!
Casey says
What size are the holes that you had to drill into the pole? Thanks in advance :)
Deb Hatton says
Such a cute idea! This would be absolutely perfect for our cabin. Thank so much!
Simply Kierste Design Co. says
You are so welcome! Definitely perfect for a cabin! xoxo
Robyn says
I loved playing tetherball as a kid! Our elementary school had about 8 tetherball piles and they were always being used. I want my husband and son to make two of these…one for tetherball and the second for a volleyball net!
Simply Kierste Design Co. says
They totally bring back memories of elementary school! And a set for volleyball and tetherball is perfect!
Marshall says
For the top where you tie the rope to the eye bolt (or snap bolt to.the eye bolt) does it matter that its off to a side instead of the top of the pole? Going to try to do this next week.
Thanks so much for the tutorial
Simply Kierste Design Co. says
Hi, Marshall! I’m so sorry, I’m not quite sure what you are asking! Our bolts go through the pole, from side-to-side.
Sarah says
Marshall, It works great even though the eye bolt comes out the side. Most poles are designed this way, they don’t have the tie come straight out the top or the rope would rub and wear out quickly.
Simply Kierste Design Co. says
Thank you for answering, Sarah!! :)
RW says
Curious as to why not an SUV tire? That’s what I have available and would love to use it for this project. Too heavy to move? Too wide that it inhibits play? Uses too much concrete?
Simply Kierste Design Co. says
We just used the tire we could find for free, and this is the one we got! :) I think an SUV tire would be fine, and I don’t think it would inhibit play too much. It may be quite a bit heavier, but if you don’t want to move it a lot, then it shouldn’t be a problem. We wanted to leave ours outside, so I bought a ball that clipped off to kept inside during the winter. Good luck! xoxo
Cecelia says
I think we used an SUV Tire because it took 360 lbs. of dry concrette to fill it. We also used the heavy 2″x 10′ $46.00 pole.
I will let you know if we can move it, once it dries. YIKES!!!
Simply Kierste Design Co. says
WOW!! That sounds awesome! Definitely keep me updated…we are making another one, and I’d love to hear how it turns out! xoxo
Josh says
Great project! We’re building it right now. We did change one thing to make it easier. To hold the rebar in place, we used a commercial strength glue instead of the wire.
Simply Kierste Design Co. says
Great idea, Josh! Thanks for sharing!!
Louis says
Thanks for the clear step-by-step instructions. We made this over a weekend and the kids (and us parents) love it!! So fun, and very sturdy!
Simply Kierste Design Co. says
YAY!! That’s so awesome!! I hope you love it as much as we do. Happy Summer!! xoxo
Jessica says
Just got done building this! Turned out great, however we ran out of cement so had to go back and get 1 more bag then I set my alarm for 3 hours so we could put our hand prints on it but we were too late, the cement was already hardened. ? Just a suggestion get 4 bags of cement (you can always return it) and set a timer maybe for 2 hours.
Simply Kierste Design Co. says
Darn! Running out of cement is the worst!! :( Yes, it’s definitely better to have more than less–since you can always return it if you have it leftover. xoxo
Jeremy Schnepf says
Were did you get your pole?
Simply Kierste Design Co. says
Home Depot!
Clara says
I got mine from neighborhood pick up. It actually came off an old trampoline pole. But you can alwYzngo to a hardware shop. ( Home depot)
Clara says
You did an amazing job on the project. I actually used a SUV tire and used way less cement. I actually took some dirt and filled in the sides then I took some cement to fill the middle.
Old Salt Farm says
Awesome! That sounds perfect!
MS says
What did you use to drill a hole in the pole?
Old Salt Farm says
We used an impact drill with a bit made for metal!
Erin says
We just made it using your instructions! We are super excited and can’t wait to play on it! Thank you, thank you for posting this! And we loved all your pics describing the process!! 💕💕
Old Salt Farm says
Hooray!! Thank you SO much for letting me know, it makes me so happy!! Enjoy! xoxo
Peg K says
I would love to make one of these for my backyard but have a couple of questions. When you pour the cement into the tire does in not spread out beneath the tire? Also, I have a 15 year old son- do you think it will stand up to him and his friends or is this intended more for younger kids? Thanks for the great idea!
Old Salt Farm says
Hi, Peg! The cement is pretty thick, and the tire is flat on the ground, so it didn’t seep out at all for us. And I’ve never received a comment from any of my readers that have made it about it happening to them either. As far as the age range goes, we played with adults quite a bit, and it was totally fine! I think just regular playing it can stand up to teenagers too. Hope this helps!!