How to Make a Backgammon Set

In this Instructable I'll teach you how to make your very own Backgammon set. I'm making this set for my cousin, he always helps me out and I wanted to thank him with a gift. I'll be going over some alternative methods to making it using what I know.

Materials

-Wood

-Wooden dowel

-Plywood and/or MDF sheet

-Spray paint

-Lacquer

-Glue

-Paper

-Hinges

-Screws

-Strong magnets

-Corner protectors

-Door bumper(not sure what these are called)

Tools

-Ripping tool(I used a diy table saw)

-Crosscutting tool(I used a drop saw)

-Drill

-Hole saw drill bit or similar

-Screw driver

-Calipers

-Glue gun(not necessary but it'll speed up the waiting times)

-Measuring tools

-Square

-Clamps

-Sand paper and files

-Vise

-Router and rotary tool(optional, decrative)

-Angle measuring tool

-Marking tools

-Chisel for the hinges

-PPE

-Jigsaw/bandsaw(optional, decrative)

I'm using scrap from a factory bin so you might be able to skip this step. I'm going to prepare all the side of the "box". First thing I did was sand and then joint these thin pieces together to form the sides. I didn't have enough material to make the full width so I just made them into 2 section of the box rather than the full width and then splitting it open with a table saw. The sizes I used in the images above.

After it was dry I went on to make the rebate that will accept the sheet that will be inserted. A similar process to making a drawer. Once I had all the rebates in place, I mitred all the edges.

Now we need to prepare the bottom. I got this plywood sheet from a worksite, I believe it's used for holding insulation. It's not the prettiest but it'll do. What you shouldn't copy is the way I cut it, orient the grain to be vertical. My mistake! The width takes a bit of fiddling around with to get it to fit nicely, I forgot to take a pic but I think it was 250mm. Either way, sneak up on it until it can fit into your rebate with a little play. Once the dry fit is done(take internal measurements, we will need this to save time), it's time to assemble both pieces(or one piece if you have the material). Add a small amount of glue inbetween the rebate around. It doesn't take much so be sure to avoid glue squeeze out. Then we clamp it up and wait at least a few hours.

Arguably the most difficult part. I'll be using a sheet of MDF, I'm not sure of it's origins. You can use plywood if you want but I recommend you use something that contrasts with the sheet from earlier. You will need the internal horizontal measurement from earlier to get the spacing right. You need a dowel that is 33mm wide and a hole saw or Forsner bit that is 34-35mm in diameter. Take your measurement and divide it by 6. This is the space you will need between each hole to make them all equal. We will leave extra at each end for later to cut them to fit by sneaking up on each side.

Mark all your holes in a straight line(this is very important for making everything look right), I used an awl but a different sharp instrument will work too. Stick 2 pieces together so when you can make all 4 housing at the same time and then drill out your markers with your hole Forsner bit. Before you separate the pieces, cut them close to the right width(your backgammon set may have some imperfections), mine turned out to be 235mm give or take. Remove any scorch marks and shape to your preference. I'll be decorating the housing with a rotary tool by tapping it across the top, this part is optional.

Now we can install the housing and your box from earlier should be dry. If you are making it out of one piece now is the time to split them into 2. Sneak up on the cut for every individual piece as they might not be the same. Glue them into place when you're happy with the fit. I used hot glue and regular wood glue to speed things along but if you don't have a glue gun you might have to let it dry for a few hours.

Time to make the checkers. Set up a stop block to your desired thickness, I found that 7mm was just right. Be careful if you're using a drop saw as moving the blade before it stops spinning may cause the checker to fling back to you. Cut at least 36, the extras are just there in case you lose a checker. Make sure all the pieces are close to being identicle, especially the thickness of them. This next part is dangerous and should only be done by a professional. You can see in the picture how I've set the router table to roundover the edges, follow standard router safety and procedures from here on out. The alternative method is to sand the checker edges by hand or leave them with sharp edges. When you're happy with your checkers, spray paint them in the colours you like twice, then once with protective lacquer. Keep in mind if you're using a glossy spray paint, the laquer will dull the colour.

It looked plain and I wanted to change that a bit. I cut out a diamond template out of paper until it fit the way I liked. I then taped up 3 thin sheets of plywood together and traced the diamond on top and cut it out. Checked that it fit then proceeded to cut some curves into the diamond shape. Once you remove the sticky tape, you will have 3 interchangable shapes to fit together. Looking back, I should have used straight cuts as curves are no where else in the design. Spend some time here getting it as centred as possible, you can see I made spacers and an angle finder for the more difficult parts to align. You don't want squeeze out here so scratch the back to give the glue somewhere to go. Then cut a diamond shape out of some scrap and clamp it down. I used a weight plate.

After that I cut some small triangles that are perpendicular to the diamond. Very simple. This part isn't optional if you're using similar corner protectors to me.

Depending on the size of your magnet, something similar to this part may not be optional either. Another diamond! I got this piece of wood from a drawer in a house that was about to be demolished. You rarely see wood being used in kitchen drawers these days in Aus and this was special! This one is a lot more difficult to if you want it to be perfect, otherwise you can use the same method as the above diamond and just use a tool that allows you to follow a line. All the angles are in the images above, use a tool or jig to hold the small peice in place.

Cut it in half and mark out the lines like I did. Those are your guide for sanding. Now the diamond is nearly finished, scratch the back, glue, and clamp into place.

We will now install the magnets. I used some tape and took measurements from the edges of the diamond and the width, then divided them by 2 to find the centre. Mark a hole and drill it out. Repeat on both sides and glue or screw the magnet in. I used hot glue. Make sure everything still lines up correctly.

Onto the hinges. Use a square to mark out the same distance from both sides of where the hinges need to go. Use your hinges to trace the area you will need to remove with a chisel or router. I used hot glue and tape to hold the hinge in place while marking the holes for the screws.

Flip it over and install your corner protectors. Those corner protectors won't protect your table though. I used door bumpers(not sure what they're actually called but you can see what I mean in the picture), you can use hot glue drops instead if that's all you have.

Once you're happy with how things are, remove all the hardware and fix any imperfections you might have.

Then give it a few coats of lacquer/sealer/varnish/stain/whatever you desire, reinstall the hardware and get ready to play!

If I didn't make any of the steps clear, please let me know in the comments and I'll address the issue. Thank you for reading, I hope this helps you make your own backgammon set.