DIY Adjustable EMT Conduit Tetherball Pole

Building an adjustable tetherball pole from EMT (Electrical Metallic Tubing) conduit is an easy and affordable DIY project that can bring hours of outdoor fun for your next backyard gathering! EMT conduit is sturdy, low-cost, weather-resistant, and readily available at most hardware stores, making it an ideal material for this project. The adjustability of this DIY tetherball pole makes it ideal for play with both adults and children alike!

EMT (electric metallic tubing) conduit is a type of steel tubing available from most hardware stores, and is typically used for routing electrical wires in buildings, but has also grown in popularity in do-it-yourself (DIY) projects due to its low-cost, strength, and convenience for purchase. Elation Sports Technologies offers a UV-resistant adapter to easily create a telescoping pole from 1/2", 3/4", and 1" sizes of EMT conduit!

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1 x Pair of EMT conduit telescoping couplings

1 x 5-foot long piece of 1" EMT conduit

1 x 5-foot long piece of 3/4" EMT conduit

1 x 5-foot long piece of 1/2" EMT conduit

1 x Ground stake

1 x Tetherball + mounting rope with swivel hook

1 x 3/8"-16 x 1-1/4" eye bolt

1 x 3/8"-16 wing nut

1 x Assortment of black rubber pole caps

1 x Phillips head screwdriver

1 x Rotary tube cutter

1 x Rotary deburring tool

1 x Metal file

1 x 25-foot tape measure

1 x Cordless drill

Decide on the maximum height of your tetherball pole. For example, if you want a maximum extended pole height of 12 feet, then each of the three sections of the pole will be four to five feet in length in order to have a bit of overlap between the sections. The bottom section will be a section of 1" size conduit, the middle section will be the 3/4" conduit, and the top will be the 1/2" conduit. Measure 5 feet on each piece of conduit using a tape measure, and mark it. Wearing appropriate safety gear (e.g. safety glasses), cut your conduit pieces at the marked points using a rotary tool cutter. Remove any sharp edges or burrs using a rotary deburring tool, metal file, or Dremel tool where needed.

Using a cordless drill, add a 3/8" hole in the top section of EMT conduit that you cut to length in the previous step. Attach the eye bolt and wing nut as shown.

These EMT conduit telescoping clamps make it easy to create a telescoping pole out of EMT conduit! They're made of injection-molded UV-resistant and durable plastic which is suitable for outdoor use, and they clamp onto the outside of the conduit - no drilling required!

Add one 20mm black rubber pole cap to the tip of the 1/2" EMT conduit end of the pole. If you choose to use 3/4" EMT conduit as their top section of the pole instead of 1/2" EMT conduit, use a 25mm black rubber cap instead of a 20mm one.

Insert the ground stake into the earth, and then install the bottom 1" EMT conduit end of the pole into the ground stake. Depending on the EMT conduit vendor, the fit may be a little tight, but this helps to keep the pole sturdy.

Attach the tetherball to the eye bolt at the top of the pole using its included rope and swivel hook. Adjust the height of the pole by loosening or tightening the 2 x telescoping adapters on the pole. The pole can be shortened for easy storage and transport, and quickly re-deployed any time. Congratulations, you’ve successfully built your own adjustable tetherball pole from EMT conduit! Now all that’s left is to enjoy endless rounds of tetherball with friends and family.

In this post, I shared how you can build your own DIY adjustable tetherball pole using EMT conduit! The telescoping couplings used for this project are available for purchase from Elation Sports Technologies!

Check out our other Instructables articles, and our blog! We have a free newsletter with project ideas if you'd like to sign up!

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Elation Sports Technologies LLC offers mechanical and electrical engineering design consulting. I'd be happy to discuss your project's needs to see how we may assist you - simply reach out to schedule a chat.

Thanks for reading!

Austin Allen

Founder and Owner

Elation Sports Technologies LLC