How to Make a Chinese Checkers Board

Create the base of your Chinese checkers board with a piece of wood that is at least 1 inch thick and that measures 10 inches square.

Use a measuring tape to measure 5 inches in from each side of the board. This will give you the center point of the board. Make a dot with a pencil.

Draw an equilateral triangle with each side being 8 inches long lightly in pencil. The center dot that you have drawn should be in the center of the triangle or about 4 1/2 inches away from each point of the triangle. Confirm this by measuring after you have pencilled in the triangle.

Make another equilateral triangle of the same size on top of the first triangle to form a 6-pointed star. If you think of the first triangle being right side up with a point at the top, then draw the second one upside down with a point at the bottom.

Mark the areas in pencil where you will be making holes for the pieces. Start with the bottom of one of the large triangles you drew and make 13 dots spaced approximately 3/4 inch apart. Continue making dots in rows with each row having 1 less dot than before, until you reach the point of the triangle with only 1 dot (this is the 13th row). Then do the same with the second large triangle.

Count the dots to make sure you have spaced them correctly. Each point of the star should have 10 dots in it. The center of the board forms a hexagon and should have 5 dots on each side. The total number of dots on the board should equal 121.

Attach a 1/2-inch drill bit to a power drill. Measure 3/8 of an inch up from the bottom of the drill bit and mark the spot with a small piece of electrical tape. This will help you determine how deep to drill the holes.

Plug in your drill, turn it on and drill a small hole where each dot is located. Continue to drill until the electrical tape on the bit is level with the hole, then stop and remove the drill from the hole. This should make 3/8-inch deep holes which will allow the marbles to sit comfortably without rolling all over the board.

Sand the sides of the board and the holes with sandpaper to smooth away any rough edges.

Paint your Chinese checkers board as desired. You may decide to paint each point a different color or coat the entire board in a clear finish.

Buy marbles that are about 1/2 inch in diameter. You will need 60 marbles total or 6 different colored sets of 10 marbles each. Amazon carries a wide variety of marbles that can be used to play Chinese checkers (see Resources below).