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How to Make a Corn Hole Board

Cornhole is a game very reminiscent of old-fashioned carnival and fair activities. The main object is to toss beanbags through a hole in a special, slightly elevated board. The rest of the rules often vary from player to player. Some people prefer to mark measurements on their board and aim to come closest to the hole without overshooting. Others like to play a version of horse, each player being required to shoot from the same place and in the same manner as the last. Whichever version you come up with, making your own cornhole board is not difficult.

Things You'll Need

1 x 2 foot furniture grade plywood board, 1/2-inch thick
Measuring tape
Pencil
Compass
Jigsaw
2 2 x 4 boards, 2 feet long
2 2 x 4 boards, 21 inches long
Wood glue
Finishing nails
Nail gun
Drill
3/8 inch drill bit
2 2 x 4 boards, 1 foot long
2 3/8-inch bolts
2 3/8-inch washers
2 3/8-inch nuts

Instructions

- 1
  Place the 1 x 2 foot plywood board on a flat surface. Choose one short side to be the edge and measure down 8 7/8 inches from this side; mark the measurement with a pencil. Measure in one foot from each long edge toward the first pencil mark you made and mark these areas as well.
- 2
  Create a 3-inch circle that passes through all three marks using a compass. Erase and redraw as necessary until it is as close to perfect as possible; this is imperative for a proper game. Cut out the circle with a jigsaw.
- 3
  Build the frame for your board from the two 2 foot long boards and the two boards that are 21 inches long. The edges of the shorter boards should be fastened to the interior faces of the longer boards and the edges of the longer boards should be exposed. Glue the boards together with wood glue and add three to four finishing nails along each side in a straight line.
- 4
  Place the board with the holes in it atop the frame. Line up the edges to check the fit. Glue this top piece in place and then nail it along each edge.
- 5
  Turn the top of the game over so that the interior of the frame faces upward. Measure 3 1/2 inches down each side from the corners at the end of the board nearest the hole. Mark these spots with a pencil and drill a 3/8-inch hole at each mark.
- 6
  Measure to find the center point of each 1 foot long board and draw a pencil line along the length of each board through these points. Place the first of these legs within the frame and up against one side, and then position the board so that the pencil line is centered in the hole. Trace the drilled hole on the side onto the surface of the leg and repeat for the second leg and the other side.
- 7
  Drill a 3/8-inch hole at the traced mark on each board. Reposition the first leg so that the hole lines up with the hole in the frame and attach the leg with a bolt, washer and nut; repeat with the opposite leg. Turn the corn hole board over and decorate the surface however you like.

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