The Hoopball...A DIY Project

[Macawlvr]

As requested...here tis'...

The Hoopball…A DIY Project


A lot of you noticed the Hoopball in some of my pics of our fids that my son’s and I made quite a few years back and wanted to know where to get one like it.





There are commercial versions of it (called an Atom) for sale out there at several places…however, they will be quite different than the Hoopball that we made.

What follows here is the Do-It-Yourself info needed to make one for your fids. There are many ways to build this and many varied versions of this ball…from simple vet wrapped ones to the smaller ring version wrapped in sisal or whatever covering one chooses.

This particular version was geared toward macaws and their destructive nature to tear things apart. It is also a super large one compared to the ones that are out there for sale.

OK, let’s get started…
There are many places to get supplies…Dollar stores, Walmart, Home Depot, Lowes, etc. You will end up going to two different stores to obtain the needed parts. The stores listed are where we got ours out of convenience.

This project starts out with four hula hoops that we got at the super Walmart...just the plain ordinary ones like these pictured here...

Then we went back to their boat and marine section and got some poly rope in different colors…
Each pack of rope is 3/8 diameter, 25 foot long and it takes two of them (50 foot total) to cover each hula hoop...the hula hoops were 28 inches in diameter. So you will need 8 packs of 25 foot long rope to cover the hoops. 2 packs of each color is what we used.
This pic is of one of the hoops done in the yellow...

The rope has to be wound really tight on the hoop, my son was going round and round with the rope ahead of me while I pulled the rope up tight. I found that if I turned the rope with a tight twisting grip I could force it even tighter and make the rope go further. You wrap a ways and then go back a little and grip and twist it even tighter while pushing it together to make everything as tight as possible...this is important…you will have some sore hands before it's over.

Here's the pic of the poly rope with the bar code numbers...as you know, the bar code has a smaller printed number one in front and one at the end of the main number so I'm giving you the "entire" number set.
This is 3/8 inch poly rope in a 25 foot lenght. You will need two 25 foot lenghts of each color to cover the 28 inch diameter hoops.

The same style poly rope can be bought in 100 foot lenghts at Home Depot for 12.00 if you want to go that route.

Bar codes:
All the colors have the same bar code 030213000085
The next picture is of some hardware you will need which you will also find at Wal-Mart...

Some of the hardware
Left to right: first is the 1/4 inch diameter 2&1/2 inch long eyebolts. Get two packs, even though you only need one the extras will come in handy to hang toy's off off.(Red package)B/Code#03506152050
Update...We started using stainless steel eyebolts that can be found at Lowes...(Home Depot may or may not have stainless steel...mine didn't but other people say theirs does)
The stainless steel eyebolts from Lowes are listed as ¼…20 thread X 2 inches long. You will find them in the hardware section in the drawers. (I think the drawers are colored blue? where they keep all the stainless hardware.)
The 4 way crosses are for 1 inch PVC...they can be found at Lowes or Home Depot.
Second or middle: is the 1/4 inch lock nuts. Get one pack containing 4 nuts.(Blue package)B/code#03506190255
Third and last is the 3/4 inch long #8 stainless steel screws. Get three packs. (Green package)B/Code#3506149525
Also get a pack of 1/4 inch washers.

This picture is of the four hoola hoops covered with the poly rope. You will notice that the rope didn't quite cover all of the hoop. No worry, just cut the excess hoop off. If you notice at the bottom of the hoops is where I ran out of the first 25 foot of rope at the halfway point and started in again with the second 25 foot rope. The tape is there to hold it in place.


Here's another pic showing how the two 25 foot lenghts of rope didn't cover the whole hoop. You can also see where I was using clear packing tape to hold the ends of the rope while wrapping it and to keep it in place. You can also use some of the SS screws to hold it in place and I would suggest doing that.. The two inside hoops need to be a little smaller than the outside hoops, so usually the two hoops that you cut the most off of will be used as the inside ones. You can make any of the hoops work that way though by simply making sure that the two inside hoops are a little smaller in diameter than the outer ones by cutting them smaller even if it means cutting some of the rope off too.



Here's a picture of why I cut the eyebots short....So I could get both of them in the 4way on each side without running into each other. Update...we have started using stainless steel hardware since then. You can get the eyebolts in stainless that are the right length already at Lowes...no more cutting them off like before. They are called 2 inch but the shaft is only one inch of that length which makes them work out great. They are also 1/4 inch in diameter.
Use the self locking nuts on the eyebolts so they can't come loose. I had to use "washers' on them to make them tighten up on the 4way. So add 1/4 inch washers to your list of supplies. If you want the eyebolts to "swivel" then don't tighten the "self locking" nuts all the way down. I like to have eyebolts on "both sides" of the 4ways so I can hang a toy in the center and also the very bottom eyebolt will allow me to hang a droppings catcher underneath later on when I make one.


Here's a picture of the holes you need to drill in the 4way to install the eyebolts. Drill a 1/8 inch diameter hole as a guide(as shown on the left) "before" drilling the 1/4 inch one.


Here's a picture of the 1/8 inch holes you need to drill for the #8 stainless steel screws to go into. There is holes drilled top and bottom and staggered so the screws don't run into one another. The holes on one side of the 4way were drilled 3/8 of a inch from the end and the other side was drilled 5/8 of an inch from the end just to give ya an idea of distance. Two of the 4ways need the 1/4 inch hole in the middle for the eyebolts while the other two don't.


Here's what the end of the hoop should look like after you cut off any excess hoop as you want the end to go up into the 4way far enough to make sure the screws go through the rope to hold it in place…or better still, if you already have some of the SS screws in place to hold the rope from coming loose. Recheck the rope to make sure it is still twisted up tight before putting it into the 4way to install the screws.

[Macawlvr]

Here's a picture of what I did to the ends to make "sure" they would not untwist or loosen back up. I installed a screw close to the end. It's the same #8 SS screw, 3/4 inch long, that is used in the 4ways. You'll need to buy an extra pack of screws to do it this way.

Here's a picture of how the ends are all the way into the 4way before installing the screws to hold them in.
Just "pay attention" that the 4way is in the right position to the curvature of the hoop before installing the screws. Put the screws on the outside of the 4way first and then put the ones in that are facing to the inside of the hoop. When the screw pulls up tight, then stop screwing it in or the screw will strip out in the plastic hoop.


Here's a pic of the two hoops that will make up the two inside hoops.


Here's the two inside hoops put together, with the red one in the background waiting to go on next.


This is a picture of the two outer hoops. They will also be the ones with the eyebolts in the 4ways.

After you put the red one around the two inside hoops, you can install the yellow one also.


You need to position the two sets of hoops in relation to one another like this. Note in the picture where the 4ways are located....top and bottom on the outside red and yellow hoops and on each side for the inner two hoops. Just keep working with it until everything looks like it should and is in place before tying it at the eight intersections where the 4ways are not there.


Then where they intersect with each other, you can take the two foot long pieces of 1/8 inch cotton rope and tie it around those spots to hold it together in that spot. Tie it around the intersections in a X pattern. You can also put some beads on the ends of the strings for them to play with also.

Here's the small cotton rope, I already colored the cotton rope with food coloring. 9Just a side note when using liquid food coloring or Vitacritter to color rope or wood…use common alcohol instead of water to mix it with.)


Here's a picture of the heavy larger beads that was used that you will find in the craft section at Wal-mart, I think they were almost five dollars for a bag.


You can make different toys of your choosing to hang on the inside…


Here's a pic with the ceiling protector attached so they can’t climb up to the ceiling. The ceiling protector is made from from a short length of PVC pipe and a couple of caps with the eyebolts in them.
You can attach it right next to the H/ball or else put the chain between the h/ball and the ceiling protector. Here's the example.

Another...


The eyebolts are supposed to swivel in the ends of the protector so don't worry about them coming loose, they have the self locking nuts on them. They swivel so if the bird is flapping their wings, the H/ball will spin around.

Again…we have started using stainless eyebolts and stainless quik links since this picture was taken.

Here is a pic of a droppings catcher that was made with some PVC pipe and a few fittings that will hang underneath the h/ball. You basically just hang a piece of plastic under the h/ball with this frame.


That’s about it folks…have fun making one and if ya got any questions, just ask.

Some more pics…
Here's Sunrise supervising the boy's while we were making it...

Two rings make a orbit...

Four rings, or two orbits make a atom...


Here it is hanging with a toy on the inside...


Another angle showing the open space in the middle...


Here's Sunrise, the toy testing pro, trying it out...


Seeya.........................James, kids and fids

PS…Here is the one that Z made for Irish’s fids "World famous Bob" and his sidekick Arthur…



Here's the link to Irish's post on the main board...
http://www.birdboard.com/forum/showthread.php?t=25903

Here's the one Camille made for Ollie...

And here's the link to Camille's post about it...
Ollie's Hoopball (Thanks James!!)

[Tiki]

James, not only is this the coolest DIY bird toy I have ever seen, it's also the best set of directions! You should write a book! Thanks for doing this!

[Macawlvr]

James, not only is this the coolest DIY bird toy I have ever seen, it's also the best set of directions! You should write a book! Thanks for doing this!

Thank you Tara, I appreciate your kind words.
This H/ball is the Caws' most played on and loved toy by far...I hope this DIY post will inspire others to try one with their birds.

Seeya............................................. ... James

[candi4me]

James the shot of your son holding it on a playstand... is it mounted to the stand? Could it be? Our ceiling will not hold something like this as we live in a trailor. I would love for Dave to make one for rio... but only if can be mounted.
Candy

[Macawlvr]

For those of you who did not want to hang the H/ball and wanted a stand for it instead...here is the DIY info on making one...

A simple PVC stand for the Hoopball

If you're interested in making a stand for the Hoopball or adapting this stand for other uses, this will be helpful, if not, then this post will be lonnnnnnng and borrrrring.
This particular size stand is made for the super extra large size 28 inch diameter Hoopball. The size can be adjusted down for smaller h/balls. The thinking behind the size of this stand was the h/ball was 28" in diameter, skirts on normal cages stick out 6 inches from cage on all sides, so I was shooting at a size of 40 inches so I could put a droppings catcher on it to keep the area clean and neat looking. The droppings catcher will be added later…for right now I will cover the making of the stand, hanging the h/ball with a anti-climbing device (ceiling guard) on top so the bird will not be tempted to try to climb to the top of the stand.
To make the stand, you will need ...
All these PVC parts and pipe are for 1 inch ID (inside diameter) pipe.
1-4 way connecter fitting
8-45 degree angle fittings
12-T fittings
5-10 foot lengths of 1 inch ID PVC pipe
and One 1/4 inch diameter eyebolt and a self locking nut.
As far as the expense for this stand project goes, the pvc parts should be around 28.00 all total. If you need glue, buy the smallest can possible and it will be around three dollars. Of course the pvc cutter tool is around ten dollars and worth it.

OK, lets get started.
Description and info about the picture will be "below" the picture.

This pic shows the 4 way connecter, the 45 degree angle fittings, some of the tee's, eyebolts, nuts, self-locking nuts, S-hooks (the s-hooks and some of the eyebolts and self locking nuts in the picture are for the d/catcher which will be added later) and of course, my PVC pipe cutting tool (cost is around 10 bucks) buy one , it's worth it's weight in gold, cuts PVC pipe like it was butter.
The 4 short 1 & 3/4 inch long pieces of pipe you see on the left side of the upper row of stuff is some I precut.

This pic shows the 5 pieces of PVC pipe you will need. (The black and grey cats are optional.) PVC pipe comes in 10 foot lengths, sometimes it's a tad bit longer or in this case, they are an inch or so short of 10 foot.

This pic shows the 4 way connector with a short 1 & 3/4 inch long piece of pipe in each of the 4 holes. I use a short piece of 2x4 to tap the pipe in all the way, you can use whatever you have... a hammer etc. You will also see the four 45 degree fittings you will put on also.

45's installed....pic of the top

Pic of the bottom

This pic shows the 4 way set up along with the four pipes that will go into it. The 4 pieces of pipe were cut out of a single piece of 10 foot pipe. The length of the pipe was a little short of ten foot so each of the 4 pieces came out to be 29 & 3/4 inches long.

Install the pipes in the 4 way. Tap them all the way in. The four 45's laying there will go on next.

Install the 45's at this angle, tap them on to make sure they seat good. The angle is not all critical, you can move them some later if they are a little off.

This is the completed cathedral type top of your stand. The reasoning behind making an angled top, other than it looking good, is that your bird will be less enticed about the concept of wanting to go up there to sit because there is no flat place to sit comfortably.

This pic is of the 8 upright vertical leg parts. Cut each piece 29 inches long. This will consume two lengths of 10 foot pipes with some short ends left over. Save the ends, you will need them later.

This pic shows how you will place the 8 Tee's on the pipes...4 are placed in opposing positions with the bottom four all angled straight up. (placement of black cat is optional) Tap the pipes into the fittings to properly seat them.

Now, out of your remaining pipes, you need to cut 6 pipes 38 inches long.


This pic shows the placement of 2 of the 38 inch pipes into the leg pieces. Tap to make sure they are tight.

Now add your next two 38 inch pipes to the legs to make the square frame as pictured above.

This pic shows your remaining two 38 inch pipe along with the 4 Tee's you have left. You will need to cut four 1 & 3/4 inch long pipes to put these parts together. Tap to seat them.

They will look like this when together.

Turn the pieces up with the short pipe stubs facing up so you can connect them into the bottom of the other Tee's that are there. Tap to seat.

Before you add the top, drill a 1/4 inch hole in the bottom of the 4 way connector and add your eyebolt with a regular nut. Then put your self locking nut on top of that so it doesn’t back off and turn loose. (The self locking nut has not been added as yet in the picture.)

Install the top, tap to make sure it is seated all the way.
This is what you will need for your anti-climbing device....same thing as a ceiling protector and so forth.
One piece of 2 inch pipe a minimum of 18 inches long for macaws. Smaller and shorter can be used for smaller fids. One piece of two inch pipe, 2 end caps, a eyebolt and nuts for each end with self locking nuts. Be sure and use self locking nuts on top of the regular nuts or the nut will back off and come loose as they play on it and the h/ball will drop with possible tragic results for your fid/s.

Note...When drilling the holes in the end caps or anywhere else on PVC, drill a small pilot hole first, like a 1/8 inch one and then drill your larger hole.
This picture above shows where you should place the PVC glue for safety of the fids. Put the glue only in the back of the hole in the fitting and put the pipe in "immediately" as the glue will set in seconds. You have to hold the pipe in place for at least 30 seconds or else the glue will push it back out some. You apply the glue to the back part only so there is no glue on the outside of the parts for the fids to get to. You will probably only need to glue the caps onto the anti climbing device (ceiling protector) as it will have downward pull and the end caps could come off allowing the h/ball to drop. You can avoid the glue by using screws to hold the caps on. Screws work fine unless you have fids like mine who will work at those screws until they get them out.

Use PVC glue outside and "away" from your fids as the fumes are "toxic" until it has out gassed and dried completely. I let my parts dry for 24 hours before bringing them back in the house. They are safe for birds "after" the glue is completely dry.
If you would like to put the anti-climbing device together without using any glue, you could drill some small pilot holes through the caps around the sides and put screws through the caps into the pipe to hold it together securely. I would suggest four screws spaced evenly around each cap to hold them on.
If you are going to install rollers on the bottom of your stand, you will need to glue the support bars into the tee's so it won't pull apart when you pull on it to move it around.

H/ball in place hanging from anti-climbing device.

I use small locks as connecters on my stuff as my fids will tear up anything else.


Tha...tha...that's all folks!!!

Seeya.............................James

[Bela]

You are my hero and I am grateful for this! I know what I'm gonna try this weekend!

[Willow]

Awesome! I first saw plans like these in the winter and scoured places to no avail to find hula hoops - then I forgot all about it so I ought to go looking now! ;~)

Just an FYI that I have bought stainless steel eyebolts and other hardware at home depot, they have a special rack of stainless steel stuff, at least at the one near me.

[janevhfla]

excellant instructions!i couldnt have asked for better instructions than having you right in the living room making it for me!it must have taken you alot of time just to post them for us .so thank-you thank-you thank-you!i plan on making one for my fid! you make it look so easy!

[puffinp]

James, you are the MAN!!! Now can you come up with something for my Too,Puff? He ie afraid of most everything that is larger than him....