It has been really cold here recently, I'm stuck inside. But! I have a ping-pong table AND a recently acquired automatic ping-pong ball launcher. Problem: a-lot of ping pong balls end up on the floor! I wanted something to make picking up ping-pong balls easier.

Instructables already had a Ping Pong Ball Picker Upper design, but I found another design for sale online that seemed better (My Ping Pong Buddy) especially because it could pick up balls under the table. The online version was $45, too much. Hey Instructables has a similar design Table Tennis Ball Collector However I don't want to go out for parts and Instructables is running a Trash To Treasure challenge, so.... I collected some bits and pieces laying around and made my own...here's how you can make one too!

Supplies Required:

Old badminton racquet (with a metal shaft)
Fishing line
Ice cream bucket OR Netting from oranges
Broom handle or PVC pipe
Duct Tape
Zip Ties to fasten bucket or netting (or fasten with fishing line)

Tools Required:

Scissors
Propane torch (optional)
Clamp to hold racquet while heating shaft and taping handles (optional)
Box knife or Dremel tool to cut bottom off bucket
Woodscrew long enough to go through handle and racquet handle (optional)
Drill to predrill the woodscrew (optional)

Step 1: Assemble Your Ping Pong Picker Upper

Bend Shaft: The trickiest step to this entire process is bending the metal of the racquet shaft. Bend too hard and fast and it will snap (been there). Since I already had a small inexpensive propane torch I heated the shaft a bit before bending it and that seemed to help. A clamp came in handy for the torch and bend process.
Remove Old String:. Note how I tried using the torch to get this started :-) but basically made a mess. Just cut any remaining strings and pull them out of the frame. You can't really use the old strings because it is one long string and the gaps need to be wider.
Add New String: Used some super old fish line, and simply threaded the horizontal rows (skipping 2 holes between each line). No vertical strings are required. I made one continuous string with a knot at the beginning and the end.
Add Collector: I intended to use a net as shown for the ball collector, but while removing the label the netting ripped. I had an ice cream bucket handy and it was just the right size. The bucket works great for pouring out the collected balls. Netting might be a bit lighter and allow to get under even tighter spaces. I used a Dremmel tool to cut the bottom of the bucket (bonus the bottom will come in handy for painting or collecting nuts and bolds). I used 3 zip ties to fasten the bucket. If there is no handle on your bucket you may have to punch holes for the zip ties. To save the cost of zip ties you could use some fishline to tie the bucket or mesh.
Fasten the Handle: Since I had a broom handle handy, I decided to simply duct tape the handle to the racquet handle. For extra strength I added one wood screw (I recommend predrilling the hole for the screw). If you choose to use pvc pipe you should be able to sand the racquet handle down enough to allow the pvc to just fit over it, or simply tape it.