Alright so today I wanna talk about this volleyball net setup I hacked together using pine timber. Had this problem every summer – wanna string up a net in the backyard quickly, but hate leaving the poles stuck in the ground all the time. Looks messy, dogs trip over ’em, gotta yank ’em out later. Annoying.
The Big Idea
Started thinking: what if the poles weren’t really in the ground? Like, maybe I could make bases I could just stick ’em into? Something heavy I could pull outta the way when done.
Digging Around the Shed
First step was rummaging. Found these decently straight pine 4x4s left over from some shelving project years ago. Good length, about 8 feet tall. Needed bases now. Scrap lumber again – smaller chunks of 2×10 plywood for bottom plates. Grabbed my tape measure, circular saw, drill, big ol’ wood screws, some exterior wood glue, and a couple of these heavy-duty metal U-brackets I had lying around.
Building the Removable Bit
- Cut the bases: Measured roughly 15 inches square on the plywood scraps. Wanted a decent footprint for stability so the whole thing wouldn’t just tip over if someone leaned on the net. Saw dust everywhere after cutting two squares.
- Prep the poles: Took the pine 4x4s. Cut about 4 inches off the bottom of each pole. You gotta cut one pole at a time to make sure the cuts were even. Ended up a tiny bit wonky on one, had to shave it down with the saw. Pro-tip: measure twice, cut once… maybe measure a third time.
- Attach the stubs to bases: Took the 4-inch pole chunks I just cut. Smothered the bottom with that exterior wood glue. Plonked each chunk dead center on one of the plywood squares. Messy.
- Screw them down HARD: While the glue was wet, grabbed the drill and sunk four long screws down through the plywood into the bottom of the short pole stub from underneath. Didn’t wanna leave anything loose. Repeated for the other base.
- Install the U-brackets: Okay, the cool part. Took the remaining tall pole sections. Measured about 3 inches up from the bottom end. Attached a sturdy U-bracket right there using strong screws, big washers so it wouldn’t rip through the pine. The open part of the ‘U’ facing down.
Putting it Together (The Test)
Placement time. Dragged the two bases out to the yard where I wanted the net. Made sure they were spaced about right for the net. Now, pick up a tall pole, line up that open U-bracket over the short stub sticking up from the base, then just slide the pole down. Clunk. It sat right on top of the stub! The weight and the bracket hold it kinda snug. Grabbed the second pole, did the same thing.
Unrolled the net, fed it through the pole hooks like normal. Pulled it tight. Gave it a gentle shake. Solid! Gave it a firmer shove. It wobbled a bit, sure, but nothing crazy and it didn’t topple. The bases stayed put. Dog wandered by, sniffed it, didn’t knock it over. Winner so far. Volleyball flew over during testing and smacked the net. Poles held fast.
The Real Payoff
Game ended, time to clear the yard. Lift one pole straight up. Slides right off the base stub. Lift the second pole. Drag the net away. Now just pick up the two bases and stash them sideways in the garage. No digging holes. No holes to fill back in later. The lawn looks untouched. Took maybe 2 minutes to pack it all away. Pine felt totally sturdy enough for this job. The “removable” part actually worked!
Total win. Feels like cheating the “permanent pole in the ground” system. Took some scrap lumber and a couple of hours being messy in the yard, but now setup and tear down is stupid easy.
