Pachinko Machine

Pachinko machines are popular gambling devices in Japan. The Pachinko machine shown here is very basic and easy to make.

Step 1: What You Need

The only materials needed for this machine are wood (preferably a stronger type),wood glue, and bouncy balls. You also need any kind of tool that can cut the wood (i.e. a saw) and a drill.

Step 2: Make the Base and the Walls

The very first step is to make the base of the machine. This wood must be smooth for the balls to go down it. The base measures 14" x 18". Also included in this step are the walls which need to be the length of the board both horizontally and vertically. The walls should be between 2" so the ball doesn't come out and the walls must be glued to the every side of the base a except for the bottom.

Step 3: Adding the Inner Walls

Now you must make a tunnel for the ball to go through before it starts going down the board. First you need to cut a piece of wood 15" long and 1.5" wide. The space in between this wall and the right outside wall should also be 1.5", or enough for your ball to smoothly go down the tunnel. Once that's glued into place you need a small piece of wood (about 1" x 1.5") and put it in the corner created by the right wall and top wall. This wood acts as a backstop for the ball to bounce off of.

Step 4: Making the "pins"

The word pins is in quotations in the title because you're really using cut dowels to act as pins. The dowel size should be, or be very close to, 1/4". The dowels only need to be tall enough for the ball to not bounce over them. When gluing the dowels there must be 1 and 7/8 of an inch between them. I would highly recommend using a pencil and drawing in where they should go before gluing them. Lastly, the outer pins that are closest to the walls may need to have small walls between them and the outer walls so the ball doesn't get stuck in between.

Step 5: Adding More Walls Inside and Giving the Balls a Place to Land

There needs to be multiple slots for the balls to go through after they go through the pins. All you need to do is cut slim pieces of wood that are 5 and 1/4" x 1". Simply glue these pieces to the bottom of the board parallel to the big inner wall and make sure they're evenly spaced. The next step is to add what is basically a box without a top to the bottom of the board which gives the balls a place to land.

Step 6: Propelling the Ball

This step is the easiest. You need a dowel that is glued to a small piece of wood. next you need to drill a hole into a piece of wood and put the dowel through that piece. Then simply glue the piece with the dowel through it to the the entrance to the "tunnel". This will allow you to propel the ball forward and onto the board.

Step 7: Adding Ramps to the Bottom of the Board

The final step is to add small ramps to the bottom of the board so it's at an incline and the balls go downward. And although it's optional, you can add a light to the top of the machince by attaching it with Velcro.