Just a question. Do you find the solid rods to be a bit heavy on the arms after a couple of hours of play? Was it worth the money saved to go with solid rods or would you go with hollow rods next time? Thanks
I went with the solid rods because they were about $20 each and Tornado rods sold for $60 here in Canada. Price was clearly the deciding factor. I eventually changed the 3bars to hollow rods, but only after I became more competitive in local tournaments. If I had to do it again, I would get the hollow rods, but if you only play for fun, the solid rods weren't so bad. Actually, I think my forearms were conditioned to the heavier rods, so I hit harder when I played on hollow rod tables.
Just another question then. If you had to do it all again, would you? That is, would you build it from scratch again for the savings,or would you just bite the bullet and buy an original Tornado?
Building the table myself was very interesting and educational. I would not hesitate in building it again because I learned so much from the experience. Yes, I could have purchased a Tornado home edition for the same cost . I knew the hidden cost of my time and labor would never be recouped when I decided to sell it but I really enjoyed the build and the feeling of accomplishment. It was kind of therapeutic; spending my free time in the garage working on project, with a beer and a router.
@nightubble Depends. Since you're asking, I assume you're not a pro looking to compete in Tornado WCS or World Cup/Championships, but maybe looking to compete some day. In that case, if it was me, I'd get a used T2000 coin-op instead. The play is very similar. With the money u save u could aslo buy a used Garlando WC and learn to play both. Being a top Foos player means being able to play not just on one type of table.
The playfield was basically a piece of 1 inch MDF that i laminated with green coloured Arborite. It was fairly easy but when you glue down any plastic laminate, you want to make sure you don't get any bubbles of air under the laminate. This could impact the roll of the ball and affect play.
You can also try alternatives to plastic laminate as a playfield surface. I found that i was unable to add any playfield markings without affecting the roll of the ball. I decided that any sort of white tape or paint would change the uniformity and texture of the laminate. You might want to try frosted glass or plexiglass. These two surfaced types are transparent and lines can be drawn underneath allowing for the playfield pattern.
The whole project took me about 3mo to build and cost me about $400.00 Cdn for materials . I don't know how that converts into pounds but my guess is roughly £200. Parts cost an additional $200. The only real Tornado parts that i bought were the men, pins and balls. The rods, bumpers, bearings, and score keepers were cheaper and could be purchased at any arcade/vending supply or amusement game store.
Places that sell table-top games, like pool tables, shuffleboards, and poker tables, often sell foosball tables and their spare parts. Building the table was fun and challenging but it helped that i had access to a tablesaw, router and drillpress.
If you search the internet you might find plans or instructions for building your own table. This is what i did at first but i also modified the plans to clone the Tornado style table. I hope this helps and good luck! If you have any other questions, please feel free to ask and i'll reply as soon as i can.
I build the table using MDF and laminate. In order to cut the cost, I bought cheaper, solid rods, which did accept the tornado handles. These videos were used to help sell the table on craigslist. I linked them to my craigslist ad and managed to sell it within two days of posting and for near 'asking price'.
The parts were basically the kind you get from any generic foosball table, not anything like the real Tornado stuff. Cheap rubber handles and plastic sleeve bearings.
Yes it is usually pronounced torNAYdoh, but i thought i heard a few Texans call it torNAWdoh at the last worlds. I was just paying homage to the inventors of the world's best-built foosball table. ;)
SR. where in the U.S. can i buy foosball stuff like players and all that stuf??
footballero2010 2 weeks ago
any tips, im going to make a foosball table for a school project
ThePidgey2 1 month ago
tornahdo?
bleachzeldakid 1 year ago
you sure do say tornado funny in the beginning of this movie
Celwynar 1 year ago
Just a question. Do you find the solid rods to be a bit heavy on the arms after a couple of hours of play? Was it worth the money saved to go with solid rods or would you go with hollow rods next time? Thanks
jagiar 2 years ago
I went with the solid rods because they were about $20 each and Tornado rods sold for $60 here in Canada. Price was clearly the deciding factor. I eventually changed the 3bars to hollow rods, but only after I became more competitive in local tournaments. If I had to do it again, I would get the hollow rods, but if you only play for fun, the solid rods weren't so bad. Actually, I think my forearms were conditioned to the heavier rods, so I hit harder when I played on hollow rod tables.
chipfoos 2 years ago
Just another question then. If you had to do it all again, would you? That is, would you build it from scratch again for the savings,or would you just bite the bullet and buy an original Tornado?
jagiar 2 years ago
Building the table myself was very interesting and educational. I would not hesitate in building it again because I learned so much from the experience. Yes, I could have purchased a Tornado home edition for the same cost . I knew the hidden cost of my time and labor would never be recouped when I decided to sell it but I really enjoyed the build and the feeling of accomplishment. It was kind of therapeutic; spending my free time in the garage working on project, with a beer and a router.
chipfoos 2 years ago
@jagiar
hey, should i buy The T3000 for home usage for playing ? Or the "elite" one or the "classic" one ? all are Tornado's
nightubble 1 year ago
@nightubble Depends. Since you're asking, I assume you're not a pro looking to compete in Tornado WCS or World Cup/Championships, but maybe looking to compete some day. In that case, if it was me, I'd get a used T2000 coin-op instead. The play is very similar. With the money u save u could aslo buy a used Garlando WC and learn to play both. Being a top Foos player means being able to play not just on one type of table.
jagiar 1 year ago
The playfield was basically a piece of 1 inch MDF that i laminated with green coloured Arborite. It was fairly easy but when you glue down any plastic laminate, you want to make sure you don't get any bubbles of air under the laminate. This could impact the roll of the ball and affect play.
chipfoos 2 years ago
You can also try alternatives to plastic laminate as a playfield surface. I found that i was unable to add any playfield markings without affecting the roll of the ball. I decided that any sort of white tape or paint would change the uniformity and texture of the laminate. You might want to try frosted glass or plexiglass. These two surfaced types are transparent and lines can be drawn underneath allowing for the playfield pattern.
chipfoos 2 years ago
The whole project took me about 3mo to build and cost me about $400.00 Cdn for materials . I don't know how that converts into pounds but my guess is roughly £200. Parts cost an additional $200. The only real Tornado parts that i bought were the men, pins and balls. The rods, bumpers, bearings, and score keepers were cheaper and could be purchased at any arcade/vending supply or amusement game store.
chipfoos 2 years ago
Places that sell table-top games, like pool tables, shuffleboards, and poker tables, often sell foosball tables and their spare parts. Building the table was fun and challenging but it helped that i had access to a tablesaw, router and drillpress.
chipfoos 2 years ago
If you search the internet you might find plans or instructions for building your own table. This is what i did at first but i also modified the plans to clone the Tornado style table. I hope this helps and good luck! If you have any other questions, please feel free to ask and i'll reply as soon as i can.
chipfoos 2 years ago
I build the table using MDF and laminate. In order to cut the cost, I bought cheaper, solid rods, which did accept the tornado handles. These videos were used to help sell the table on craigslist. I linked them to my craigslist ad and managed to sell it within two days of posting and for near 'asking price'.
chipfoos 2 years ago
The parts were basically the kind you get from any generic foosball table, not anything like the real Tornado stuff. Cheap rubber handles and plastic sleeve bearings.
chipfoos 2 years ago
Yes it is usually pronounced torNAYdoh, but i thought i heard a few Texans call it torNAWdoh at the last worlds. I was just paying homage to the inventors of the world's best-built foosball table. ;)
chipfoos 2 years ago