Content

• To step
• Part 1 of 2: Making a ball of rubber bands
• Tips
• Warnings
• Necessities

There are many good reasons to make a ball of rubber bands. You can bounce with it, you can use it to keep all your rubber bands together or you can squeeze them to strengthen the muscles of your hands. If you enjoy making your first ball then this could even become a hobby.

To step

Part 1 of 2: Making a ball of rubber bands

1. Make the core. You can start with any small object, such as a marble or a golf ball. However, a "real" ball of rubber bands does not contain any other materials. Here's how to get started:
   • Choose a short, thick elastic, such as one used to tie vegetables or a mail elastic.
   • Fold this elastic in half twice and try a third time if possible. Do not twist the elastic. You should now have a flat "pile" of rubber bands.
   • Press the thick elastic flat between your fingers and wrap a thinner elastic around it.
   • Twist the loose end of the thin elastic around its own axis and wrap it the other way around the thick elastic.
   • Keep twisting and wrapping until you can't stretch the thin elastic any further.
2. Get all your rubber bands for free. Making a ball of rubber bands is a challenge anyway, so why not make it more difficult? Try to make your ball bigger without paying for the rubber bands. Here are some ways you can do that:
   • Ask friends and neighbors if they have any rubber bands left.
   • Ask mail deliverers, newspaper deliverers, and other deliverers for rubber bands.
   • Ask at shoe stores, where they may use elastic bands to keep the shoe boxes tight.
3. Make a ball without twisting the rubber bands on their axis. If you don't twist the rubber bands, they lie flat against each other with no air in between. This way you create the thickest, most massive ball that bounces the best. The trick is to keep a new elastic exactly find the right size so you can't stretch the elastic even further when sliding it around the ball in one go.
4. Make a huge ball. A ball of rubber bands is very thick and massive, so when it is a certain size it is too heavy to bounce without breaking anything. After that it is a challenge to make your ball as big as possible.You can even break the world record if you manage to collect 700,000 rubber bands.
   • Wear safety glasses when your rubber band ball has grown to about the size of a basketball. A lot of rubber bands will pop after this and of course you don't want to get them in your eyes.
   • Rubber bands decay over time. To keep your ball from getting smaller or falling apart, reinforce it regularly.
5. Cut your old ball in half. Once your rubber band ball is the size of a basketball, it will likely lie in the corner of your room, graying out, and fraying more and more. Would you like to do something fun with your ball for the last time? Then saw the ball in half and watch the inside come out by itself like a bizarre colony of worms. If that description doesn't stop you from getting into this hobby, gather your rubber bands and get on your ball!

Tips

• If you are having a hard time making a core for your ball of rubber bands, start with several short rubber bands instead. Make a wad of it and use your fingers to hold it together as you wrap thinner rubber bands around it. Some people find this easier, but it does make the core less even and can disintegrate before a solid layer of rubber bands is wrapped around it.
• When the ball gets too big and the rubber bands no longer fit around it, you can cut two rubber bands, tie the ends together and wrap it around the ball.
• Colorful rubber bands make the ball look more beautiful and different, but the colors will eventually fade.
• If you want to give a nice gift to someone, why not put a piece of paper with a secret message in the center of the ball? If you want to do a mean trick, you can also make the ball annoyingly big and tell your friend that the girl he likes put a note in the middle.

Warnings

• Over time, the rubber melts (vulcanizes) naturally. Heat and UV light can speed up this process, so do not take the ball to warm places or expose it to the sun.

Necessities

• Rubber bands
• A piece of aluminum foil or a small ball (optional)