I made one for my daughter and one for me, I had everything in my shed, except for the rope.
Materials:
Rope: I bought a 100′ for $9.97 at Lowe’s. 100′ is overkill, but extra chord is always handy, and $.58 by the foot was too expensive.
Lead pipe (closet clothes rod): Free
pvc: 3/4″ or 1″ is preferred, but I had 1/2″ left over from working on my sprinklers. Also, I made a little one for my 2 year old daughter and the 1/2″ fits her little hands well.
Duct tape: You can use electrical as well. Tape is used for capping sand filled 18″ pvc that you are making into rings. I also used it for taping ends of cut rope.
Sand: Play sand can be purchased for $4 or $5 for a bag of 40lbs. The sand is used to fill the 18″ lengths of pvc to help them retain shape. Click here for detailed instructions of how to make the rings.
Version 1.0 has stationary rings with a single piece of uncut rope. V.2 the includes adjustable rings. The easiest and most popular way to do this is with tie down straps found at any hardware or home improvement store.
tie-down-straps
Most people use tie down straps with their rings to allow for easy adjustment. They will cost you less than $15 for a pair and come in various sizes and prices. I decided to try and do it all with rope. I spent a lot of time trying to figure out the best way. I looked for the best knot that would allow me to adjust the height of the ring quickly. I had attempted this before by shortening the rope connected to the ring w/ a slip knot, but getting the rings level was too difficult. I had almost given up when I found the Prusik knot or Triple sliding hitch. This climbing knot allows for gripping and sliding, and perfect for replacing tie down straps.
The knot I used for the ends as stoppers is called the Franciscan Monk’s knot.
Rings offer a unique challenge in stabilization when performing movements from push-ups, dips, pull-ups, and a world of variations and degrees of resistance.